Information collection and storage system with removable memory

• US 4,258,430 A
• Filed: 12/08/1978
• Issued: 03/24/1981
• Est. Priority Date: 02/08/1978
• Status: Expired due to Term

• Current Assignee: Robert M. Tyburski
• Original Assignee: Robert M. Tyburski
• Inventors: Tyburski, Robert M.
• Primary Examiner(s): Zache, Raulfe B.
• Application Number:
  US05/967,845
• Time in Patent Office: 837 Days
• Field of Search: 364/900 MS File, 364/437, 364/438, 235/92 TC, 235/92 DP, 235/92 AC, 340/38 R
• US Class Current: 714/1
• CPC Class Codes: G08G 1/0116 from roadside infrastructure, e.g. beacons
• CPC Class Codes: G08G 1/065 by counting the vehicles in a section of the road or in a parking area, i.e. comparing incoming count with outgoing count

Abstract

An information collection and storage system and method wherein pulses representing sensed information are counted and wherein resulting pulse counts are written into a volatile random access memory which forms a part of a detachable battery powered memory pack. The memory pack is selectively removable from the system and has a rechargeable battery which supplies the sole source of operating power for preserving the data stored in the volatile memory both when the memory pack is connected in the system and removed from the system for transit to a data read-out center.

Claims

1. An information collection and storage system comprising first means for supplying a train of electrical pulses and for obtaining a pulse count that is a function of and determined by the number of said pulses, the number of said pulses being indicative of certain information, a data storage circuit, means providing for the detachable connection of said data storage circuit to said first means to enable said storage circuit to be selectively disconnected from said first means and removed from said information collection and storage system for transportation to a selected location, a volatile read/write memory means in said storage circuit for storing data in binary form, and at least one battery in said storage circuit, said battery being connected to said memory means to supply the power for preserving the data stored in said memory means both when said storage circuit is connected to said first means and removed from said system, said first means including circuit means connected to said memory means when said storage circuit is connected to said first means for writing into said memory data resulting from the pulse count obtained by said first means.

2. The information collection and storage system defined in claim 1 wherein said means providing for the detachable connection of said storage circuit to said first means includes first and second connector means, said first connector means being electrically connected to said first means, and said second connector means being electrically connected to said storage circuit, said first and second connector means being contactable with one another to provide for the electrical connection of said storage circuit to said first means, said battery being connected through said first and second connector means to said first means to apply power to said first means when said storage circuit is connected to said first means.

3. The information collection and storage system defined in claim 2 wherein said circuit means includes at least one resettable device, said first means further comprising reset means connected to said device for resetting said device in response to the application of the battery power to said first means.

4. The information collection and storage system defined in claim 1 wherein said memory means has only a single plane of storage devices, wherein the data written into the memory means is in the form of plural-bit words, and wherein said storage circuit has means cooperating with said circuit means of said first means for writing each bit in said words at a different predetermined address location in the single plane of said memory means.

5. The information collection and storage system defined in claim 1 wherein said memory means has an address port and only a single plane of storage devices, the data written into said memory means being in the form of plural-bit words, said storage circuit having a counter connected to said address port and cooperating with said circuit means of said first means for writing each bit in each of said words at a different predetermined address location in the single plane of said memory means, said first means having reset means connected to said counter through said means providing for the detachable connection of said storage circuit to said first means, said battery being connected to said reset means through said means providing for the detachable connection of said storage circuit to said first means so that power is applied by said battery to said reset means upon detachably connecting said storage circuit to said first means, and said reset means being responsive to the application of the power by said battery for resetting said counter.

6. The information collection and storage system defined in claim 1 wherein said first means comprises a transducer having means for sensing the passage of ground-engaging vehicles past a selected point on a roadway and for generating a predetermined number of said pulses that varies as a function of the number of sensed vehicles.

7. The information collection and storage system defined in claim 1 wherein said memory means has a plurality of terminals that connect to said first means when said storage circuit is connected to said first means, and wherein said storage circuit further includes means connected intermediate said battery and at least pre-selected ones of said terminals to prevent the occurrence of transients in the course of connecting said storage circuit to and disconnecting said storage circuit from said first means.

