System and method for railway vehicle detection

• US 20100033349A1
• Filed: 08/08/2008
• Published: 02/11/2010
• Est. Priority Date: 08/08/2008
• Status: Abandoned Application

• Current Assignee: Kim-Fung Tsang, Lap T.O. Lee
• Original Assignee: Kim-Fung Tsang, Lap T.O. Lee
• Inventors: TSANG, Kim-Fung, Lee, Lap To
• Application Number:
  US12/188,364
• Publication Number:
  US 20100033349A1
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 340/935
• CPC Class Codes: B61L 25/023 Determination of driving direction of vehicle or train
• CPC Class Codes: B61L 3/125 using short-range radio transmission
• CPC Class Codes: H04Q 2209/10 using a centralized architecture
• CPC Class Codes: H04Q 2209/47 using RFID associated with sensors
• CPC Class Codes: H04Q 2209/75 by polling or interrogating the sub-stations
• CPC Class Codes: H04Q 2209/756 where the polling of the sub-stations is cyclic, e.g. round-robin
• CPC Class Codes: H04Q 9/00 Arrangements in telecontrol or telemetry systems for selectively calling a substation from a main station, in which substation desired apparatus is selected for applying a control signal thereto or for obtaining measured values therefrom

Abstract

A system and method for detecting the railway vehicle with a plurality of RFID readers and tags are disclosed. Railway vehicle directional movement on specific track can be detected and updated by the RF communication of the readers and tags. The railway system also includes a computer which monitors a couple of RFID readers for the real-time railway vehicle position. Intelligent detection algorithm is implemented in the reader to identify specific railway vehicle, on a particular track for at least one track in bidirectional or parallel direction. For encoding the data, each RF tag is of unique ID and the RF signal is encrypted.

Claims

1. A method of detecting specific railway vehicle directional movement on a track section of a railway system, wherein a plurality of RFID readers are mounted on track and active RFID tags are mounted on the railway vehicles, and at least one central computing units for monitoring the network of readers, said method comprising:

analyzing the link quality indicator (signal strength) received in the said reader determining the reception of tag identification signal;

reporting the arrival or departure nature of the said reader with the railway vehicle detection results to the central computing unit;

distinguishing the correct tag signal received from a couple of readers on a couple of tracks in proximity to identify specific railway vehicle.

2. The method of claim 1, wherein the said reader can be considered as either arrival or departure nature interchangeably.

3. The method of claim 1, wherein the said tag transmits identification signal periodically with a randomized delay period.

4. The method of claim 1, wherein a trigger level can be set in the said link quality indicator as an indication of arrival or departure reporting.

5. The method of claim 4, wherein the arrival reader reports successful detection once the trigger level of the link quality indicator is first reached.

6. The method of claim 4, wherein the departure reader reports successful detection after the link quality indicator drops below the trigger level on condition that the link quality indicator has surpassed the trigger level.

7. The method of claim 1, wherein the said reporting arrival or departure detection from the said reader is to be reported once only for each railway vehicle within a period of time.

8. The method of claim 1, wherein a detection logic is used to identify a specific railway vehicle approaching a network of readers and an analysis of polling results to spot reasonable arrival and departure logic.

9. The method of claim 8, wherein a prior arrival reporting is assumed to be reported before a departure reporting establishes.

10. A railway system, comprising:

a plurality of active RFID tags for transmitting signal storing the unique identity number of the said railway vehicle wherein the said signal is transmitted periodically and continuously;

a plurality of RFID readers for receiving the said tag signal wherein the said identity number, link quality of the signal and the time of reception are stored in a list;

at least one central computing unit for execution of the detection logic for the associated readers and reporting of the said logic to the railway system;

11. The said active RFID tag signal of claim 10, wherein encryption method is processed before transmitting the said signal.

12. The railway system of claim 10, wherein the said reader can be mounted on the tracks way sleeper or inside the track way drawpit.

13. The railway system of claim 10, wherein the said tag can be mounted underneath the railway vehicle.