Barrier operator system

• US 6,194,851 B1
• Filed: 01/27/1999
• Issued: 02/27/2001
• Est. Priority Date: 01/27/1999
• Status: Expired due to Term

• Current Assignee: Brian G. Denault
• Original Assignee: Hy-Security Gate Inc. (Nice Group SpA)
• Inventors: Denault, Brian G., Crowner, Scott A., OʼBerto, Gerald N.
• Primary Examiner(s): Sircus, Brian
• Application Number:
  US09/238,697
• Time in Patent Office: 762 Days
• Field of Search: 318/254, 318/807-812, 318/466-473, 318/139, 493/49
• US Class Current: 318/139
• CPC Class Codes: E05F 15/643 operated by flexible elongated pulling elements, e.g. belts, chains or cables by flexible elongated push-pull mechanisms E05F15/635
• CPC Class Codes: E05Y 2400/34 Pulse count limit setting
• CPC Class Codes: E05Y 2400/452 for saving energy
• CPC Class Codes: E05Y 2800/00 Details, accessories and auxiliary operations not otherwise provided for
• CPC Class Codes: E05Y 2800/104 Heating
• CPC Class Codes: E05Y 2800/25 Emergency conditions
• CPC Class Codes: G05B 2219/41099 Calibration by going to two extremes, limits, counting pulses, storing values
• CPC Class Codes: G05B 2219/43082 Near end position limit switch, lower speed and brake

Abstract

A barrier operator moves a movable barrier using a motive source having a movable member, a station, and first and second flexible members. The station includes a drive system operatively coupled to the movable member of the motive source. The drive system includes input and output members. The first and second flexible members each have first and second ends and a portion extending from the station. The first ends of each flexible members are operatively coupled to the movable barrier and the second ends of each of the flexible members are operatively coupled to the output drive system member of the station. Aspects include the first and second flexible members being cable or wire. Other aspects include the output drive system member of the station being a spool. The drive system further includes a gear box operatively coupled to the spool. Other aspects include the movable barrier being a gate or door. Further aspects include the motive member being a 3-phase alternate current electric motor having a motor shaft as the movable member. The electric motor is supplied with 3-phase electrical power having voltage levels less than 65 volts root mean square. Additional aspects include calibration of fully opened and closed positions of the movable barrier, automatically positioning of the movable barrier by the barrier operator, supplying 0 hertz electrical power to the electric motor for heating based upon a temperature threshold, and control of frequency of the electrical power supplied to the motor based according to a continuous function of barrier position.

Claims

1. A barrier operator to move a movable barrier along a path, the barrier operator comprising:

a three phase alternating current electric motor having a motor shaft;

an electrical inverter having an inverter input and an inverter output, the inverter input being electrically coupled to a direct current electrical power source, and the inverter output being electrically coupled to the three phase alternating current electric motor, the inverter being configured to supply three phase electrical power to the electric motor with a voltage difference only less than or equal to 65 volts root mean square between any two of the three phases; and

a station including a drive system with at least one drive system member operably coupled to the motor shaft and with at least one drive system member operably coupled to the movable barrier.

2. The barrier operator of claim 1, further comprising a controller electrically coupled to the inverter, the controller being configured to adjust at least one of frequency and voltage through a continuous range of the electrical power supplied by the inverter to the three phase alternating current electric motor based upon positions of the movable barrier along the path.

3. The barrier operator of claim 1, further comprising a controller electrically coupled to the inverter, the controller being configured to control at least one of frequency and voltage of the electrical power supplied by the inverter to the three phase alternating current electric motor, the controller linearly increasing the frequency from 0 Hz to a travel frequency and linearly decreasing the frequency from the travel frequency to a slower frequency based upon a position of the movable barrier along the path.

4. The barrier operator of claim 1, further comprising a controller electrically coupled to a position sensor, the controller being configured to record sensor readings associated with a fully open position and a fully closed position of the movable barrier to be used in determining positions of the movable barrier.

5. The barrier operator of claim 1, further comprising a controller electrically coupled to the inverter, the controller being configured to control at least one of frequency and voltage of the electrical power supplied by the inverter to the three phase alternating current electric motor, the controller linearly increasing and decreasing the frequency within a range of no less than 0 Hz and no greater than 180 Hz.

6. The barrier operator of claim 1, further comprising a controller electrically coupled to the inverter and external inputs, the controller being configured to control at least one of frequency and voltage of the electrical power supplied by the inverter to the three phase alternating current electric motor based upon electrical signals from the external inputs, the external inputs include at least one of the following:

key switches, card readers, radio signals, key punch pads, traffic detectors, photo eye outputs, pressure sensors, timer outputs, induction loops, telephone entry devices, ultrasonic detectors, radar detectors, and computer generated signals.