8. The information collection and storage system defined in claim 1 wherein said memory means has a plurality of terminals that connect to said first means when said storage circuit is electrically connected to said first means, and wherein said storage circuit includes resistance means connected intermediate said battery and at least pre-selected ones of said terminals for clamping each of the pre-selected ones of said terminals to a fixed potential of predetermined polarity upon disconnecting said storage circuit from said first means.

9. The information collection and storage system defined in claim 1 wherein said first means comprises a counter for counting electrical pulses to provide said pulse count, a transducer for generating an electrical pulse in response to each occurrence of a particular event, and means interposed between said transducer and said counter for selectively dividing the number of pulses generated by said transducer by a pre-selected number to feed one pulse to said counter for count-in for every four pulses generated by said transducer.

10. The information collection and storage system defined in claim 1 wherein said first means includes a counter for counting electrical pulses to provide said pulse count, a transducer for generating an electrical pulse in response to each occurrence of a particular event and means electrically connected to said transducer for dividing the number of pulses generated by the transducer by two to feed one pulse to said counter for count-in for every two pulses generated by said transducer.

11. The information collection and recording system defined in claims 9 or 10 wherein said first means further comprises a device for generating an audible sound in response to each pulse fed to said counter for count-in.

12. The information collection and recording system defined in claim 1 wherein said memory means includes a read/write memory having a multiplicity of data-storing character locations, wherein address counter means is electrically connected to said read/write memory in said storage circuit for consecutively addressing the different data storing character locations, in said memory wherein said read/write memory is programmed with a pre-selected binary code at each character location, and wherein said circuit means is connected to said address counter means for selectively incrementing said address counter means to skip a pre-selected number of said character locations without writing data into each character location that is skipped, thereby leaving said code in each character location that is skipped.

13. The information collection and storage system defined in claim 12 wherein said code is an F code stored at each usable character location in said memory.

14. The information collection and storage system defined in claim 1 comprising means connected to said first means for indicating the maximum elapsed time between successively occurring ones of said pulses.

15. A recorder comprising means including a transducer for supplying a train of serially occurring electrical pulses in which the number of pulses is a function of the number of moving bodies passing a given location, a first electrical circuit connected to said pulse supplying means, a second electrical circuit, connector means connected to said first and second circuits to provide for the detachable connection of said second circuit to said first circuit and enabling the selective disconnection of said second circuit from said first circuit for selective removal from said recorder, a volatile read/write memory in said second circuit for storing information in binary form, a battery in said second circuit, said battery being connected to said memory to supply the power for preserving the information stored in said memory both when said second circuit is connected to said first circuit and removed from said recorder, said first circuit comprising an accumulator for counting the pulses produced by said pulse supplying means, means for periodically resetting said accumulator to provide a series of successively occurring pulse-counting time intervals, said accumulator being effective to accumulate a count of the pulses occurring in each of said time intervals to provide a separate pulse count for each time interval, and control means forming a part of said first circuit, said control means being connected to said accumulator and through said connector means to said memory for writing each of the counts accumulated by said accumulator into said memory.

16. The recorder defined in claim 15 wherein said moving bodies are ground-engaging vehicles traveling along a roadway and wherein said transducer has means for sensing the vehicles as they travel past a given place on the roadway.

17. A recorder comprising means for supplying a train of serially occurring electrical pulses in which the number of pulses in a function of the number of descrete moving bodies passing a given location, a first electrical circuit connected to said pulse supplying means, a second electrical circuit means providing for the detachable connection of said second circuit to said first circuit to enable the selective disconnection of said second circuit from said first circuit and the removal of said second circuit from said recorder, a read/write memory in said second circuit for storing information in binary form, and a battery in said second circuit, said battery being connected to said memory to supply the power for preserving the information stored in said memory both when said second circuit is connected to said first circuit and removed from said recorder, said first circuit comprising (a) an accumulator for counting said pulses to provide a plural bit binary number representing the number of counted pulses, (b) a shift register connected to said accumulator, (c) means for periodically producing a control signal, and (d) control means responsive to said control signal each time it is produced for loading the bits of the plural-bit binary number present in said accumulator into said register, for serially shifting the bits of the plural-bit binary number out of the register after they are loaded into the register, for serially writing the bits shifted out of the register into said memory and for resetting said accumulator after loading the plural-bit binary number into said register, said accumulator being effective to accumulate a new count of said pulses each time it is reset by said control means.

