# US 11,993,235 B2 · Brake monitoring systems for railcars

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- Number: US 11,993,235 B2
- Document ID: US11993235B2
- Status: Granted
- Kind: B2
- Application number: 17/685,822
- Filed: 2022-03-03
- Published: 2023-02-02
- Granted: 2024-05-28
- Earliest claimed: 2018-07-12
- Assignees: Amsted Rail Company, Inc.
- Applicants: Amsted Rail Company, Inc.
- Inventors: Andrew H. Martin
- Web page: https://patentgrep.com/patent/US11993235B2

## CPC

- B60T 17/228: {for railway vehicles}
- B60T 8/1705: {for rail vehicles}
- B60T 13/66: Electrical control in fluid-pressure brake systems
- B60T 13/665: {the systems being specially adapted for transferring two or more command signals, e.g. railway systems (B60T13/662 takes precedence)}
- B60T 17/221: {Procedure or apparatus for checking or keeping in a correct functioning condition of brake systems (hydraulic pressure systems in general F15B19/00, F15B21/04; testing structures or apparatus G01M)}
- B61H 13/00: Actuating rail-vehicle brakes
- B61H 15/00: Wear-compensating mechanisms, e.g. slack adjusters
- B61L 15/0018: {Communication with or on the vehicle or train}
- B61L 15/0072: {On-board train data handling}
- B61L 15/0081: {On-board diagnosis or maintenance}
- B61L 15/009: {On-board display devices}
- B60T 2270/88: Pressure measurement in brake systems
- B60T: VEHICLE BRAKE CONTROL SYSTEMS OR PARTS THEREOF; BRAKE CONTROL SYSTEMS OR PARTS THEREOF, IN GENERAL (electrodynamic brake systems for vehicle, in general B60L; brakes per se, i.e. devices where braking effect occurs, including ultimate brake actuators, F16D); ARRANGEMENT OF BRAKING ELEMENTS ON VEHICLES IN GENERAL; PORTABLE DEVICES FOR PREVENTING UNWANTED MOVEMENT OF VEHICLES; VEHICLE MODIFICATIONS TO FACILITATE COOLING OF BRAKES
- B61H: BRAKES OR OTHER RETARDING DEVICES SPECIALLY ADAPTED FOR RAIL VEHICLES; ARRANGEMENT OR DISPOSITION THEREOF IN RAIL VEHICLES (arrangements in rail vehicles for adjusting wheel-braking force to meet varying vehicular or permanent-way conditions B60T8/00; transmitting braking action from initiating means to ultimate brake actuator with power assistance or drive, brake systems incorporating such transmitting means, e.g. air-pressure brake systems, B60T13/00; construction, arrangement or operation of valves incorporated in power brake systems B60T15/00; component parts, details or accessories of brake systems B60T17/00)
- B61L: GUIDING RAILWAY TRAFFIC; ENSURING THE SAFETY OF RAILWAY TRAFFIC (brakes or auxiliary equipment B61H, B61K; point or crossing construction E01B)

## Abstract

A system and method for detecting the operational status of a brake system on a railcar. The system receives from a sensor an indication of the magnitude of a braking force applied by the braking system in response to an instruction to increase or decrease the braking force. It compares the response to possible responses of the braking system in view of the instruction provided. Based on the comparison, the system generates at least one of a message and/or an alert indicating the status of the brake system. Additional sensors, including a pressure sensor on a brake pipe of the railcar, can be added for additional functionality.

## Claims

### Claim 1

A method for monitoring at least one railcar, comprising:
applying a braking force to wheels of the at least one railcar;
causing a mechanical load to be sensed by or applied to at least one first sensor device when the braking force is being applied to the wheels of the at least one railcar;
receiving, by a computing device, an electrical signal from the at least one first sensor device;
analyzing, by the computing device, the electrical signal to assess an operational condition of a brake system of the at least one railcar; and
causing, by the computing device, the operational condition to be provided to an operator of the at least one railcar or a communication device located remote from the at least one railcar;
wherein application of the mechanical load to the at least one first sensor is at least partially caused because the at least one first sensor mechanically couples an articulating rigging of the brake system to a non-articulating underframe of the at least one railcar.

### Claim 2

A method for monitoring at least one railcar, comprising:
applying a braking force to wheels of the at least one railcar;
causing a mechanical load to be sensed by or applied to at least one first sensor device when the braking force is being applied to the wheels of the at least one railcar;
receiving, by a computing device, an electrical signal from the at least one first sensor device;
analyzing, by the computing device, the electrical signal to assess an operational condition of a brake system of the at least one railcar; and
causing, by the computing device, the operational condition to be provided to an operator of the at least one railcar or a communication device located remote from the at least one railcar;
wherein application of the mechanical load to the at least one first sensor is at least partially caused because the at least one first sensor is located at a location within an articulating rigging of the brake system that is downstream from a brake lever of the brake system.