7. The barrier operator of claim 1 wherein the drive system is configured to provide a vanging winch action.

8. The barrier operator of claim 1, further comprising a controller electrically coupled to a position sensor, the controller being configured to determine when the movable barrier has moved along the path without assistance from the three phase alternating current electric motor based upon a change in position of the moveable barrier along the path as indicated by the position sensor and by a frequency of the electrical power supplied to the three phase alternating current electric motor by the inverter during the change in position of the movable barrier along the path.

9. The barrier operator of claim 1, further comprising a controller controlling the inverter to supply a repositioning electrical power to the three phase alternating current motor to maintain the movable barrier at a selected position along the path to which the movable barrier was moved by the three phase alternating current electric motor, the repositioning electrical power being selected by the controller sufficient to reposition the movable barrier back to the selected position when the movable barrier is moved therefrom other than by the three phase alternating current electric motor.

10. The barrier operator of claim 1, further comprising a controller controlling the inverter to vary both frequency and voltage level of the electrical power supplied by the inverter to the three phase alternating current electric motor.

11. The barrier operator of claim 1 wherein the inverter is configured to use pulse width modulation for the electrical power supplied to the three phase alternating current electric motor.

12. The barrier operator of claim 1, further comprising:

a charger electrically coupled to the inverter; and

a controller configured to determine absence of electrical power supplied to the inverter and voltage levels of power supplied to the inverter, and adjust at least one of frequency and voltage of the electrical power supplied by the inverter to the three phase alternating current electric motor based upon at least one of the following;

absence of electrical power supplied to the charger and determined voltage levels of power supplied to the inverter.

13. The barrier operator of claim 1, further comprising a controller and a temperature sensor, the controller being configured to control the inverter to supply electrical power having a frequency at or near 0 Hz to the three phase alternating current electric motor with an insufficient magnitude of frequency to move the movable barrier if the temperature sensor senses a temperature below a threshold temperature, the electrical power supplied to the three phase alternating current motor being sufficient to produce heating thereof with the heat produced being transmitted by the three phase alternating current electric motor to at least a portion of a surrounding environment.

14. The barrier operator of claim 1, further comprising a controller configured to adjust at least one of deceleration rate and deceleration distance of the movable barrier.

30. The barrier operator of claim 1 for use with the movable barrier including a gate, wherein the drive system member is operably coupled to the gate.

15. A barrier system comprising:

a movable barrier configured to travel along a path;

a three phase alternating current electric motor having a motor shaft, the motor being configured to operate on three phase alternating current with voltage differences of only less than or equal to 65 volts root mean square between any two of the three phases; and

a drive system with at least one drive system member operably coupled to the motor shaft and at least one drive system member operably coupled to the movable barrier.

16. The barrier operator of claim 15, further comprising a controller electrically coupled to the three phase alternating current electric motor, the controller being configured to adjust at least one of frequency and voltage through a continuous range of electrical power supplied to the three phase alternating current electric motor based upon position of the movable barrier along the path.

17. The barrier system of claim 15 wherein the three phase alternating current electric motor operates on three phase alternating current between a frequency range of no less than 0 Hz and no greater than 180 Hz.

18. The barrier system of claim 15 wherein the movable barrier comprises one of the following:

a gate and a door.

19. The barrier system of claim 15, further comprising a controller configured to adjust at least one of deceleration rate and deceleration distance of the movable barrier.

20. The barrier operator of claim 15, further comprising a controller controlling the inverter to supply a repositioning electrical power to the three phase alternating current motor to maintain the movable barrier at a selected position along the path to which the movable barrier was moved by the three phase alternating current electric motor, the repositioning electrical power being selected by the controller sufficient to reposition the movable barrier back to the selected position when the movable barrier is moved therefrom other than by the three phase alternating current electric motor.

21. The barrier operator of claim 15, further comprising a controller and a temperature sensor, the controller being configured to control the inverter to supply electrical power having a frequency at or near 0 Hz to the three phase alternating current electric motor with an insufficient magnitude of frequency to move the movable barrier if the temperature sensor senses a temperature below a threshold temperature, whereby the electrical power supplied to the three phase alternating current motor produces heating thereof with the heat produced being transmitted by the three phase alternating current electric motor to at least a portion of a surrounding environment.

31. The barrier system of claim 15 wherein the movable barrier is a gate.

22. A barrier operator to move a movable barrier along a path, the barrier operator comprising:

an electric motor having a motor shaft operably coupled to the movable barrier; and

a controller configured to control electrical power to the electric motor to maintain the movable barrier at a selected position along the path to which the movable barrier was moved by the electric motor, the the controller further configured to direct electrical power to the electric motor sufficient to reposition the movable barrier back to the selected position, the controller further configured to begin directing the electrical power to the electric motor immediately after at least one of the following;

a period of no more than one second has elapsed from a point in time in which the movable barrier has begun to be moved therefrom other than by the electric motor and the movable barrier has traveled no more than two inches therefrom other than by the electric motor.

