Device and Method for Detecting Wheel Axles

• US 20110080307A1
• Filed: 10/01/2010
• Published: 04/07/2011
• Est. Priority Date: 10/01/2009
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Kapsch TrafficCom AG (Datax Handelsgmbh)
• Original Assignee: Kapsch TrafficCom AG (Datax Handelsgmbh)
• Inventors: Nagy, Oliver
• Granted Patent: US 8,493,238 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 340/937
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 30/0283 Price estimation or determination
• CPC Class Codes: G08G 1/015 with provision for distinguishing between two or more types of vehicles, e.g. between motor-cars and cycles
• CPC Class Codes: G08G 1/04 using optical or ultrasonic detectors

Abstract

The invention relates to the detection of wheel axles of a vehicle on a roadway by means of a sensor, which operates according to the light-section procedure and emits at least one fan of light from a first location along the roadway to project a line of light onto the roadway and a vehicle possibly located thereon, and records this line of light from a second location along the same side of the roadway and detects a wheel axle as soon as the recorded line of light exhibits, in its course emanating from the said side of the roadway, a shift-free change in direction differing from its course when the roadway is empty.

Claims

1. A device for detecting a wheel axle of a vehicle on a roadway, comprising a sensor, which operates according to the light-section procedure and emits at least one fan of light from a first location along the roadway to project a line of light onto the roadway and a vehicle located thereon, and records this line of light from a second location along the same side of the roadway and detects the wheel axle as soon as the recorded line of light exhibits, in its course emanating from the said side of the roadway, a shift-free change in direction differing from its course when the roadway is empty.

2. The device according to claim 1, wherein the sensor comprises a light projector at the first location and a separately disposed camera at the second location.

3. The device according to claim 2, wherein the light projector is a laser or a light-emitting diode emitter, preferably in a narrow-band light frequency range, particularly preferred in the infrared or ultraviolet range.

4. The device according to claim 2, wherein the camera is a traffic monitoring camera.

5. The device according to claim 1, wherein the sensor is configured to project and record multiple parallel lines of light to detect multiple wheel axles simultaneously.

6. The device according to claim 5, wherein the sensor is additionally configured to project and record lines of light crossed in a grid shape to determine a surface contour of the vehicle therefrom in a manner known per se.

7. A method for detecting a wheel axle of a vehicle on a roadway, comprising:

projecting at least one fan of light from a first location along the roadway to project a line of light onto the roadway and a vehicle located thereon;

recording the line of light from a second location along the same side of the roadway; and

detecting the wheel axle when the recorded line of light exhibits a shift-free change in a direction differing from its course when the roadway is empty.

8. The method according to claim 7, wherein the line of light is stationary and the vehicle is moving.

9. The method according to claim 7, wherein the vehicle is stationary and the line of light is moving.

10. The method according to claim 7, wherein multiple parallel lines of light are projected and recorded in order to detect multiple wheel axles simultaneously.

11. The method according to claim 10, wherein lines of light crossed in a grid shape are additionally projected and recorded in order to determine the surface contour of the vehicle therefrom in a manner known per se.

12. The method according to claim 7, used for charging wheel axle number-dependent tolls for vehicles.