### Claim 3 (depends on 2)

The method according to claim 2, wherein the location resides between two rods of the articulating rigging of the brake system.

### Claim 4

A method for monitoring at least one railcar, comprising:
applying a braking force to wheels of the at least one railcar;
causing a mechanical load to be sensed by or applied to at least one first sensor device when the braking force is being applied to the wheels of the at least one railcar;
receiving, by a computing device, an electrical signal from the at least one first sensor device;
analyzing, by the computing device, the electrical signal to assess an operational condition of a brake system of the at least one railcar;
causing, by the computing device, the operational condition to be provided to an operator of the at least one railcar or a communication device located remote from the at least one railcar; and
performing operations by an accelerometer or gyroscope to monitor attributes of the at least one railcar;
wherein the operational condition of the brake system is assessed by further analyzing an output from the accelerometer or gyroscope.

### Claim 5 (depends on 4)

The method according to claim 4, further comprising generating an alert regarding a braking force associated with the at least one railcar based on the analyzing of the output from the accelerometer or gyroscope.

### Claim 6 (depends on 4)

The method according to claim 4, further comprising displaying in near real-time a visual alert of a malfunctioning brake of the at least one railcar based on the analyzing of the output from the accelerometer or gyroscope.

### Claim 7

A method for monitoring at least one railcar, comprising:
applying a braking force to wheels of the at least one railcar;
causing a mechanical load to be sensed by or applied to at least one first sensor device when the braking force is being applied to the wheels of the at least one railcar;
receiving, by a computing device, an electrical signal from the at least one first sensor device;
analyzing, by the computing device, the electrical signal to assess an operational condition of a brake system of the at least one railcar; and
causing, by the computing device, the operational condition to be provided to an operator of the at least one railcar or a communication device located remote from the at least one railcar;
obtaining information specifying a position of a valve, the valve having a first position indicating that the at least one railcar is loaded and a second position indicating that the at least one railcar is empty; and
modifying an amount of air to be supplied to a brake cylinder during braking operations of the at least one railcar based on the position of the valve.

### Claim 8 (depends on 7)

The method according to claim 7, wherein the amount of air is increased when the valve is in the first position and the amount of air is reduced when the valve is in the second position.

### Claim 9

A method for monitoring at least one railcar, comprising:
applying a braking force to wheels of the at least one railcar;
causing a mechanical load to be sensed by or applied to at least one first sensor device when the braking force is being applied to the wheels of the at least one railcar;
receiving, by a computing device, an electrical signal from the at least one first sensor device;
analyzing, by the computing device, the electrical signal to assess an operational condition of a brake system of the at least one railcar;
causing, by the computing device, the operational condition to be provided to an operator of the at least one railcar or a communication device located remote from the at least one railcar;
monitoring an air pressure in a brake pipe of the brake system using a pressure switch;
detecting when the air pressure increases above a first threshold value or decreases below a second threshold value;
triggering at least one pressure reading by the pressure switch in response to a detection that the air pressure increased above the first threshold or decreased below the second threshold;
receiving, by the computing device, first sensor data from the pressure switch that indicates the at least one pressure reading; and
generating, by the computing device, a message containing the first sensor data and a time of at which the at least one pressure reading was triggered.

### Claim 10 (depends on 9)

The method according to claim 9, further comprising:
performing operations by a pressure sensor to continually sample the air pressure in the brake pipe at a sampling rate; and
receiving, by the computing device, second sensor data from the pressure sensor that indicates the air pressure in the brake pipe over a duration of time;
wherein the message additionally contains the second sensor data.

### Claim 11 (depends on 10)

The method according to claim 10, further comprising adjusting the sampling rate of the pressure sensor based on an operational state of the at least one railcar.

### Claim 12 (depends on 11)

The method according to claim 11, wherein the operational state comprises parked or operating.

### Claim 13

A method for monitoring at least one railcar, comprising:
applying a braking force to wheels of the at least one railcar;
causing a mechanical load to be sensed by or applied to at least one first sensor device when the braking force is being applied to the wheels of the at least one railcar;
receiving, by a computing device, an electrical signal from the at least one first sensor device;
analyzing, by the computing device, the electrical signal to assess an operational condition of a brake system of the at least one railcar; and
causing, by the computing device, the operational condition to be provided to an operator of the at least one railcar or a communication device located remote from the at least one railcar;
performing operations by a sensor to detect changes in a length of a slack adjuster in the brake system; and
wherein the operational condition of the brake system is assessed by further analyzing an output from the sensor.