18. The recorder defined in claim 17 comprising means in said first circuit for sensing a condition in which said control signal and one of said pulses are present at the same time and means responsive to the sensing of said condition for reloading the number present in said accumulator into said register to update the count in said register before the bits in said register are shifted into said memory.

19. The recorder defined in claim 17 wherein said moving bodies are ground-engaging vehicles traveling along a roadway and wherein said means supplying said electrical pulses comprises a transducer for sensing the vehicles as they travel past a given place on the roadway.

20. A recorder comprising means for supplying a train of electrical pulses in which the number of pulses in a function of the number of moving bodies passing a given location, a first unit having a first electrical circuit electrically connected to said pulse supplying means, a battery-powered memory unit having a second circuit and detachably plugged into said first unit to provide for the electrical connection of said second circuit to said first circuit, said memory unit being selectively removable from said recorder upon unplugging it from said first unit, said second circuit having (a) a volatile semiconductor random access memory means and (b) at least one rechargeable battery connected to said memory means to provide the sole source of power for preserving data stored in said memory means both when memory unit is plugged into said first unit and removed from said recorder, first means in said first circuit for counting the pulses supplied by said pulse supplying means and second means connected to said first means and to said second circuit for periodically writing into said memory means data resulting from the counting of said pulses by said first means.

21. The recorder defined in claim 20 wherein said moving bodies are ground-engaging vehicles traveling along a roadway and wherein said means for supplying said electrical pulses comprises a transducer for sensing the vehicles as they travel past a given place on the roadway.

22. A portable, battery-powered memory pack adapted to be detachably coupled to an electrical circuit which is operative to supply binary data bits in the form of electrical digital signals, said portable, battery-powered memory pack comprising a volatile semiconductor read/write memory means, input means connected to said memory means for applying said binary data bits to said memory means for storage at predetermined locations therein, battery means connected to said memory means to provide the sole source of operating power for said memory means for preserving the data stored therein both when said portable battery-powered memory pack is coupled to said electrical circuit and uncoupled from said electrical circuit, terminal means adapted to be connected to said electrical circuit when said memory pack is coupled to said electrical circuit, and means electrically connecting said battery means to said terminal means for applying power to said electrical circuit when said memory pack is coupled to said electrical circuit.

23. A method for storing information comprising the steps of converting the information to be stored into a number of serially occurring electrical pulses, electrically counting the electrical pulses, periodically transferring the count accumulated as a result of counting a number of said pulses into a shift register in the form of a plural-bit word, shifting the bits of each word out of said register, writing each bit of each word shifted out of the register into a different address location of a random access memory, and continuing to electrically count said pulses while shifting the bits out of said register and writing them in said memory.

24. A method of collecting vehicle traffic data comprising the steps of sensing the number of ground-engaging vehicles passing a given location on a roadway and producing a train of electrical pulses in which the number of pulses is a function of the number of sensed vehicles, supplying memory address signals, storing data representative of the number of said pulses in a volatile, portable, battery-powered random access memory unit at storage locations determined by said address signals, transporting said memory unit under power to a data center after said data is stored in said memory unit and reading out the data stored in said memory unit at said data center.

25. An information recording system comprising means for supplying a series of serially occurring electrical pulses in which the number of pulses is indicative of certain information, an electrical circuit connected to said pulse supplying means and including means for obtaining a pulse count that is a function of and is determined by the number of said pulses, and a binary data storage unit, means providing for the detachable electrical connection of said storage unit to said circuit, said storage unit having (a) memory means containing a multiplicity of binary bit storage locations for storing bits of binary data representing said pulse count and (b) battery means electrically connected to said memory means to supply power for preserving the data stored in said memory means both when said unit is connected to said circuit and when said unit is detached from said circuit for removal from the information recording system.

26. The information recording system defined in claim 25 wherein said circuit includes means for selectively establishing a signal in the form of stored coded bits at a pre-selected number of said storage locations for separating different groups of data bits stored by said memory means.

