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US 12,623,650 B2Granted
System, method and devices for automating inspection of brake system on a railway vehicle or train
AssigneePennsy Digital Inc.
InventorsWilliam Lefebvre, Wayne H. Murphy
Life of this patent
Estimating the term…
Abstract
A system, methods and devices for automating inspection of a brake system on a railway vehicle, such as a freight car or train of a plurality of cars is provided. According to preferred embodiments, the system may be configured for use in conjunction with existing braking systems currently on railway vehicles, such as those on freight cars and other railway vehicles. The system, methods and devices comprise a wireless brake monitoring sensor that includes a radar unit or circuitry and directs a beam toward a target to monitor a condition or position of a brake or brake component.
Claims19
A wireless brake monitoring system for monitoring a state or condition of a railway vehicle brake having a moveable piston that is secured to a brake with a brake pin, the system comprising:
- a) a wireless brake monitoring sensor comprising a radar unit contained within a housing and being mountable to a railway vehicle;
- b) a power supply contained within the housing;
- c) a communications module providing communications between the radar unit and a remotely situated device that is remote of the sensor location;
- d) wherein the radar unit is configured to project a radar beam during a brake monitoring event;
- e) wherein the sensor includes circuitry with one or more processing components to process signals from the radar unit that determine the brake condition;
- f) wherein the brake condition is measurable to determine whether the brake piston has moved and the distance and direction that the brake piston has moved, and wherein the radar signals from the radar unit are used to provide the indication of whether the brake piston has moved and the distance and direction that the brake piston has moved;
- g) wherein the radar unit is disposed above the brake pin and faces a fixed target, wherein the fixed target is in a linear direction of the radar unit;
- h) wherein the signal path of the radar unit is along the line of direction of movement of the piston whose movement is being measured;
- and
- i) wherein the signal path comprises a signal path whose length is between the radar unit and the target, and whose length changes in a linear direction between the radar unit and the target based on the brake piston movement and direction of movement in the signal path direction.
7 more elements
A brake monitoring device comprising:
- a) a wireless brake sensor comprising radar circuitry;
- b) a brake pin;
- c) wherein the wireless brake sensor is mounted on the brake pin;
- d) wherein the wireless brake sensor radar circuitry is configured to determine whether the brake piston has moved and the distance and direction that the brake piston has moved;
- e) wherein the wireless brake sensor radar circuitry is configured for disposition at a location above the brake pin and facing a fixed target, from which location the wireless brake sensor radar circuitry emits and receives signals comprising radar signals, and wherein the wireless brake sensor radar circuitry processes the radar signals and determines from those processed radar signals whether the brake piston has moved and the distance and direction that the brake piston has moved;
- and
- f) wherein the wireless brake sensor emits a radar signal along the line of direction of movement of the brake piston whose movement is being measured;
- g) wherein the fixed target and the wireless brake sensor are linear to one another;
- and
- h) wherein the signal path of the radar signals comprises a signal path having a signal path direction whose length is between the wireless brake sensor and the fixed target, and whose length changes in a linear direction between the wireless brake sensor and the fixed target based on the brake piston movement and direction of movement in the radar signal path direction.
7 more elements
A brake pin comprising:
- a) a pin body including a pin shaft;
- b) a head;
- c) a flange being connected to the pin head and extending upward from and above the pin head;
- d) the pin shaft being connected to the pin head and extending downward therefrom;
- and
- e) a pair of spaced apart arms projecting downwardly from said flange in the direction of the pin shaft, wherein the spaced apart arms are spaced apart from each other and from the pin shaft.
3 more elements
A method for determining a condition of a railway vehicle brake on a railway vehicle, comprising:
- a) determining with a wireless brake position sensor a distance between said wireless brake position sensor and a target;
- b) wherein at least one or the other of said wireless brake position sensor and said target are installed on a component of the railway vehicle brake system that moves to engage or disengage said brake, the railway vehicle brake system including a piston;
- c) communicating a signal from said wireless brake position sensor to a remote device;
- and
- d) receiving with a remote device the wireless signal and determining from said signal a condition of the brake;
- e) wherein the wireless brake position sensor comprises a radar unit, and wherein determining a distance between said wireless brake position sensor and a target comprises projecting a beam from the radar unit in a direction parallel to the distance being determined;
- and
- f) wherein the target is in a linear direction of the radar unit;
- and
- g) wherein the beam is projected along a path between radar unit and the target, and wherein the direction of said path is parallel to the direction of movement of the piston whose movement is being measured.
7 more elements
A wireless brake monitoring system for monitoring a state or condition of a railway vehicle brake having a moveable piston that moves along a line or path of movement, the system comprising:
- a) a wireless brake monitoring sensor comprising a radar unit contained within a housing and being mountable to the brake or brake pin of a railway vehicle to reside above the linear path of the movable piston;
- and a target located above the linear path of the movable piston, the movable piston having a linear direction of movement;
- b) a power supply contained within the housing;
- c) a communications module providing communications between the radar unit and a remotely situated device that is remote of the sensor location;
- d) wherein the radar unit is configured to project a radar beam during a brake monitoring event, wherein the beam direction is projected along the direction of the line or path of movement of the brake piston and in the direction of the target;
- and wherein the beam is coincident with the brake status to provide the indication of whether the pneumatic brake is engaged or released and whether the hand brake is engaged or released;
- e) wherein the sensor includes circuitry with one or more processing components to process signals from the radar unit that determine the brake state or condition, which includes the brake piston travel distance and travel direction;
- f) wherein the radar unit is disposed above the brake pin and faces the target, wherein the target is in a linear direction of the radar unit;
- and
- g) wherein the beam path of the radar unit is between the radar unit and the target, and wherein the beam path has a beam path length between the radar unit and the target that changes in a linear direction between the radar unit and the target based on the brake piston travel distance in the beam path direction.
7 more elements
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.