Transport system powered by short block linear synchronous motors
First Claim
1. A transport system, comprisingA. a guideway including a plurality of propulsion coils disposed along a region in which vehicles are to be propelled,B. plural vehicles disposed on the guideway, each containing a magnetic flux source,C. electronic power and control circuitry that excites the propulsion coils so as to propel the plural vehicles independently of one another along the guideway,D. one or more sensors that monitor positions of the vehicles moving on the guideway, andE. wherein any of(i) one or more of the vehicles are slidingly disposed on the guideway, and/or(ii) the propulsion coils are mounted on one or more printed circuit boards.
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Accused Products
Abstract
Aspects of the invention provide a transport system powered by short block Linear Synchronous Motors (LSMs). The use of short blocks allows vehicles to move under precise control even when they are in close proximity to each other. The design allows the vehicles to be propelled and guided while negotiating sharp turns and negotiating merge and diverge switches. A coreless LSM can be used to create propulsive force without attractive force so as to allow a relatively high drag vehicle suspension, such as a vehicle sliding on a smooth surface.
541 Citations
30 Claims
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1. A transport system, comprising
A. a guideway including a plurality of propulsion coils disposed along a region in which vehicles are to be propelled, B. plural vehicles disposed on the guideway, each containing a magnetic flux source, C. electronic power and control circuitry that excites the propulsion coils so as to propel the plural vehicles independently of one another along the guideway, D. one or more sensors that monitor positions of the vehicles moving on the guideway, and E. wherein any of (i) one or more of the vehicles are slidingly disposed on the guideway, and/or (ii) the propulsion coils are mounted on one or more printed circuit boards.
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22. A transport system comprising
a guideway comprising one or more rails that guide a vehicle; -
a plurality of vehicles, each that interacts with the guideway rails for guidance and each containing one or more magnet arrays that can be used for propulsion; a multiplicity of coils that are mounted in close proximity to the magnets of passing vehicles and can be excited independently so as to provide forces on the vehicle magnets so as to propel the vehicles independently of one another; functionality that interconnects the coils to electronic power control circuitry and that includes switching devices and one or more microprocessors; one or more position sensors that monitor the position of vehicles moving on the guideway; microprocessors that control the coil currents in response to commands and synchronized to the motion of the vehicles; an energy source that provides power for the propulsion of the vehicles; and wherein any of (i) one or more of the vehicles are slidingly disposed on the guideway and (ii) the propulsion coils are mounted on one or more printed circuit boards. - View Dependent Claims (23, 24)
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25. A guideway module for use in a transport system, the guideway module comprising
A. one or more coreless propulsion coils disposed along a region in which plural vehicles that include magnetic flux sources are to be propelled, B. electronic power and control circuitry that excites the one or more propulsion coils independently of one or more other propulsion coils in any of (a) the guideway module, and (b) a guideway in which that guideway module is incorporated, so as to control movement of the plural vehicles passing over the guideway module independently of one another, C. one or more position sensors that monitor the position of vehicles moving on the guideway, and D. the propulsion coils are mounted on one or more printed circuit boards.
Specification