27. The information recording system defined in claim 25 wherein said memory means is programmed with a pre-selected bit code at said storage locations, and wherein said circuit includes means for selectively skipping over a pre-selected number of said storage locations while preventing data from being written into each storage location that is skipped over to leave said code in each skipped-over storage location for providing a separation between different groups of data bits written into said memory means.

28. The information recording system defined in claim 25 wherein said pulse supplying means comprises a transducer for sensing vehicular traffic travelling on a road and for generating at least one electrical pulse for each vehicle axle passing a point on said road, and wherein said electrical circuit includes means for selectively dividing the number of pulses generated by said transducer by a pre-selected number to provide a pulse train having one pulse for every four pulses generated by said transducer, said pulse count-obtaining means comprising a counter electrically connected to said dividing means for counting the number of pulses in said train to provide said pulse count.

29. The information recording system defined in claim 25 wherein said pulse supplying means comprises a vehicle sensing transducer for generating an electrical pulse in response to the passage of each vehicle axle over a given point on a road, and wherein said electrical circuit includes means for dividing the pulses generated by said transducer by two to provide a pulse train having one pulse for every two pulses generated by said transducer, said pulse count-obtaining means comprising a counter electrically connected to said dividing means for counting the number of pulses in said train to provide said pulse count.

30. The information recording system defined in claim 25 including a digital display unit, said electrical circuit including selectively operable circuit means for reading the stored data out of said memory and for displaying the data in numerical form on said display unit.

31. A recorder comprising at least two separate signal channels each having (a) means for supplying a train of serially occurring electrical pulses in which the number of pulses is a function of the number of moving bodies passing a given location, (b) an electrical circuit connected to said pulse supplying means and having means for obtaining a pulse count that is a function of and is determined by the number of pulses in said train, (c) a data storage unit, (d) means providing for the detachable connection of said storage unit to said electrical circuit, (e) a read/write memory forming a part of said unit and having a multiplicity of data bit storage locations for storing data in binary form, (f) means forming a part of said unit for addressing the different storage locations in said memory, (g) battery means in said unit for preserving the data stored in said memory at least when said storage unit is removed from said recorder, and (h) further means forming a part of said electrical circuit and connected to said pulse count-obtaining means and also to said memory and said memory address means when said unit is connected to said circuit for writing into said memory data resulting from the pulse count obtained by said pulse count-obtaining means, said recorder further comprising means for selectively connecting the pulse supplying means of one of said two channels to the pulse supplying means of the other of said two channels for blocking the transmission of a pulse from the pulse supplying means of one of said channels in response to the occurrence of a pulse in the pulse supply means of the other of said channels.

32. The recorder defined in claim 31 wherein said moving bodies are ground-engaging vehicles traveling along a roadway and wherein said means for supplying said electrical pulses in each of said channels comprises a transducer for sensing the vehicles as they travel by a given place on the roadway.

33. An information recorder comprising an electrical circuit, means electrically connected to said circuit for supplying a train of serially occurring electrical pulses to said circuit in which the number of said pulses is determined by the number of moving objects passing a given location, means in said circuit for counting the number of pulses supplied to said circuit by said pulse supplying means in each of a series of successively occurring time periods of equal time durations to provide a separate pulse count for each of said time periods, a data storage unit, means providing for the detachable electrical connection of said storage unit to said electrical circuit to enable said storage unit to be selectively disconnected from said circuit and removed from said recorder, a volatile read/write memory forming a part of said storage unit and having a multiplicity of data storage locations for storing data in binary form, means forming a part of said storage unit for addressing different storage locations in said memory, battery means disposed in said unit and electrically connected to said memory for supplying power to preserve data stored in said memory both when said storage unit is connected to said electrical circuit and removed from said recorder, and further means forming a part of said electrical circuit and connected to said pulse counting means and also to said memory and said memory address means when said storage unit is connected to said electrical circuit to control the write-in of said pulse counts into said memory and to provide for the storage of said pulse counts at memory locations where the stored pulse counts remain descrete from one another.

