Method and database arrangement for inspection and requalification of vehicles used for transporting commodities and/or hazardous materials

• US 6,832,183 B1
• Filed: 10/02/2000
• Issued: 12/14/2004
• Est. Priority Date: 10/01/1999
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: General Electric Railcar Services Corporation (General Electric Company)
• Original Assignee: General Electric Railcar Services Corporation (General Electric Company)
• Inventors: Donahue, Timothy, Kozlowski, Arthur J., Barich, Daniel M.
• Primary Examiner(s): PALADINI, ALBERT WILLIAM
• Application Number:
  US09/676,752
• Time in Patent Office: 1,534 Days
• Field of Search: 703/22, 705/8, 707/100, 701/29, 701/35
• US Class Current: 703/22
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 10/06395 Quality analysis or management
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 10/10 Office automation; Time management

Abstract

A method of requalifying a rail born tank car adapted to transport includes inspecting the tank car in accord with a selected one of a plurality of procedures, each procedure delineating and defining a pre-determined plurality of inspections and test. Inspection data obtained from the predetermined series of steps and tests is input into a computer-readable storage medium, where it is related by a computer having at least one processor, to secondary data, such as ownership data, lease status data, rental status data, and/or transported commodity data. Based on this relation, the computer computes a requalification date for the tank car based on the input inspection data and the secondary data. This requalification date is output to at least one of a computer-readable storage medium, a display device, and a physical print media inclusive of an outer surface of the tank car.

Claims

1. A method of requalifying a tank car adapted to transport commodities, comprising the steps of:

inspecting the tank car in accord with a selected instruction set comprising a pre-determined plurality of inspection steps;

inputting inspection data obtained from execution of said inspection steps into a computer-readable storage medium;

relating, using a computer having at least one processor, the inspection data to secondary data comprising at least one of ownership data, lease status data, rental status data, and transported commodity data;

computing, using said computer, a requalification date for the tank car based on the input inspection data and the secondary data; and

outputting a signal indicative of the requalification date.

2. A method of requalifying a tank car adapted to transport commodities in accord with claim 1, wherein said outputting step comprises outputting the signal to at least one of a network link, a local network, a server, a computer-readable storage medium, a display device, a physical print media, and a device configured to imprint the requalification date on outer surface of the tank car.

3. A method of requalifying a tank car adapted to transport commodities in accord with claim 2, wherein the computing step further comprises:

determining a car lining status from the inspection data;

determining a corrosive service status from the secondary data;

assigning, for lined cars, a requalification date determined based on the inspection data and the secondary data.

4. A method of requalifying a tank car adapted to transport commodities comprising the steps of:

inspecting the tank car in accord with a selected instruction set comprising a pre-determined plurality of inspection steps;

inputting inspection data obtained from execution of said inspection steps into a computer-readable storage medium;

relating, using a computer having at least one processor, the inspection data to secondary data comprising at least one of ownership data, lease status data, rental status data, and transported commodity data;

computing, using said computer, a requalification date for the tank car based on the input inspection data and the secondary data; and

outputting a signal indicative of the requalification date, wherein the computing step further comprises;

determining a car lining status from the inspection data;

determining a corrosive service status from the secondary data; and

calculating an estimated requalification date, for unlined cars used in non-corrosive service, by subtracting a lowest shell thickness reading from the inspection data from a minimum required shell thickness and dividing the result by a commodity corrosion rate included in the transported commodity data;

assigning a requalification date in accord with the lesser of said estimated requalification date and ten years from a base inspection date, and

wherein said outputting step comprises outputting the signal to at least one of a network link, a local network, a server, a computer-readable storage medium, a display device, a physical print media, and a device configured to imprint the requalification date on outer surface of the tank car.

5. A method of requalifying a tank car adapted to transport commodities in accord with claim 4, wherein said inspecting step comprises:

assigning one of a upmarket requalification status, release car status, and order car status to the inspected tank car, and

inspecting the tank car in accord with a selected one of a plurality of procedures corresponding to one of a requalification upmarket inspection, release car inspection, and order car inspection.

7. A method of requalifying a tank car adapted to transport commodities in accord with claim 5, wherein said inspecting step comprises:

inspecting of a plurality of inspection sites selected from at least one area required to be inspected under at least one of 49 C.F.R. §

180.509, SSIP, and Rule 88.B.2.

