School bus driver's vision enhancement system
First Claim
1. A school bus providing enhanced driver awareness of people in proximity to the bus comprising:
- a bus chassis adapted for riding on a roadway and a body riding on the chassis, the body having an outside and including a door into which an adult can walk without stooping and a roofline above the door;
a rear view mirror on the outside of the body at an elevation proximate the roofline of the body; and
at least one directional sensor mounted on the mirror at an elevation proximate the roofline and emitting sensing radiation downwardly toward the roadway, wherein an area of coverage subtended by the roadway is substantially larger than an area of coverage by a similar sensor mounted on the bus chassis.
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Accused Products
Abstract
A school bus driver'"'"'s vision enhancement system for detecting children in dangerous zones around the bus and alerting the bus driver when such children have been detected. Sensors are mounted along the roofline of the bus, preferably on the mirror housings, and are pointed towards the road surface to provide a broader coverage area on the road surface than known school bus sensor systems. A lighted display unit is provided within view of the bus driver to alert the driver when the sensors have detected an obstacle, such as a child. The lighted display units include lights that are energized when any one of the sensors detects an obstacle. The bus may be configured to automatically actuate the brakes or other means to prevent movement of the bus if the motor is turned on, the bus is in a stopped position, and an object is detected by one the sensors.
16 Citations
39 Claims
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1. A school bus providing enhanced driver awareness of people in proximity to the bus comprising:
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a bus chassis adapted for riding on a roadway and a body riding on the chassis, the body having an outside and including a door into which an adult can walk without stooping and a roofline above the door;
a rear view mirror on the outside of the body at an elevation proximate the roofline of the body; and
at least one directional sensor mounted on the mirror at an elevation proximate the roofline and emitting sensing radiation downwardly toward the roadway, wherein an area of coverage subtended by the roadway is substantially larger than an area of coverage by a similar sensor mounted on the bus chassis. - View Dependent Claims (2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12, 15, 16, 17, 18, 19, 20, 21, 22, 23, 24, 25, 28, 29, 30, 31, 32, 33, 34, 35, 36, 37, 38)
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13. A school bus providing enhanced driver awareness of children in proximity to the bus comprising:
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a bus chassis adapted for riding on a roadway and a body riding on the chassis, the body having an outside and including a door into which an adult can walk without stooping and a roofline above the door; and
at least one directional sensor mounted at an elevation proximate the roofline and emitting sensing radiation downwardly toward the roadway, wherein an area of coverage subtended by the roadway is substantially larger than an area of coverage by a similar sensor mounted on the bus chassis.
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14. A method for enhancing a school bus driver'"'"'s awareness of people in proximity to the school bus comprising the steps of:
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driving a school bus on a roadway, the school bus comprising a bus chassis and a body having an outside and including a door into which an adult can walk without stooping and a roofline above the door;
stopping the bus to let passengers enter the body of the bus or exit the body of the bus;
viewing a rearview mirror that is located on the outside of the body of the bus at an elevation proximate to the roofline of the body; and
sensing whether a person is in proximity to the bus with at least one directional sensor that is located on the mirror at an elevation proximate to the roofline and is configured to emit sensing radiation downwardly toward the roadway such that an area of coverage subtended by the roadway is substantially larger than an area of coverage by a similar sensor mounted on the bus chassis.
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26. A method for enhancing a school bus driver'"'"'s awareness of people in proximity to the school bus comprising the steps of:
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driving a school bus on a roadway, the school bus comprising a bus chassis and a body having an outside and including a door into which an adult can walk without stooping and a roofline above the door;
stopping the bus to let passengers enter the body of the bus or exit the body of the bus; and
sensing whether a person is in proximity to the bus with at least one directional sensor that is located at an elevation proximate to the roofline and is configured to emit sensing radiation downwardly toward the roadway such that an area of coverage subtended by the roadway is substantially larger than an area of coverage by a similar sensor mounted on the bus chassis.
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27. A kit for retrofitting a school bus to provide enhanced driver awareness of people in proximity to the school bus comprising:
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a directional sensor, the directional sensor being configured to emit sensing radiation downwardly toward a roadway; and
a mounting apparatus to mount the directional sensor proximate a roofline of a school bus;
whereby the sensor can be mounted high on the bus so that an area of sensor coverage subtended by the roadway is substantially larger than an area of coverage by a similar sensor apparatus mounted on a chassis of the bus.
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39. A method of operating a school bus comprising the steps of:
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installing directional sensors high on the bus and pointing the directional sensors downwardly;
driving the bus to bus stops to pick up and discharge passengers;
while stopped at a bus stop, actuating the directional sensors that are high on the bus to cover a wide area of roadway around the bus and detecting passengers who may be in danger if the bus proceeds while the passengers remain where they are; and
displaying to a bus driver indication of the detected presence of passengers in danger.
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Specification