34. An information recorder comprising at least two separate signal channels each having (a) means for supplying a train of serially occurring electrical pulses in which the number of pulses is indicative of certain information, (b) an electrical circuit connected to said pulse supplying means and having means for obtaining a pulse count that is a function of and is determined by the number of pulses in said train, (c) a data storage unit, (d) means providing for the detachable connection of said storage unit to said electrical circuit, (e) a read/write memory forming a part of said unit and having a multiplicity of data bit storage locations for storing data in binary form, (f) means forming a part of said unit for addressing the different storage locations in said memory, (g) battery means in said unit for preserving the data stored in said memory at least when said storage unit is removed from said recorder, and (h) further means forming a part of said electrical circuit and connected to said pulse count-obtaining means and also to said memory and said memory address means when said unit is connected to said circuit for writing into said memory data resulting from the pulse count obtained by said pulse count-obtaining means, said information recorder further including means for selectively connecting one of said two channels to the other of said two channels for providing the pulse count-obtaining means in one of said channels with a pulse count that is determined by the number of pulses supplied by the pulse supplying means of both of said channels.

35. A recorder comprising means including a transducer for supplying a train of serially occurring electrical pulses in which the number of pulses is indicative of certain information, a first electrical circuit connected to said pulse supplying means, a second electrical circuit, connector means connected to said first and second circuits to provide for the detachable connection of said second circuit to said first circuit and enabling the selective disconnection of said second circuit from said first circuit for selective removal from said recorder, a volatile read/write memory in said second circuit for storing information in binary form, a battery in said second circuit, said battery being connected to said memory to supply the power for preserving the information stored in said memory at least when said second circuit is removed from said recorder, said first circuit comprising an accumulator for counting the pulses produced by said pulse supplying means, means for periodically resetting said accumulator to provide a series of successively occurring pulse-counting time intervals, said accumulator being effective to accumulate a count of the pulses occurring in each of said time intervals to provide a separate pulse count for each time interval, and control means forming a part of said first circuit, said control means being connected to said accumulator and through said connector means to said memory for writing each of the counts accumulated by said accumulator into said memory.

36. A recorder comprising means for supplying a train of serially occurring electrical pulses in which the number of pulses is a function of certain information, an electrical circuit connected to said pulse supplying means and having means for obtaining a pulse count that is a function of and is determined by the number of pulses in said train, a data storage unit, means providing for the detachable electrical connection of said storage unit to said electrical circuit to enable said storage unit to be selectively disconnected from said circuit and removed from said recorder, a read/write memory forming a part of said unit and having a multiplicity of data bit storage locations for storing data in binary form, means forming a part of said unit for addressing the different storage locations in said memory, and battery means in said unit for preserving the data stored in said memory at least when said storage unit is removed from said recorder, and further means forming a part of said electrical circuit and connected to said pulse count-obtaining means and also to said memory and said memory addressing means when said unit is connected to said circuit for writing into said memory data resulting from the pulse count obtained by said pulse count-obtaining means.

37. The recorder defined in claim 36 wherein said memory addressing means comprises a counter for consecutively addressing the different data storage locations in said memory, wherein said read/write memory is programmed with a pre-selected binary code at each storage location, and wherein said electrical circuit includes means for selectively incrementing said counter to skip a pre-selected number of said storage locations without writing data into each storage location that is skipped, thereby leaving said code in each storage location that is skipped.

38. The recorder defined in claim 36 wherein said electrical circuit includes means for indicating the maximum elapsed time between successively occurring ones of the pulses in said train.

39. A portable, battery-powered memory pack adapted to be detachably coupled to an electrical circuit which is operative to supply binary data bits in the form of electrical digital signals, said portable, battery-powered memory pack comprising a volatile semiconductor read/write memory means, input means connected to said memory means for applying said binary data bits to said memory means for storage at predetermined locations therein, battery means connected to said memory means to provide a source of operating power for said memory means for preserving the data stored therein at least when said portable battery-powered memory pack is uncoupled from said electrical circuit, means for generating different address signals for said memory means, and circuit means for applying said address signals to address terminals of said memory means for causing said memory means to store the bits applied to said input means at locations that are determined by the address signals.