32. The barrier operator of claim 22 for use with the movable barrier including a gate, wherein the motor shaft is operably coupled to the gate.

23. A barrier operator to move a movable barrier along a path, the barrier operator comprising:

one or more batteries configured to supply direct current electrical power;

a three phase alternating current electric motor having a motor shaft operably coupled to the movable barrier, the alternating current electric motor energetically linked to the one or more batteries to receive alternating current electrical power at or below 65 volts root mean square;

a temperature sensor; and

a controller configured to control electrical power supplied to the three phase alternating current electric motor, the electrical power having an insufficient magnitude to move the movable barrier if the temperature sensor senses a temperature below a threshold temperature, whereby the electrical power supplied to the three phase alternating current motor produces heating thereof with the heat produced being transmitted by the three phase alternating current electric motor to at least a portion of a surrounding environment.

33. The barrier operator of claim 23 for use with the movable barrier including a gate, wherein the motor shaft is operably coupled to the gate.

35. The barrier operator of claim 23 wherein the electrical power has an insufficient magnitude based upon at least one of the following:

voltage, current, frequency, frequency pattern, and pulse duration.

24. A gate operator to move a movable gate along a path, the gate operator comprising:

a three phase alternating current electric motor having a motor shaft operably coupled to the movable gate, the three phase alternating current electric motor being supplied with electrical power, the electrical power having a frequency; and

a controller electrically coupled to the three phase alternating current electric motor, the controller configured to adjust through a continuous range at least one of frequency, voltage, and pulse width of the electrical power supplied to the three phase alternating current electric motor based upon positions of the movable gate along the path.

25. A gate operator to move a movable gate along a path, the gate operator comprising:

a three phase electric motor having a motor shaft operably coupled to the movable gate;

a position sensor configured to sense positions of the movable gate along the path; and

a controller electrically coupled to a position sensor and the three phase electric motor, the controller being configured to record sensor readings associated with a fully open position and a fully closed position of the movable gate to be used in determining positions of the movable gate, the controller being further configured to adjust through a continuous range at least one of frequency, voltage, and pulse width of electric power supplied to the three phase electric motor based upon positions of the movable gate along the path sensed by the position sensor.

26. A method for a gate operator that moves a movable gate, the method comprising:

moving the movable gate to a fully open position;

identifying the fully-open position to a controller;

recording reference data associated with the fully-open position of the movable gate;

moving the movable barrier to a fully-closed position;

identifying the fully-closed position to the controller;

recording reference data associated with the fully-closed position of the movable gate;

determining a subsequent position of the movable gate based upon the recorded reference data of the fully-open and fully-closed positions of the movable gate; and

adjusting at least one of voltage, frequency, and pulse width over a continuous range of electrical power supplied to a three phase electric motor based upon the subsequent position of the movable gate.

27. The method of claim 26, further comprising:

counting a number of electrical pulses produced by a position sensor; and

determining a displacement distance from the fully-open or the fully-closed position of the movable gate related to subsequent movement of the movable gate.

28. A method of controlling for a gate operator, the method comprising:

increasing at least one of frequency, voltage, and pulse width of electrical power supplied to a three phase electric motor operably coupled to a moving gate according to a first continuous function dependent upon gate position until the frequency of the electrical power equals a predetermined first frequency;

monitoring positions of the movable gate; and

upon the movable gate reaching a predetermined position, decreasing at least one of frequency, voltage, and pulse width of the electrical power supplied to the three phase electric motor according to a second continuous function dependent upon gate position until the frequency of the electrical power supplied to the three phase electric motor equals a predetermined second frequency.

29. A method to move a movable portion of a barrier, the movable portion having a first and second side, the movable portion having a fully closed position, the method comprising:

demarcating a first region, the first region being adjacent the first side of the movable portion of the barrier when the movable portion of the barrier is in the fully closed position;

demarcating a second region, the second region being adjacent the second side of the movable portion of the barrier when the movable portion of the barrier is in the fully closed position;

sensing with devices comprising electronic devices that a movable object is in the first region;

moving a movable portion of the barrier toward a fully open position using a barrier operator;

stopping movement of the movable portion of the barrier upon sensing that a portion of the movable object has reached the second region; and

moving the movable portion of the barrier toward the fully closed position using the barrier operator upon sensing that no portions of the movable object are in the first and second regions.

34. The method of claim 29 wherein the moving of the movable portion of the barrier is accomplished with a gate operator.