Track database integrity monitor for enhanced railroad safety distributed power
First Claim
1. A distributed power system for remotely controlling a locomotive, said system comprising:
- a position-determining device for determining a position of said locomotive;
a pre-stored track database comprising terrain and contour data about a railroad track;
a track database integrity monitor for detecting errors with said pre-stored track database;
a processor comprising an algorithm to determine a distributed power for said locomotive and to use said track database integrity monitor to determine if errors exist in said pre-stored track database; and
a memory device connected to said processor.
2 Assignments
0 Petitions
Accused Products
Abstract
A distributed power system for remotely controlling a locomotive, the system comprising a position-determining device for determining a position of the locomotive, a pre-stored track database comprising terrain and contour data about a railroad track, a track database integrity monitor for detecting errors with the pre-stored track database, a processor comprising an algorithm to determine a distributed power for the locomotive and to use the track database integrity monitor to determine if errors exist in the pre-stored track database, and a memory device connected to the processor.
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Citations
39 Claims
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1. A distributed power system for remotely controlling a locomotive, said system comprising:
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a position-determining device for determining a position of said locomotive;
a pre-stored track database comprising terrain and contour data about a railroad track;
a track database integrity monitor for detecting errors with said pre-stored track database;
a processor comprising an algorithm to determine a distributed power for said locomotive and to use said track database integrity monitor to determine if errors exist in said pre-stored track database; and
a memory device connected to said processor. - View Dependent Claims (2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 12, 15, 16, 18)
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10. The system of claim A8 wherein said one-dimensional train profile is a vertical channel.
- 11. The system of claim A8 wherein said one-dimensional train profile is a time channel.
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19. A method for remotely controlling a locomotive, said method comprising:
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determining a position of said locomotive with a position-determining device;
providing a pre-stored track database comprising track terrain and contour information;
providing coupler sensor data;
processing said position of said train, said coupler sensor data and comparing said position with said pre-stored track database to determine a distributed power to apply to said locomotive;
applying a track database integrity monitor to determine whether said pre-stored track database and said position correlate;
if said track database integrity monitor corresponds with said pre-stored track database, calculating and applying a distributed power to said locomotive; and
creating a second track database based on applying said track database integrity monitor.
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29. A distributed power control system for controlling a train having a master locomotive and a slave locomotive where a car separates said master locomotive and said slave locomotive, said system comprising:
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a position-determining device for determining a position of said train;
a pre-stored track database comprising terrain and contour data about a railroad track;
a track database integrity monitor for detecting errors with said pre-stored track database based on a position of said train;
a coupler separating each said locomotive from said car;
a coupler sensor to determine force applied to each said coupler;
a processor comprising an algorithm to determine a distributed power for said locomotive based on data received from said coupler sensor and to use said track database integrity monitor to determine if errors exist in said pre-stored track database;
a memory device connected to said processor; and
wherein said processor controls said train based on a calculated distributed power.
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37. A method for distributing power in a training with a master locomotive and a slave locomotive, said method comprising:
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providing a position-determining device;
determining a position of said locomotive with a position-determining device;
providing a pre-stored track database comprising track terrain and contour information;
providing coupler sensor data;
processing said position of said train, said coupler sensor data and comparing said position with said pre-stored track database to determine a distributed power to apply to said master locomotive and said slave locomotive;
applying a track database integrity monitor to determine whether said pre-stored track database and said position correlate;
if said track database integrity monitor corresponds with said pre-stored track database, calculating and applying a distributed power to said master locomotive and said slave locomotive;
creating a second track database based on applying said track database integrity monitor;
providing couplers in said train;
determining a force at each said couplers using said processor;
optimizing said force based on a calculated distributed power; and
saving said second track database in a memory device.
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Specification