### Claim 14

A method for monitoring at least one railcar, comprising:
applying a braking force to wheels of the at least one railcar;
causing a mechanical load to be sensed by or applied to at least one first sensor device when the braking force is being applied to the wheels of the at least one railcar;
receiving, by a computing device, an electrical signal from the at least one first sensor device;
analyzing, by the computing device, the electrical signal to assess an operational condition of a brake system of the at least one railcar; and
causing, by the computing device, the operational condition to be provided to an operator of the at least one railcar or a communication device located remote from the at least one railcar; and
performing operations by a sensor to sample a tread temperature of at least one said wheel of the at least one railcar at a sampling rate;
wherein the operational condition of the brake system is assessed by further analyzing an output from the sensor.

### Claim 15 (depends on 14)

The method according to claim 14, wherein the sampling rate is adjusted based on an operational state of the at least one railcar.

### Claim 16 (depends on 15)

The method according to claim 15, wherein the operational state comprises parked or operating.

### Claim 17 (depends on 14)

The method according to claim 14, wherein the sensor is mounted at a location on the at least one railcar that provides the sensor with an unobstructed line-of-sight to a tread of the at least one said wheel.

### Claim 18

A method for monitoring at least one railcar, comprising:
applying a braking force to wheels of the at least one railcar;
causing a mechanical load to be sensed by or applied to at least one first sensor device when the braking force is being applied to the wheels of the at least one railcar;
receiving, by a computing device, an electrical signal from the at least one first sensor device;
analyzing, by the computing device, the electrical signal to assess an operational condition of a brake system of the at least one railcar;
causing, by the computing device, the operational condition to be provided to an operator of the at least one railcar or a communication device located remote from the at least one railcar;
receiving, by the computing device, an indication that a threshold event has occurred at the at least one railcar, the threshold event occurring when an amount of the brake force being applied to the wheels of the at least one railcar reaches a certain value;
causing, by the computing device, enablement of a timer responsive to the indication that the threshold event has occurred at the at least one railcar; and
determining, by the computing device, whether the threshold event has occurred at one or more other railcars of a plurality of railcars during a predetermined period of time.

### Claim 19 (depends on 18)

The method according to claim 18, further comprising concluding by the computing device that a brake system of at least one of the plurality of railcars is malfunctioning when the threshold event did not occur thereat during the predetermined period of time.

### Claim 20

A method for monitoring at least one railcar, comprising:
applying a braking force to wheels of the at least one railcar;
causing a mechanical load to be sensed by or applied to at least one first sensor device when the braking force is being applied to the wheels of the at least one railcar;
receiving, by a computing device, an electrical signal from the at least one first sensor device;
analyzing, by the computing device, the electrical signal to assess an operational condition of a brake system of the at least one railcar;
causing, by the computing device, the operational condition to be provided to an operator of the at least one railcar or a communication device located remote from the at least one railcar;
identifying a time when an air pressure of a brake system is reduced in each said railcar of the plurality of railcars; and
determining an order of the railcars in the train consist based on the times at which air pressures of the brake systems where reduced.

### Claim 21

A system, comprising:
a brake system configured to apply a braking force to wheels of at least one railcar;
at least one first sensor device configured to sense a mechanical load or have the mechanical load applied thereto when the braking force is being applied to the wheels of the at least one railcar;
a computing device configured to:
receive an electrical signal from the at least one first sensor device;
analyze the electrical signal to assess an operational condition of the brake system of the at least one railcar; and
cause the operational condition to be provided to an operator of the at least one railcar or a communication device located remote from the at least one railcar;
wherein application of the mechanical load to the at least one first sensor is at least partially caused because the at least one first sensor mechanically couples an articulating rigging of the brake system to a non-articulating underframe of the at least one railcar.

### Claim 22 (depends on 21)

The system according to claim 21, further comprising an accelerometer or gyroscope configured to monitor attributes of the at least one railcar, and wherein the operational condition of the brake system is assessed by further analyzing an output from the accelerometer or gyroscope.

### Claim 23 (depends on 22)

The system according to claim 22, wherein the computing device is further configured to generate an alert regarding a braking force associated with the at least one railcar based on the analyzing of the output from the accelerometer or gyroscope.