6. A method of requalifying a tank car adapted to transport commodities comprising the steps of:

inspecting the tank car in accord with a selected instruction set comprising a pre-determined plurality of inspection steps;

inputting inspection data obtained from execution of said inspection steps into a computer-readable storage medium;

relating, using a computer having at least one processor, the inspection data to secondary data comprising at least one of ownership data, lease status data, rental status data, and transported commodity data;

computing, using said computer, a requalification date for the tank car based on the input inspection data and the secondary data; and

outputting a signal indicative of the requalification date,

wherein said outputting step comprises outputting the signal to at least one of a network link, a local network, a server, a computer-readable storage medium, a display device, a physical print media, and a device configured to imprint the requalification date on outer surface of the tank car,

wherein the computing step further comprises;

determining a car lining status from the inspection data;

determining a corrosive service status from the secondary data;

assigning, for lined cars, a requalification date determined based on the inspection data and the secondary data

wherein said inspecting step comprises;

assigning one of a requalification upmarket status, release car status, and order car status to the inspected tank car, and

inspecting the tank car in accord with a selected one of a plurality of procedures corresponding to one of a requalification upmarket inspection, release car inspection, and order car inspection.

8. A test procedure for inspecting a vehicle adapted to transport commodities, comprising the steps of:

compiling inspection data in accord with a predetermined exhaustive list of features set forth in at least one instruction set;

inputting the inspection data into a computer readable medium;

selecting, using a computer, a lowest dimensional data value for a selected feature from the input data;

selecting, using the computer, a corresponding minimum permissible value for the selected feature;

computing, using the computer, a difference between the minimum permissible value and the lowest measured data value corresponding to the minimum permissible value;

dividing, using the computer, said difference with a third value indicative of a selected form of deterioration over time to derive a date at which the vehicle should be;

subjected to reinspection and requalification; and

outputting a signal indicative of the computed requalification date from the computer.

9. A test procedure for inspecting a vehicle adapted to transport commodities in accord with claim 8, wherein said outputting step comprises outputting the signal to at least one of a network link, a local network, a server, a computer-readable storage medium, a display device, and a physical print media inclusive of an outer surface of the tank car.

10. A test procedure for inspecting a vehicle adapted to transport commodities in accord with claim 9, wherein said lowest measured data value and said corresponding minimum permissible value are shell thickness values.

11. A test procedure for inspecting a vehicle adapted to transport commodities in accord with claim 10, wherein said third value indicative of a selected form of deterioration over time is a corrosion rate.

12. A test procedure for inspecting a vehicle adapted to transport commodities in accord with claim 11, wherein the corrosion rate is related to a particular pairing of a transported commodity and a lining type.

13. A test procedure for inspecting a vehicle adapted to transport commodities in accord with claim 11, wherein said compiling step comprises inspection of a plurality of inspection sites selected from at least one area required to be inspected under at least one of 49 C.F.R. §

180.509, SSIP, and Rule 88.B.2.

14. A computer-readable medium bearing instructions enabling a computer having at least one processor to determine a requalification date of a tank car adapted to transport commodities, the instructions, when executed by a computer, causing the computer to carry out the steps of:

determining a type of vehicle under inspection;

selecting from an instruction set an exhaustive list of sites to be inspected for the identified type of vehicle;

outputting to a user each listed site in accord with the instruction set forth for each of the listed sites in the instruction set;

storing data derived from implementation of the inspection instruction set for each of said exhaustive list of sites input into the computer-readable medium by the user;

accessing from the same or another computer-readable medium a first record comprising inspection data;

accessing from the same or another computer-readable medium a second record comprising commodity data;

determining a requalification date for the tank car based on the first record and the second record.

15. A computer-readable medium bearing instructions in accord with claim 14, wherein said first record is a shell thickness value.

16. A computer-readable medium bearing instructions in accord with claim 15, wherein said first record is a minimum measured shell thickness value.

17. A computer-readable medium bearing instructions in accord with claim 16, wherein said second record is a commodity corrosion rate.

18. A computer-readable medium bearing instructions in accord with claim 17, wherein said determining a requalification date comprises the steps of:

accessing a third record from a database comprising minimum allowable shell thicknesses;

calculating a difference between the minimum allowable shell thickness of the third record and the minimum measured shell thickness value of the first record; and

dividing the difference by a commodity corrosion rate of the second record.

19. A computer-readable medium bearing instructions in accord with claim 18, wherein said commodity corrosion rate is adjusted in accord with a lining type.

20. A computer-readable medium bearing instructions in accord with claim 14, further comprising:

trending inspection data; and

establishing, based on the trended inspection data, a maintenance or inspection interval.