Emergency vehicle control system traffic loop preemption

• US 7,113,108 B1
• Filed: 04/08/2003
• Issued: 09/26/2006
• Est. Priority Date: 04/09/2002
• Status: Expired due to Fees

• Current Assignee: California Institute of Technology
• Original Assignee: California Institute of Technology
• Inventors: Bachelder, Aaron D., Foster, Conrad F.
• Primary Examiner(s): Lee, Benjamin C.
• Assistant Examiner(s): TANG, SON M
• Application Number:
  US10/410,582
• Time in Patent Office: 1,267 Days
• Field of Search: 340/933, 340/941, 340/995.13, 340/995.2, 340/995.25
• US Class Current: 340/906
• CPC Class Codes: G08G 1/042 using inductive or magnetic detectors
• CPC Class Codes: G08G 1/087 Override of traffic control, e.g. by signal transmitted by an emergency vehicle

Abstract

An emergency vehicle traffic signal preemption system using existing inductive traffic loops that is either “car-active” or “car-passive”. In the “car-active” system, a passive element having position information transmits an ID tag and the position information to a transceiver in the vehicle when an emergency vehicle is detected by the existing inductive traffic loop. In the “car-passive” system, a transceiver at the intersection is activated to send an excitation signal to a transponder on the emergency vehicle. The transponder responds with the emergency vehicle ID. The transceiver in the vehicle in the “car-active” system or the transceiver at the intersection in the “car-passive” system, transmit position information to the traffic controller to preempt operation of the traffic signals.

Claims

1. A method for preempting traffic signals at an intersection comprising:

detecting an emergency vehicle at a first intersection via an embedded inductive traffic loop; and

invoking a transmitter coupled to the traffic loop for transmitting position information to the emergency vehicle responsive to the detection of the emergency vehicle at the first intersection, the emergency vehicle forwarding the position information to a traffic controller at a second intersection;

wherein said traffic controller preempts traffic signals for controlling flow of traffic at the second intersection based on information on one or more positions transmitted by the emergency vehicle.

2. The method according to claim 1 including transmitting predictive intermediate position updates from said emergency vehicle to said traffic controller.

3. The method according to claim 2 comprising transmitting predictive intermediate position updates between intersections to said traffic controller.

4. The method according to claim 3 comprising transmitting predictive intermediate position updates between intersections that are determined by a dead-reckoning system.

5. The method of claim 1, wherein position of the emergency vehicle is determined based on the forwarded position information.

6. The method of claim 1, wherein the forwarded position information includes direction information.

7. A system for preempting traffic signals for controlling the passage of an emergency vehicle comprising:

a traffic controller for controlling the operation of traffic signals at a second intersection;

an inductive traffic loop at a first intersection detecting presence of an emergency vehicle at the first intersection;

a transmitter coupled to the traffic loop and transmitting position information to the emergency vehicle responsive to the detection of the emergency vehicle at the first intersection;

a transceiver in said emergency vehicle receiving the position information from said transmitter and forwarding

said position information to said traffic controller at the second intersection;

wherein said traffic controller preempts traffic signals at the second intersection based on information on one or more positions transmitted by the emergency vehicle.

8. The system according to claim 7 wherein said transceiver transmits intermediate predictive position updates to said traffic controller.

9. The system according to claim 8 wherein said transceiver includes a dead-reckoning system, said intermediate predictive positions transmitted to said transceiver being determined by said dead-reckoning system.

10. The system according to claim 9, wherein said transceiver transmits a 4500 Mhz excitation signal to said transponder.

11. The system according to claim 10 in which said transponder transmits an emergency vehicle ID to the transceiver at a frequency of 900 Mhz.

12. The system of claim 7, wherein position of the emergency vehicle is determined based on the forwarded position information.

13. The system of claim 7, wherein the forwarded position information includes direction information.

14. A system for preempting traffic signals for controlling the passage of emergency vehicles comprising:

a traffic controller for controlling the operation of traffic signals at a second intersection;

an inductive traffic loop at a first intersection detecting presence of an emergency vehicle at the first intersection;

a transceiver coupled to the traffic loop, the transceiver being actuated to transmit a first signal in response to the detection of the emergency vehicle by said inductive loop;

a transponder on said emergency vehicle activated by the first signal transmitted by said transceiver and transmitting a second signal providing information about the emergency vehicle to said transceiver, said transceiver transmitting a third signal providing position information of the emergency vehicle to said traffic controller;

wherein said traffic controller preempts traffic signals at the second intersection based on the position information of the emergency vehicle.

15. The system of claim 14, wherein the position information includes direction information.

16. A method for preempting traffic signals at an intersection comprising:

detecting an emergency vehicle at a first intersection via an inductive traffic loop;

transmitting a first signal via a first transponder coupled to the traffic loop in response to the detection of the emergency vehicle;

activating a second transponder on the emergency vehicle based on the first signal and transmitting a second signal by the second transponder in response, the second signal providing information about the emergency vehicle; and

transmitting a third signal by the first transponder in response to the second signal, the third signal providing position information of the emergency vehicle to a traffic controller at a second intersection,

wherein the traffic controller preempts traffic signals at the second intersection based on the position information of the emergency vehicle.

17. The system of claim 16, wherein the position information includes direction information.