### Claim 24 (depends on 22)

The system according to claim 22, wherein the computing device is further configured to display in near real-time a visual alert of a malfunctioning brake of the at least one railcar based on the analyzing of the output from the accelerometer or gyroscope.

### Claim 25 (depends on 21)

The system according to claim 21, wherein the computing device is further configured to:
obtain information specifying a position of a valve, the valve having a first position indicating that the at least one railcar is loaded and a second position indicating that the at least one railcar is empty; and
modify an amount of air to be supplied to a brake cylinder during braking operations of the at least one railcar based on the position of the valve.

### Claim 26 (depends on 25)

The system according to claim 25, wherein the amount of air is increased when the valve is in the first position and the amount of air is reduced when the valve is in the second position.

### Claim 27 (depends on 21)

The system according to claim 21, further comprising:
a pressure switch configured to monitor an air pressure in a brake pipe of the brake system; and
wherein the computing device is further configured to:
detect when the air pressure increases above a first threshold value or decreases below a second threshold value;
trigger at least one pressure reading by the pressure switch in response to a detection that the air pressure increased above the first threshold or decreased below the second threshold;
receive first sensor data from the pressure switch that indicates the at least one pressure reading; and
generate a message containing the first sensor data and a time of at which the at least one pressure reading was triggered.

### Claim 28 (depends on 27)

The system according to claim 27, further comprising:
a pressure sensor configured to performing operations to continually sample the air pressure in the brake pipe at a sampling rate;
wherein the computing device is further configured to receive second sensor data from the pressure sensor that indicates the air pressure in the brake pipe over a duration of time; and
wherein the message additionally contains the second sensor data.

### Claim 29 (depends on 28)

The system according to claim 28, wherein the computing device is further configured to adjust the sampling rate of the pressure sensor based on an operational state of the at least one railcar.

### Claim 30 (depends on 29)

The system according to claim 29, wherein the operational state comprises parked or operating.

### Claim 31 (depends on 21)

The system according to claim 21, further comprising:
a sensor configured to perform operations to detect changes in a length of a slack adjuster in the brake system; and
wherein the operational condition of the brake system is assessed by further analyzing an output from the sensor.

### Claim 32 (depends on 21)

The system according to claim 21, further comprising:
a sensor configured to perform operations to sample a tread temperature of at least one said wheel of the at least one railcar at a sampling rate; and
wherein the operational condition of the brake system is assessed by further analyzing an output from the sensor.

### Claim 33 (depends on 32)

The system according to claim 32, wherein the sampling rate is adjusted based on an operational state of the at least one railcar.

### Claim 34 (depends on 33)

The system according to claim 33, wherein the operational state comprises parked or operating.

### Claim 35 (depends on 32)

The system according to claim 32, wherein the sensor is mounted at a location on the at least one railcar that provides the sensor with an unobstructed line-of-sight to a tread of the at least one said wheel.

### Claim 36 (depends on 21)

The system according to claim 21, wherein the computing device is further configured to:
receive an indication that a threshold event has occurred at the at least one railcar, the threshold event occurring when an amount of the brake force being applied to the wheels of the at least one railcar reaches a certain value;
cause enablement of a timer responsive to the indication that the threshold event has occurred at the at least one railcar; and
determine whether the threshold event has occurred at one or more other railcars of a plurality of railcars during a predetermined period of time.

### Claim 37 (depends on 36)

The system according to claim 36, wherein the computing device concludes that a brake system of at least one of the plurality of railcars is malfunctioning when the threshold event did not occur thereat during the predetermined period of time.

### Claim 38 (depends on 21)

The method system to claim 21, wherein the computing device is further configured to:
identify a time when an air pressure of a brake system is reduced in each said railcar of the plurality of railcars; and
determining an order of the railcars in the train consist based on the times at which air pressures of the brake systems where reduced.

### Claim 39

A system, comprising:
a brake system configured to apply a braking force to wheels of at least one railcar;
at least one first sensor device configured to sense a mechanical load or have the mechanical load applied thereto when the braking force is being applied to the wheels of the at least one railcar;
a computing device configured to:
receive an electrical signal from the at least one first sensor device;
analyze the electrical signal to assess an operational condition of the brake system of the at least one railcar; and
cause the operational condition to be provided to an operator of the at least one railcar or a communication device located remote from the at least one railcar;
wherein application of the mechanical load to the at least one first sensor is at least partially caused because the at least one first sensor is located at a location within an articulating rigging of the brake system that is downstream from a brake lever of the brake system.

### Claim 40 (depends on 39)

The system according to claim 39, wherein the location resides between two rods of the articulating rigging of the brake system.