Method and system for displaying a condition status of a component of a linear asset system

• US 10,521,739 B2
• Filed: 02/13/2019
• Issued: 12/31/2019
• Est. Priority Date: 05/21/2008
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Canadian National Railway Company
• Original Assignee: Canadian National Railway Company
• Inventors: Tays, Dwight, Lilley, David, Abbott, Brian
• Primary Examiner(s): Kujundzic, Dino
• Application Number:
  US16/274,495
• Publication Number:
  US 20190179816A1
• Time in Patent Office: 321 Days
• CPC Class Codes: B61L 23/04 for monitoring the mechanical state of the route
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 16/2455 Query execution
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 16/248 Presentation of query results
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/0482 Interaction with lists of selectable items, e.g. menus
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 40/174 Form filling; Merging
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 10/06 Resources, workflows, human or project management; Enterprise or organisation planning; Enterprise or organisation modelling
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 10/063114 Status monitoring or status determination for a person or group
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 30/018 Certifying business or products
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 50/06 Energy or water supply
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 50/40 Business processes related to the transportation industry shipping G06Q10/083

Abstract

The invention provides a graphical user interface implemented on a computer including an information area for displaying to a user at the computer inspection status information in connection with one or more components of a linear asset infrastructure. The graphical user interface also includes a control component operable by the user at the computer to cause the graphical user interface to display additional information on the one or more components of the linear asset infrastructure.

Claims

1. A method for recording inspection information during a partial inspection of contiguous railroad track segments in a railway network infrastructure, the method comprising:

a. providing a database in which are stored records associated with different railroad track segments on the railway network infrastructure;

b. performing a partial inspection by a human operator of a given railroad track segment, the partial inspection including an inspection of a first portion of the given railroad track segment for railroad defects that could lead to service failures of the railroad track segment, the first portion having a length which is less than a total length of the given railroad track segment, whereby a second portion corresponding to a remainder of the given railroad track segment remains uninspected for railroad track defects;

c. executing software by one or more processors, the software configured for;

i. implementing a first Graphical User Interface (GUI) on a first computer device, the first graphical user interface including an inspection status indicator providing an indication of an inspection status of the railroad track segment, the first GUI including an input object to enable an inspector performing the inspection of the track segment to input information delineating the first portion from the second portion;

ii. in response to input from the inspector at the input object delineating the first portion from the second portion, causing the status indicator to change operational condition from a first condition to a second condition, in the first condition the inspection status indicator depicting an inspection state conveying that the track segment in its entirety is not inspected and in the second operational condition the inspection status indicator simultaneously depicting multiple inspection states, different from each other and associated with respective portions of the track segment, indicating that the first portion of the track segment is inspected while the second portion of the track segment is not inspected.

2. The method as defined in claim 1, wherein the information delineating the first portion from the second portion includes information indicative of a length of either one of the first portion or the second portion.

3. The method as defined in claim 2, wherein the GUI includes a display object associated with the railroad track segment, the display object identifying an extent of the railroad track segment, wherein the display object is a first display object, in response to the input of information delineating the first portion from the second portion, the method further including:

modifying the first display object to reduce the indicated extent of the railroad track segment to an extent of the first portion of the railroad track segment; and

generating a second display object identifying an extent of the second portion.

4. The method as defined in claim 2, including, in response to the input information delineating the first portion from the second portion, storing data associated with the first portion that has been inspected and indicating that the inspection of the first portion has been completed and storing data associated with the second portion and indicating that the inspection has not been completed.

5. The method as defined in claim 4, in response to the input information delineating the first portion from the second portion, sending signals over a data communication network to a second computer remote from the first computer to direct a second graphical user interface on the second computer to display an inspection status indicator indicating that the railroad track segment is not fully inspected for defects.