# US 9,517,779 B2 · System and method for communicating in a vehicle consist > Agents: this data is available as JSON from the patentgrep API and MCP server — see https://patentgrep.com/llms.txt - Number: US 9,517,779 B2 - Document ID: US9517779B2 - Status: Granted - Kind: B2 - Application number: 14/507,883 - Filed: 2014-10-07 - Published: 2015-01-22 - Granted: 2016-12-13 - Earliest claimed: 2012-06-29 - Assignees: General Electric Company - Applicants: General Electric Company - Inventors: Daniel Rush; Eugene Smith; Glen Paul Peltonen; Mark Wayne Wheeler; Robert Carmen Palanti; Maurice Stanley Hutchins - Web page: https://patentgrep.com/patent/US9517779B2 ## CPC - B61C 17/12: Control gear; Arrangements for controlling locomotives from remote points in the train or when operating in multiple units (control from points outside the train B61L3/00; fluid-actuated telemotors, servomotors F15B; control devices in general G05) - B61L 15/0027: {Radio-based, e.g. using GSM-R} - B61L 15/0081: {On-board diagnosis or maintenance} - B61C: LOCOMOTIVES; MOTOR RAILCARS (vehicles in general B60; frames or bogies B61F; special railroad equipment for locomotives B61J, B61K) - 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 communicate a command message from a lead vehicle in a vehicle consist having remote vehicles and the lead vehicle. The command message includes a directive for controlling operations of the remote vehicles. The command message is received at the remote vehicles and reply messages are communicated in response thereto. The reply messages include statuses of the remote vehicles. Responsive to determining that the lead vehicle does not receive the reply message from one or more of the remote vehicles, the statuses of the one or more remote vehicles from which the reply messages are not received at the lead vehicle are sent and/or combined into an individual or concatenated relayed message. The individual or concatenated relayed messages are communicated to the lead vehicle such that the lead vehicle receives the statuses of the one or more remote vehicles. ## Claims ### Claim 1 A method comprising: onboard a first remote vehicle in a vehicle consist having at least a lead vehicle and two or more remote vehicles that include, the first remote vehicle, and a second remote vehicle, receiving a reply message from the second remote vehicle using transceiver circuitry in response to communication of a command message from the lead vehicle to the first remote vehicle and the second remote vehicle, the command message including a directive for controlling one or more operations of the first remote vehicle and the second remote vehicle, the reply message including a status of the second remote vehicle; receiving a retry message from the lead vehicle that identifies a subset of the two or more remote vehicles from which a reply message was not received by the lead vehicle, the subset identifying at least the second remote vehicle; combining the status of the second remote vehicle as received in the reply message communicated from the second remote vehicle with a status of one or more of the first remote vehicle or another remote vehicle in the vehicle consist at the first remote vehicle into a concatenated relayed message using one or more processors; and communicating the concatenated relayed message from the first remote vehicle to the lead vehicle using the transceiver circuitry such that the lead vehicle receives the status of the second remote vehicle. ### Claim 2 (depends on 1) The method of claim 1, wherein the status of the second remote vehicle differs from the status of the one or more of the first remote vehicle or another vehicle in the vehicle consist. ### Claim 3 (depends on 1) The method of claim 1, further comprising communicating a reply message from the first remote vehicle to the lead vehicle in response to receiving the command message at the first remote vehicle, the reply message communicated from the first remote vehicle indicating a status of the first remote vehicle. ### Claim 4 (depends on 1) The method of claim 1, wherein the status of the second remote vehicle is communicated to the lead vehicle in the concatenated relayed message such that the lead vehicle indirectly receives the statuses of the second remote vehicle from the first remote vehicle. ### Claim 5 (depends on 1) The method of claim 1, wherein the status of the second remote vehicle is combined into a single message at the first remote vehicle that is communicated to the lead vehicle as the concatenated relayed message. ### Claim 6 (depends on 1) The method of claim 1, wherein the command message and the reply message received from the second remote vehicle are each communicated once in a message cycle of the vehicle consist. ### Claim 7 (depends on 1) The method of claim 1, wherein the first remote vehicle is located closer to the lead vehicle in the vehicle consist than the second remote vehicle. ### Claim 8 (depends on 1) The method of claim 1, further comprising restricting the first remote vehicle to communicating a reply message to the command message from the first remote vehicle to the lead vehicle during an originating time slot assigned to the first remote vehicle and restricting the first remote vehicle to communicating the concatenated relayed message from the first remote vehicle to the lead vehicle during a non-overlapping relaying time slot assigned to the first remote vehicle. ### Claim 9 (depends on 8) The method of claim 8, wherein the reply message communicated from the first remote vehicle is communicated from the first remote vehicle to the lead vehicle during the originating time slot assigned to the first remote vehicle in a message cycle of the vehicle consist and the concatenated relayed message is communicated from the first remote vehicle to the lead vehicle during the relaying time slot assigned to the first remote vehicle in the same message cycle of the vehicle consist. ### Claim 10 (depends on 1) The method of claim 1, further comprising dynamically assigning time slots to the first remote vehicle and the second remote vehicle, the time slots indicating time periods in which the first remote vehicle and the second remote vehicle communicate one or more of a reply message communicated from the first remote vehicle to the lead vehicle in response to receiving the command message at the first remote vehicle, the concatenated relayed message, or the reply message communicated from the second remote vehicle, the time slots being dynamically assigned based on when the reply message communicated from the second remote vehicle is received by the first remote vehicle. ### Claim 11 A system comprising: a remote communication unit configured to be disposed onboard a first remote vehicle in a vehicle consist having at least a lead vehicle and two or more remote vehicles that include the first remote vehicle, and a second remote vehicle, the remote communication unit also configured to receive a reply