Binary data transmission capability incorporated into pulse coded railroad signaling system

• US 20030136882A1
• Filed: 01/16/2003
• Published: 07/24/2003
• Est. Priority Date: 01/22/2002
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: ALSTOM Signaling, Inc. (Alstom SA)
• Original Assignee: ALSTOM Signaling, Inc. (Alstom SA)
• Inventors: Heywood, Timothy Charles
• Granted Patent: US 6,834,836 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 246/167R
• CPC Class Codes: B61L 7/088 Common line wire control using series of coded pulses

Abstract

A railroad signaling system operative for controlling railroad traffic to control signals, said system comprising: a control point; a control block having a plurality of common nodes and a node which serves as a control point; and a common medium which is capable of transmitting the control signals and separate independent messages while precluding interference between said control signals and said independent messages.

Claims

1. A railroad signaling system operative for controlling railroad traffic to control signals, said system comprising:

a control point;

a control block having a plurality of common nodes and a node which serves as a control point; and

a common medium which is capable of transmitting the control signals and separate independent messages while precluding interference between said control signals and said independent messages.

2. A system as defined in claim 1, wherein the control signals are transmitted to and effect operation of adjacent common nodes, whereas the independent messages are transmitted ultimately to the control point from an originating common node.

3. A system as defined in claim 1, wherein the independent messages relate to supervisory signals, and provide the source of the signals.

4. A system, as defined in claim 1, wherein the common medium includes the vehicular running rails.

5. A system as defined in claim 1 further comprising a pulse coding scheme and means for transmitting together over the common medium, the pulse coding and independent messages that include binary data.

8. A system as defined in claim 5, wherein said binary data is encoded over a multi-cycle frame, and the number of cycles required to transmit one frame being based on the length of said independent messages.

9. A scheme as defined in claim 1, wherein the common medium enables transmission without interference between the control signals and the independent messages by (a) selective acceptance to and from adjacent nodes of only the unextended pulses of control signals and (b) selective acceptance at control offices of only the extended pulses of binary data messages.

10. A system as defined in claim 1, wherein several control offices are included and a node is directly connected to each of the control offices.

7. A system as defined in claim 6, further comprising values for encoding the independent messages in multi-bit binary form over multiple cycles of the pulse coding scheme.

11. A method of transmitting railroad control signals and independent messages over a control block having a common medium control point without interference between the control signals and the independent messages, comprising:

transmitting the control signals by pulse coding between nodes;

transmitting the independent messages for receipt and transmission by control points while enabling repeating of such messages from common nodes along the control block until a control point is reached.

12. A method as defined in claim 11, further comprising the step of transmitting to, and effecting operation of, adjacent common nodes.

13. A method as defined in claim 11, further comprising the step of providing a pulse coding scheme for control signals and overlaying such scheme with multi-bit binary data over multiple cycles of the scheme.