40. A portable, battery-powered memory pack adapted to be detachably coupled to an electrical circuit which is operative to supply binary data bits in the form of electrical digital signals, said portable, battery-powered memory pack comprising a volatile semiconductor read-write memory means, input means connected to said memory means for applying said binary data bits to said memory means for storage at predetermined locations therein, battery means connected to said memory means to provide a source of operating power for said memory means for preserving the data stored therein at least when said portable battery-powered memory pack is uncoupled from said electrical circuit, an address terminal adapted to be detachably connected to a source of electrical pulses that is exterior of the battery powered memory pack, an address counter connected to said address terminal for counting in the number of pulses fed from said electrical pulse source and for producing a plural-bit binary address signal whose numerical magnitude varies with the number of counted pulses, circuit means for applying said address signal to an address port of said memory means, terminal means connected to said memory means for feeding read-out and write-in command signals to said memory means, and a data output terminal connected to said memory means, said input means comprising a data input terminal, said memory means being responsive to said read-out signal to cause stored data at a location determined by the numerical magnitude of the address signal present at said port to be read out on said data output terminal, and said memory means further being responsive to said write-in signal to write in data applied at said data input terminal into a location that is determined by the numerical magnitude of said address signal present at said port.

41. The portable battery-powered memory pack defined in claim 40 comprising means connected intermediate said data input terminal and a pre-selected terminal of said battery to clamp said data input terminal to battery potential when the battery powered memory pack is uncoupled from said electrical circuit.

42. The portable battery-powered memory pack defined in claim 40 including resistor means connected between each of said data input, data output, address and additional terminals and said battery for clamping each of the terminals to a fixed potential when said battery-powered memory pack is uncoupled from said electrical circuit.

43. A portable, battery-powered memory pack adapted to be detachably coupled to an electrical circuit which is operative to supply binary data bits in the form of electrical digital signals, said portable, battery-powered memory pack comprising a read/write memory, input means connected to said memory means for applying said binary data bits to said memory for storage, battery means connected to said memory to provide a source of power for said memory, means for generating different address signals for said memory, and circuit means for applying said address signals to address terminals of said memory for causing said memory to store the binary data bits applied to said input means at storage locations that are determined by the address signals.

44. The portable, battery-powered memory pack defined in claim 43 including terminal means adapted to be connected to said electrical circuit when the battery-powered memory pack is coupled to said electrical circuit, and means electrically connecting said battery means to said terminal means to apply power to said electrical circuit when said battery-powered memory pack is coupled to said electrical circuit.

45. A recorder comprising at least two separate signal channels each having (a) means for supplying a train of serially occurring electrical pulses in which the number of pulses is indicative of certain information, (b) an electrical circuit connected to said pulse supplying means and having means for obtaining a pulse count that is a function of and is determined by the number of pulses in said train, (c) a data storage unit, (d) a read/write memory forming a part of said unit and (e) further means forming a part of said electrical circuit and connected to said pulse count-obtaining means and also to said memory for writing into said memory data resulting from the pulse count obtained by said pulse count-obtaining means, said recorder further comprising means for selectively connecting the pulse supplying means of one of said two channels to the pulse supplying means of the other of said two channels for blocking the transmission of a pulse from the pulse supplying means of one of said channels in response to the occurrence of a pulse in the pulse supply means of the other of said channels.

46. An information recorder comprising at least two separate signal channels each having (a) means for supplying a train of serially occurring electrical pulses which the number of pulses is indicative of certain information, (b) an electrical circuit connected to said pulse supplying means and having means for obtaining a pulse count that is a function of and is determined by the number of pulses in said train, (c) a data storage unit, (d) means providing for the detachable connection of said storage unit to said electrical circuit, (e) a read/write memory forming a part of said unit, and (e) further means forming a part of said electrical circuit and connected to said pulse count-obtaining means and also to said memory when said unit is connected to said circuit for writing into said memory data resulting from the pulse count obtained by said pulse count-obtaining means, said information recorder further including means for selectively connecting one of said two channels to the other of said two channels for providing the pulse count-obtaining means in one of said channels with a pulse count that is determined by the number of pulses supplied by the pulse supplying means of both of said channels.