Railway maintenance device
First Claim
Patent Images
1. A vehicle comprising:
- a transport component including;
a motor;
a set of wheels; and
a clutch configured to selectively engage the set of wheels with the motor;
a set of action components, the set of action components including at least one action component configured to be temporarily secured with respect to a target object external to the vehicle;
means for moving the at least one action component to temporarily secure the at least one component with respect to the target object, the means for moving comprising an arm including a plurality of links, wherein the set of action components are located on the arm, the vehicle further comprising means for disengaging at least one link of the multi-link arm in response to the at least one action component being temporarily secured with respect to the target object; and
means for operating the clutch to disengage the motor from the set of wheels in response to the at least one action component being temporarily secured with respect to the target object.
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Abstract
A railway maintenance device configured for autonomous or semi-autonomous operation in a rail environment is provided. The device can process image data to move about the rail environment and perform one or more actions in the rail environment. The actions can include one or more actions related to decoupling and/or attaching rail vehicles, and can be implemented by performing three-dimensional image processing. The device can be configured to move with any movement of a rail vehicle on which one or more actions are being performed. In an alternative embodiment, the various components configured to perform the action are implemented at a stationary location with respect to a rail line.
72 Citations
20 Claims
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1. A vehicle comprising:
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a transport component including; a motor; a set of wheels; and a clutch configured to selectively engage the set of wheels with the motor; a set of action components, the set of action components including at least one action component configured to be temporarily secured with respect to a target object external to the vehicle; means for moving the at least one action component to temporarily secure the at least one component with respect to the target object, the means for moving comprising an arm including a plurality of links, wherein the set of action components are located on the arm, the vehicle further comprising means for disengaging at least one link of the multi-link arm in response to the at least one action component being temporarily secured with respect to the target object; and means for operating the clutch to disengage the motor from the set of wheels in response to the at least one action component being temporarily secured with respect to the target object. - View Dependent Claims (2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7)
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8. A railway maintenance device comprising:
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a multi-link arm, each link capable of independent movement in at least one direction; a set of visualization components configured to capture work region image data for a region including at least one target object; an action component located on a link of the multi-link arm; and a processing component configured to;
move at least one of the links to place the action component near a target object in the region using the work region image data;
operate at least one of;
the arm or the action component, to perform a railway maintenance operation; and
disengage at least one link of the multi-link arm in response to the action component being temporarily secured with respect to the target object;a location imaging device configured to acquire location image data having a second field of view distinct from the work region image data; and a transport component configured to enable the device to move independently, wherein the processing component is further configured to process the location image data and operate the transport component to move the vehicle using the location image data. - View Dependent Claims (9, 10, 11, 12, 13)
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14. A rail yard comprising:
a railway maintenance device configured to perform each of a plurality of railway maintenance operations including;
decoupling a pair of rail vehicles;
detaching a pair of brake hoses;
attaching a pair of brake hoses; and
acquiring inspection data for a rail vehicle, the device comprising;a multi-link arm, each link capable of independent movement in at least one direction; a set of visualization components configured to capture work region image data for a region including at least one target object; an action component located on a link of the multi-link arm; and a processing component configured to;
move at least one of the links to place the action component near a target object in the region using the work region image data;
operate at least one of;
the arm or the action component, to perform at least one of the plurality of railway maintenance operations; and
disengage at least one link of the multi-link arm in response to the action component being temporarily secured with respect to the target object.- View Dependent Claims (15, 16, 17, 18, 19, 20)
Specification