Monitoring and controlling of distributed machines

• US 10,805,400 B2
• Filed: 12/19/2019
• Issued: 10/13/2020
• Est. Priority Date: 06/30/2015
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Cattron North America, Inc. (Cattron Holdings, Inc.)
• Original Assignee: Cattron North America, Inc. (Cattron Holdings, Inc.)
• Inventors: Ferencz, Jr., Donald Cyril, Hostelley, Kevin David, Conrad, Justin Wesley
• Primary Examiner(s): Strange, Aaron N
• Application Number:
  US16/721,399
• Publication Number:
  US 20200128080A1
• Time in Patent Office: 299 Days
• CPC Class Codes: B61L 15/0018 Communication with or on the vehicle or train
• CPC Class Codes: B61L 15/0072 On-board train data handling
• CPC Class Codes: B61L 17/02 Details, e.g. indicating degree of track filling
• CPC Class Codes: B61L 2027/204 using Communication-based Train Control [CBTC]
• CPC Class Codes: B61L 2205/04 Satellite based navigation systems, e.g. global positioning system [GPS]
• CPC Class Codes: B61L 25/025 Absolute localisation, e.g. providing geodetic coordinates
• CPC Class Codes: B61L 27/40 Handling position reports or trackside vehicle data
• CPC Class Codes: B61L 27/57 for vehicles or trains, e.g. trackside supervision of train conditions
• CPC Class Codes: B61L 27/70 Details of trackside communication
• CPC Class Codes: B61L 3/127 for remote control of locomotives remote control of locomotives within a train consist B61C17/12
• CPC Class Codes: G16Y 10/40 Transportation
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 51/06 Message adaptation to terminal or network requirements
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/12 specially adapted for proprietary or special-purpose networking environments, e.g. medical networks, sensor networks, networks in vehicles or remote metering networks

Abstract

Exemplary embodiments are disclosed of apparatus and methods for monitoring and controlling distributed machines. In an exemplary embodiment, a network includes machines each having sensor(s) and/or actuator(s). Each machine has a node resident on the machine and/or in communication with the machine and that provides raw data from the sensor(s) and/or actuator(s). Each node has a network interface, and a processor and memory configured as a node agent to embed the raw data in message(s) without reformatting the raw data. An engine receives and reformats messages from the node agents without reformatting raw data embedded in the messages. The engine directs the reformatted messages including the raw data to user device(s) for use in managing machine activity and/or status. The engine also sends a message from a user device to a node of a given machine, for use in controlling activity and/or status of the given machine.

Claims

1. A network comprising:

a plurality of machines each having one or more sensors and/or one or more actuators, each machine having a node resident on the machine and/or in communication with the machine, each node having a network interface and configured to provide raw data from the one or more sensors and/or one or more actuators, each node having a processor and memory configured as a node agent to embed the raw data in one or more messages without reformatting the raw data, each of the one or more messages including a topic and a subtopic;

an engine configured to;

reformat the messages from the node agents without reformatting the raw data embedded in the messages;

direct the reformatted messages including the raw data to one or more user devices for use in managing activity and/or status of one or more of the plurality of the machines, wherein the one or more user devices are remote from the one or more of the plurality of the machines; and

send a message from at least one of the user devices to the node of a given machine of the plurality of the machines, for use in controlling activity and/or status of the given machine; and

a data handler in communication with the engine, the data handler configured to;

obtain the raw data included in at least one of the messages reformatted by the engine;

process the raw data into a format interpretable by an application on at least one of the one or more user devices to which the at least one of the messages is directed by the engine based on the subtopic specified in the at least one of the messages; and

send the processed data to the at least one of the one or more user devices;

wherein the engine is configured to receive the raw data included in the messages from the node agents of the plurality of machines and send the raw data via one of a plurality of channels selected based on the topics specified in the messages.

2. The network of claim 1, wherein the engine is configured to, in connection with the reformatting, preserve a binary form of the raw data.

3. The network of claim 1, wherein the engine is configured, as a broker of a publish/subscribe messaging system in which the node agents and/or one or more user applications on the one or more user devices are configured to subscribe as clients to the publish/subscribe messaging system.

