Arrangements and methods for vehicles operable on electrical road systems
AssigneeVolvo Truck Corporation
InventorHans Forsberg
Life of this patent
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Abstract
A method and an arrangement are provided for inductive positioning of a current collector on a vehicle relative to a stationary current conductor. The method involves transmitting a signal having predetermined phase characteristics using a signal transmitter arranged along the longitudinal direction of the current conductor; detecting the transmitted signal using a signal receiver on the vehicle, which signal receiver comprises at least one vertical antenna; detecting the phase characteristics of the signal induced in the at least one vertical antenna, indicating the relative location of the vertical antenna and the signal transmitter in the transverse direction of the vehicle; and controlling a positioning arrangement in dependence of the received signals.
Claims29
Method for inductive positioning of a current collector on a vehicle relative to a stationary current conductor, the vehicle comprising the current collector arranged to be displaced between a retracted first position and an operative second position in contact with the current conductor;
- positioning means for moving the current collector at least in the vertical direction of the vehicle;
- the method involving performing the steps of:
- transmitting a signal having predetermined phase characteristics using a signal transmitter arranged along the longitudinal direction of the current conductor;
- detecting the transmitted signal using a signal receiver on the vehicle, which signal receiver comprises multiple transversely spaced vertical antennas;
- detecting the phase characteristics of the signals induced in the multiple transversely spaced vertical antennas, indicating the relative location of the vertical antennas and the signal transmitter in the transverse direction of the vehicle;
- comparing phase characteristics of each signal to determine the transverse location of the vertical antennas relative to the longitudinal direction of the signal transmitter;
- and controlling the positioning means in dependence of the received signals and the determined location of the vertical antennas relative to the signal transmitter.
Arrangement for transmitting electric power between a current conductor and a vehicle, the arrangement comprising a current collector mounted on the vehicle and arranged to be displaced between a retracted first position and an operative second position in contact with the current conductor;
- positioning means for moving the current collector at least in the vertical direction of the vehicle;
- a signal transmitter is connected to the current conductor;
- a signal receiver arranged on the vehicle to receive signals from the signal transmitter;
- and a control device for controlling the positioning means in dependence of the received signals;
- wherein the signal receiver comprises multiple transversely spaced vertical antennas:
- detecting the phase characteristics of the signals induced in the multiple transversely spaced vertical antennas, indicating the relative location of the vertical antennas and the signal transmitter in the transverse direction of the vehicle;
- comparing phase characteristics of each signal to determine the transverse location of the vertical antennas relative to the longitudinal direction of the signal transmitter;
- and controlling the positioning means in dependence of the received signals and the determined location of the current collector relative to the signal transmitter.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.