message from the second remote vehicle in response to communication of a command message from the lead vehicle to the first remote vehicle and the second remote vehicle, the command message including a directive for controlling one or more operations of the first remote vehicle and the second remote vehicle, the reply message communicated from the second remote vehicle including a status of the second remote vehicle, the remote communication unit also configured to receive a retry message from the lead vehicle that identifies a subset of the two or more remote vehicles from which a reply message was not received by the lead vehicle, the subset identifying at least the second remote vehicle; and a control unit configured to be disposed onboard the first remote vehicle, the control unit configured to combine the status of the second remote vehicle as received in the reply message communicated from the second remote vehicle with a status of one or more of the first remote vehicle or another remote vehicle in the vehicle consist into a concatenated relayed message, wherein the control unit also is configured to direct the remote communication unit to communicate the concatenated relayed message to the lead vehicle such that the lead vehicle receives the status of the second remote vehicle. ### Claim 12 (depends on 11) The system of claim 11, wherein the remote communication unit also is configured to communicate a reply message to the lead vehicle in response to receiving the command message at the first remote vehicle, the reply message communicated from the remote communication unit indicating a status of the first remote vehicle. ### Claim 13 (depends on 11) The system of claim 11, wherein the remote communication unit is configured to communicate the status of the second remote vehicle to the lead vehicle in the concatenated relayed message such that the lead vehicle indirectly receives the status of the second remote vehicle from the first remote vehicle. ### Claim 14 (depends on 11) The system of claim 11, wherein the control unit is configured to combine the status of the second remote vehicle into a single message that is communicated to the lead vehicle as the concatenated relayed message. ### Claim 15 (depends on 11) The system of claim 11, wherein the first remote vehicle is located closer to the lead vehicle in the vehicle consist than the second remote vehicle. ### Claim 16 (depends on 11) The system of claim 11, wherein the control unit is configured to prevent the remote communication unit from communicating a reply message from the remote communication unit to the command message to the lead vehicle outside of an originating time slot assigned to the first remote vehicle and to prevent the remote communication unit from communicating the concatenated relayed message from the first remote vehicle to the lead vehicle outside of a non-overlapping relaying time slot assigned to the first remote vehicle. ### Claim 17 (depends on 16) The system of claim 16, wherein the reply message communicated from the remote communication unit is communicated from the first remote vehicle to the lead vehicle during the originating time slot assigned to the first remote vehicle in a message cycle of the vehicle consist and the concatenated relayed message is communicated from the first remote vehicle to the lead vehicle during the relaying time slot assigned to the first remote vehicle in the same message cycle of the vehicle consist. ### Claim 18 A method comprising: communicating a command message using transceiving circuitry from a lead vehicle in a vehicle consist having plural remote vehicles coupled with the lead vehicle, the command message including a directive for controlling one or more operations of the remote vehicles; separately receiving one or more reply messages from less than all of the plural remote vehicles in the vehicle consist in response to the command message using the transceiving circuitry, the one or more reply messages including statuses of less than all of the plural remote vehicles in the vehicle consist; communicating a retry message from the lead vehicle using the transceiving circuitry that identifies a subset of less than all of the remote vehicles in the vehicle consist from which the one or more reply messages were not received in response to the command message; and receiving an individual or concatenated relayed message from a first remote vehicle in the plural remote vehicles of the vehicle consist using the transceiving circuitry, the individual or concatenated relayed message including a combination of the status of one or more of the remote vehicles in the subset from which the one or more reply messages were not received. ### Claim 19 (depends on 18) The method of claim 18, wherein the retry message also includes the directive of the command message previously communicated from the lead vehicle. ### Claim 20 (depends on 18) The method of claim 18, further comprising repeating communication of the retry message until the reply messages are received directly from the plural remote vehicles in response to the retry message. ### Claim 21 A system comprising: a lead communication unit configured to be disposed onboard a lead vehicle in a vehicle consist having plural remote vehicles coupled with the lead vehicle, the lead communication unit also configured to communicate a command message that includes a directive for controlling one or more operations of the remote vehicles, the lead communication unit configured to separately receive one or more reply messages from less than all of the plural remote vehicles in the vehicle consist in response to the command message, the one or more reply messages including statuses of less than all of the plural remote vehicles in the vehicle consist; and a control unit configured to be disposed onboard the lead vehicle and to identify a subset of the remote vehicles in the vehicle consist from which the one or more reply messages were not received in response to the command message, the control unit configured to direct the lead communication unit to communicate a retry message that identifies a subset of less than all of the remote vehicles in the vehicle consist from which the one or more reply messages were not received in response to the command message, the control unit also configured to receive, via the lead communication unit, an individual or concatenated relayed message from a first remote vehicle in the plural remote vehicles of the vehicle consist, the individual or concatenated relayed message including a combination of the status of one or more of the remote vehicles in the subset from which the one or more reply messages were not received. ### Claim 22 (depends on 21) The system of claim 21, wherein the control unit also is configured to direct the lead communication unit to repeat communication of the retry message until the reply messages are received directly from the plural remote vehicles in response to the retry message.