System and method for sensing position of a vehicle
First Claim
1. A system for determining the position of a vehicle which moves responsive to an inverter having a 360 degree electrical cycle, said system comprising:
- a guideway comprising a linear synchronous motor excited by said inverter;
a vehicle adapted to move with respect to said guideway and the linear synchronous motor thereof;
a reflective pattern disposed along said guideway;
a light source coupled to said vehicle, said light source adapted to direct light toward said reflective pattern;
a light sensor coupled to said vehicle, said light sensor adapted to sense the light from said light source which is reflected from said reflective pattern and to output a plurality of pulses corresponding to movement of said vehicle with respect to said reflective pattern; and
a circuit cooperating with said light sensor, said circuit adapted to determine the position of said vehicle from said pulses, said position corresponding to the 360 degree electrical cycle of said inverter.
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Accused Products
Abstract
A system determines the position of a vehicle moving responsive to an inverter having a 360 degree electrical cycle. The system includes a guideway comprising a linear synchronous motor excited by the inverter, a MAGLEV adapted to move with respect to the guideway and the linear synchronous motor, and a reflective pattern disposed along the guideway. A laser light source is coupled to the MAGLEV and directs light toward the pattern. A light sensor is coupled to the MAGLEV and senses the light from the light source which is reflected from the pattern. The light sensor outputs a plurality of pulses corresponding to movement of the MAGLEV with respect to the pattern. A modulator, radio transmitter, radio receiver, demodulator and wayside processor cooperate with the light sensor. The processor determines the position of the MAGLEV by accumulating the pulses. The position corresponds to the 360 degree electrical cycle.
28 Citations
20 Claims
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1. A system for determining the position of a vehicle which moves responsive to an inverter having a 360 degree electrical cycle, said system comprising:
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a guideway comprising a linear synchronous motor excited by said inverter; a vehicle adapted to move with respect to said guideway and the linear synchronous motor thereof; a reflective pattern disposed along said guideway; a light source coupled to said vehicle, said light source adapted to direct light toward said reflective pattern; a light sensor coupled to said vehicle, said light sensor adapted to sense the light from said light source which is reflected from said reflective pattern and to output a plurality of pulses corresponding to movement of said vehicle with respect to said reflective pattern; and a circuit cooperating with said light sensor, said circuit adapted to determine the position of said vehicle from said pulses, said position corresponding to the 360 degree electrical cycle of said inverter. - View Dependent Claims (2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12, 13)
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14. A method for determining the position of a vehicle which moves responsive to an inverter having a 360 degree electrical cycle, said method comprising:
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employing a guideway comprising a linear synchronous motor excited by said inverter; moving a vehicle with respect to said guideway and the linear synchronous motor thereof; disposing a reflective pattern along said guideway; directing a light from said vehicle toward said reflective pattern; reflecting said light from said reflective pattern; sensing the reflected light and outputting a plurality of pulses corresponding to movement of said vehicle with respect to said reflective pattern; determining the position of said vehicle from said pulses, said position corresponding to the 360 degree electrical cycle of said inverter; and employing said position by an inverter control system for said inverter. - View Dependent Claims (15, 16, 17, 18, 19, 20)
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Specification