Container inspection system
First Claim
1. A global container inspection system for inspecting at least one container during the handling of said at least one container at an at least one container handling facility including at least one transport apparatus in communication with a computer network, comprising:
- means, located on said at least one transport apparatus, for receiving at least one comparison data selected from the group consisting of load model, load signature, weight profile, and sensory limits for said at least one container;
means, responsive to connecting said at least one transport apparatus to said at least one container, for scanning said at least one container to produce at least one scanned characteristic data;
means, responsive to said at least one scanned characteristic data, for determining a pass status for said at least one container when said at least one scanned characteristic data substantially matches said at least one comparison data related to said at least one scanned characteristic data and a fail status for said at least one container when at least one of said scanned characteristic data does not substantially match said at least one comparison data related to said at least one scanned characteristic data; and
means, responsive to the receipt of at least one of said pass status and said fail status, for selecting a first location to move said at least one container by said transport apparatus based on said pass status and a second location to move said at least one container by said transport apparatus based on said fail status and transporting said at least one container with said at least one transport apparatus to said selected location.
5 Assignments
0 Petitions
Accused Products
Abstract
The container inspection system operates globally at container handling facilities around the world and includes at least one transport apparatus located at a container handling facility having a spreader or other framework for connecting and handling cargo containers of all shapes and sizes. The transport apparatus is in communication with a computer network including several computing devices that provide to the transport apparatus comparison data including load models, load signatures, weight profile, and sensory limits related to a particular container. Sensors can be located on the spreader, inside the container, and invasively through the container and provide scanned characteristic data that is compared to the comparison data to determine a pass status or a fail status for the container. Ancillary data and authority input may be provided to the system by outside sources, such as other inspection systems and governmental entities. The transport apparatuses then move the connected container to a first location if a pass status is determined and a second location if a fail status is determined. The computer network may include a global host computer, a local host computer, and a local transport computer and employs expert system methodology.
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Citations
48 Claims
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1. A global container inspection system for inspecting at least one container during the handling of said at least one container at an at least one container handling facility including at least one transport apparatus in communication with a computer network, comprising:
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means, located on said at least one transport apparatus, for receiving at least one comparison data selected from the group consisting of load model, load signature, weight profile, and sensory limits for said at least one container; means, responsive to connecting said at least one transport apparatus to said at least one container, for scanning said at least one container to produce at least one scanned characteristic data; means, responsive to said at least one scanned characteristic data, for determining a pass status for said at least one container when said at least one scanned characteristic data substantially matches said at least one comparison data related to said at least one scanned characteristic data and a fail status for said at least one container when at least one of said scanned characteristic data does not substantially match said at least one comparison data related to said at least one scanned characteristic data; and means, responsive to the receipt of at least one of said pass status and said fail status, for selecting a first location to move said at least one container by said transport apparatus based on said pass status and a second location to move said at least one container by said transport apparatus based on said fail status and transporting said at least one container with said at least one transport apparatus to said selected location. - View Dependent Claims (2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12, 13, 14, 15, 16, 17, 18, 19, 20, 21, 22, 23, 24)
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25. A global container inspection system for inspecting at least one container during handling of said at least one container at an at least one container handling facility including at least one transport apparatus for moving said at least one container, comprising:
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at least one spreader connected to said at least one transport apparatus located in said at least one container handling facility for connecting to said at least one container; at least one sensor connected to said at least one spreader to scan said at least one container to produce at least one scanned characteristic data; at least one local transport computer, located on at least one of said at least one transport apparatus and said at least one spreader in communication with said at least one sensor, for receiving an at least one comparison data selected from the group consisting of load model, load signature, weight profile, and sensory limits related to said at least one container; at least one local host computer in communication with said at least one local transport computer for receiving from said at least one local transport computer said at least one scanned characteristic data and transmitting to said at least one transport computer said at least one comparison data; and a global host computer in communication with said at least one local host computer for receiving from said at least one local host computer said at least one scanned characteristic data and transmitting to said at least at least one local host computer said at least one comparison data. - View Dependent Claims (26, 27, 28, 29, 30, 31, 32, 33, 34, 35, 36, 37, 38, 39)
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40. A method for inspecting a container during the handling of said container located within a container handling facility including at least one transport apparatus connected to a spreader having at least one sensor attached to said spreader, said at least one sensor in communication with a local transport computer located on said at least one transport apparatus, comprising:
storing on said local transport computer an at least one comparison data for said container; identifying said container by said at least one sensor; engaging said spreader to said container; scanning said container with said at least one sensor to produce at least one scanned characteristic data; transmitting said at least one scanned characteristic data to said local transport computer; comparing said at least one scanned characteristic data with said at least one comparison data; and moving said container with said spreader based on said comparison. - View Dependent Claims (41, 42, 43, 44, 45, 46, 47, 48)
Specification