Elevated platform system including restraining systems and vision system

• US 9,644,379 B2
• Filed: 01/31/2014
• Issued: 05/09/2017
• Est. Priority Date: 11/05/2013
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: The Boeing Co.
• Original Assignee: The Boeing Co.
• Inventors: Vance, Jonathan B., Dorris, Steven A., Salour, Al, Trimble, Douglas D.
• Primary Examiner(s): Mitchell, Katherine
• Assistant Examiner(s): Menezes, Marcus
• Application Number:
  US14/170,501
• Publication Number:
  US 20150122579A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,194 Days
• Field of Search: 348159
• CPC Class Codes: A62B 35/00 Safety belts or body harnesses; Similar equipment for limiting displacement of the human body, especially in case of sudden changes of motion buckles A44B11/00; accessories for children's furniture A47D15/00; children's seats B60N2/24; safety belts or body harnesses for land vehicles B60R22/00; harnesses for parachutes B64D17/30; harnessing in aircraft B64D25/06; releasable fastenings F16B
• CPC Class Codes: B66F 11/04 for movable platforms or cabins, e.g. on vehicles, permitting workmen to place themselves in any desired position for carrying out required operations Working platforms on fork-lift trucks B66F9/127; vehicle aspects of service vehicles B60P3/14; platforms for cleaning windows A47L3/02; devices for rescuing persons from buildings A62B1/02; liftable or lowerable platforms for use on ladders E06C7/16; maintenance travellers for bridges E01D19/10; scaffolds on an extensible sub-structure E04G1/22
• CPC Class Codes: E04G 21/3276 Arrangements on buildings for connecting safety-lines fastening devices for devices for lowering persons from buildings A62B1/04
• CPC Class Codes: E04G 21/3295 Guide tracks for safety lines arrangements for bypassing safety track supports without life line disconnection A62B35/0087
• CPC Class Codes: E04G 5/001 Safety or protective measures against falling down relating to scaffoldings E04G5/14 takes precedence
• CPC Class Codes: G06K 19/07 with integrated circuit chips
• CPC Class Codes: G06K 7/0008 General problems related to the reading of electronic memory record carriers, independent of its reading method, e.g. power transfer

Abstract

An elevated platform system comprises a platform, a vision system configured to detect a number of people on the platform, and a plurality of restraining systems onboard the platform. Each restraining system includes a passive RFID tag secured to the platform and a reader configured to perform near field detection of the tag.

Claims

1. A elevated platform system comprising:

a platform;

a vision system including at least one camera that captures images of the platform, the images used to determine a number of people on the platform;

a plurality of restraining systems onboard the platform, each restraining system including a passive RFID tag secured to the platform and a reader secured to a worker'"'"'s safety harness, the reader configured to perform near field detection of the tag when the passive RFID tag is proximate the reader; and

a base station that communicates with each reader and the vision system and compares the number of people on the platform determined by the vision system to a number of tags detected from each reader.

2. The elevated platform system of claim 1, wherein the at least one camera of the vision system is stationed above the platform to capture images of a work area of the platform.

3. The elevated platform system of claim 1, wherein the vision system further includes a processor that processes the captured images to determine the number of people onboard the platform.

4. The elevated platform system of claim 1, wherein the base station is further configured to raise an alarm if the number of people on the platform determined by the vision system does not match the number of detected RFID tags.

5. The elevated platform system of claim 1, wherein the platform includes a lift mechanism, and wherein the base station is configured to enable operation of the lift mechanism when the number of people on the platform determined by the vision system matches the number of detected RFID tags.

6. The elevated platform system of claim 1, further comprising at least one additional platform and a plurality of additional restraining systems onboard each additional platform, the vision system configured to detect a number of people on each additional platform, the base station configured to communicate with the readers of the additional restraining systems to determine a number of RFID tags detected on each additional platform, the base station further configured to compare the number of people on the platform determined by the vision system to the number of detected tags for each additional platform.

7. The elevated platform system of claim 1, wherein each restraining system includes a restraint having:

a first interlockable part secured to the platform, the RFID tag carried by the first interlockable part; and

an article that carries the reader and that has a second interlockable part that, when interlocked with the first part, restrains the article to the platform;

wherein the reader detects the RFID tag when the first and second parts are interlocked.

8. The elevated platform system of claim 7, wherein the reader performs near field detection within a prescribed range of a few inches of the second part.

9. The elevated platform system of claim 7, wherein the reader continues the near field detection after the parts have been interlocked.

10. The elevated platform system of claim 7, wherein the restraint further includes a lanyard having a free end that terminates in the first part;

and wherein the article includes a safety harness.

11. The elevated platform system of claim 1, wherein the reader includes a processor programmed to generate a restraint status signal indicating whether the reader detects the RFID tag.

12. The elevated platform system of claim 11, wherein the reader further includes a wireless device for transmitting the restraint status signal to the base station.

13. The elevated platform system of claim 1, further comprising a crane stacker including the platform.

14. A fall restraint system for an elevated platform, the fall restraint system comprising:

a vision system including at least one camera that captures images used to determine a number of people onboard the platform;

a restraint onboard the platform;

an RFID tag secured to the platform;

a passive RFID reader, carried by the restraint, for performing near field RFID detection of the tag; and

a base station that communicates with the passive RFID reader and the vision system and matches the number of people on the platform determined by the vision system to a number of tags detected by the passive RFID reader.

15. The system of claim 14, wherein the restraint includes a lanyard having a first part, and a harness having a second part that is interlockable with the first part, the reader proximate the second part, the RFID tag attached to the first part.