4. The network of claim 3, wherein the plurality of channels include a status channel, a data channel, and an alert channel;

wherein the broker is configured to;

send, via the status channel, real-time status information associated with a remote control locomotive (RCL);

transport and/or persist, via the data channel, individual RCL event archive records; and

send, via the alert channel, real-time information to generate system alerts indicating conditions and push, via the alert channel, alerts to one or more user applications.

5. The network of claim 1, wherein the engine is further configured to communicate with each of the node agents using point-to-point communication and WebSocket protocol.

6. The network of claim 1, wherein the node agents are configured to push the messages to the engine.

7. The network of claim 1, wherein the engine is configured to push the reformatted messages to the one or more user devices.

8. The network of claim 1, wherein the data handler is configured to add units to the raw data in the message.

9. The network of claim 1, wherein the plurality of machines comprise a plurality of remotely controlled locomotives.

10. The network of claim 1, wherein one or more of the following are provided as the raw data from the one or more sensors and/or one or more actuators:

GPS coordinates, velocity, velocity set point, direction, brake pressure, and throttle output.

11. A network comprising:

a plurality of machines each having one or more sensors and/or one or more actuators;

a plurality of nodes resident on and/or in communication with the machines, each node configured to provide, in a message, raw data from the one or more sensors and/or actuators of a machine associated with the node without reformatting the raw data, each message including a topic and a subtopic;

an engine configured to;

receive the messages from the nodes;

reformat the messages from the nodes without reformatting the raw data; and

send the reformatted messages, such that the reformatted messages include the raw data in a format received by the engine, the engine further configured (a) to communicate with each node using a point-to-point protocol, or (b) to communicate as a broker with one or more of the nodes;

the network further comprising a data handler in communication with the engine and configured to;

process the raw data into one or more formats interpretable by one or more user applications on one or more user devices to which the messages are directed by the engine based on the subtopics specified in the messages; and

push the processed data to the one or more user devices;

wherein the engine is configured to receive the raw data included in the messages from the nodes of the plurality of machines and send the raw data via one of a plurality of channels selected based on the topics specified in the messages.

12. The network of claim 11, wherein each node has a network interface, and a processor and memory configured as a node agent to embed the raw data in the message without reformatting the raw data.

13. The network of claim 11, wherein the engine is configured as a broker of a publish/subscribe messaging system in which the node and/or the one or more user applications are configured to subscribe as clients to the publish/subscribe messaging system.

14. The network of claim 11, wherein the engine is configured to communicate with each node using a WebSocket point-to-point protocol.

15. The network of claim 11, wherein the engine is further configured to send a message from one of the one or more user devices to one of the nodes, for use in controlling activity and/or status of the machine associated with the node.

16. The network of claim 11, wherein the nodes are configured to push the messages to the engine.

17. A method of managing a plurality of distributed machines, the method comprising:

embedding in a message raw data from one or more sensors and/or one or more actuators of one of the machines, the embedding performed by a node residing on and/or in communication with the one of the machines, the message including a topic and a subtopic;

receiving the message from the node and reformatting the message without reformatting the raw data, and directing the reformatted message including the raw data to a user device, the receiving, reformatting and directing performed by an engine of a network, the engine remote from the node and the user device, the network including the node and the user device; and

obtaining the raw data included in the message reformatted by the engine, processing the raw data into a format interpretable by an application on the user device based on the subtopic specified in the message, and sending the processed data to the user device, the obtaining, processing, and sending performed by a data handler in communication with the engine and remote from the node and the user device;

the user device sending a message responsive as to the raw data and/or the format interpretable by the application through the engine to the node for use in controlling performance of the one of the machines;

the engine receiving the raw data included in the message from the node and sending the raw data via one of a plurality of channels selected based on the topic specified in the message.

18. The method of claim 17, wherein the engine performs the receiving, reformatting and directing steps as a broker of a publish/subscribe message system in which an agent of the node publishes the message, and the engine, in connection with the reformatting, preserving a binary form of the raw data.

19. The method of claim 17, wherein the engine and node communicate with each other using point-to-point communication and WebSocket protocol.

20. The method of claim 17, wherein the plurality of distributed machines includes a plurality of locomotives.