Anomalous phenomena detector

• US 9,466,196 B2
• Filed: 04/03/2015
• Issued: 10/11/2016
• Est. Priority Date: 04/08/2014
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Cubic Corporation
• Original Assignee: Cubic Corporation
• Inventors: Smith, Gavin R., Reymann, Steffen
• Primary Examiner(s): PHAM, QUANG
• Application Number:
  US14/678,524
• Publication Number:
  US 20150287311A1
• Time in Patent Office: 557 Days
• US Class Current: 1/1
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 10/00 Administration; Management
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 50/40 Business processes related to the transportation industry shipping G06Q10/083
• CPC Class Codes: G08B 19/00 Alarms responsive to two or more different undesired or abnormal conditions, e.g. burglary and fire, abnormal temperature and abnormal rate of flow

Abstract

Techniques are disclosed that utilize various devices, sensors, and/or systems as data points in a transportation system to establish normal operation of the transportation system and determine when one or more of the devices, sensors, and/or systems provides anomalous data indicative of a problem in the transportation system. Identifying a problem and/or implementing a solution can then be partially or fully automated, to help ensure a quick response and minimal disruption in service.

Claims

1. A method of detecting anomalous phenomena in a transit system implemented by an anomaly detector, the method comprising:

obtaining, over a period of time by the anomaly detector, data from a plurality of data sources of the transit system, the data sources including journey planners, traffic system(s), access control points, transit ticket vending machines, ticket booth computers, emergency sensor(s), user input interface console, and location system(s), all of the transit system;

for each data source of the plurality of data sources, defining, by a data monitoring module of the anomaly detector, a range of data values indicative of normal operation of the transit system, based on data values obtained for the data source over the period of time;

subsequent to defining the range of data values for each data source of the plurality of data sources, obtaining, by the anomaly detector, additional data from a particular data source of the plurality of data sources;

comparing, by the anomaly detector, using a processing unit, a value of the additional data from the particular data source to the corresponding defined range of data values for the particular data source;

determining, by the anomaly detector, based on the comparison, that an anomalous event has occurred in the transit system including a particular one or more transit system station or stop affected by the anomalous event;

in response to determining the occurrence of the anomalous event in the transit system, determining, by the anomaly detector, from a plurality of predetermined response plans, a response plan to implement;

sending by the anomaly detector, at least one message to system devices, personnel and passengers, of the transit system in accordance with the determined response plan to implement; and

implementing the response plan by including automatically aliasing passenger tickets to permit the passenger tickets to work if the passengers exit or enter a transit system station or stop that is before or after a determined affected transit system station or stop.

2. The method of detecting anomalous phenomena in a transit system of claim 1, further comprising:

prior to determining the response plan to implement, sending an indication of the occurrence of the anomalous event to a user; and

receiving a user input, via a communication interface coupled to the anomaly detector, indicative of user approval confirmation of the determined response plan or an alternative response plan to implement;

wherein, implementing the response plan is based on the received user input.

3. The method of detecting anomalous phenomena in a transit system of claim 1, wherein sending the at least one message causes at least one device in the transit system to alter its operation.

4. The method of detecting anomalous phenomena in a transit system of claim 1, wherein the at least one message is sent to a person, the at least one message comprising at least one of:

a text message,

a telephone message,

a message sent via an application on a mobile device,

a message sent to a display device, causing the display device to display a warning, or

an email.

5. The method of detecting anomalous phenomena in a transit system of claim 1, further comprising identifying a location associated with the occurrence of the anomalous event.

6. The method of detecting anomalous phenomena in a transit system of claim 5, further comprising identifying a problem associated with the occurrence of the anomalous event, wherein determining the response plan to implement is based on the identified location and a type of the identified problem.

7. The method of detecting anomalous phenomena in a transit system of claim 1, further comprising receiving, prior to obtaining additional data from the particular data source, user input correlating one or more solutions to a type of anomalous event, wherein determining the response plan to implement is based on the user input.

8. The method of detecting anomalous phenomena in a transit system of claim 1, further comprising information identifying a disrupting operator disrupted by the anomalous event.

9. The method of detecting anomalous phenomena in a transit system of claim 8, further comprising information for conveying funds from the disrupting operator to one or more rescue operators, related to implementing the determined response plan.

10. A computer for detecting anomalous phenomena in a transit system, comprising:

a communication interface configured to obtain, over a period of time, data from a plurality of data sources of the transit system, the data sources including journey planners, traffic system(s), access control points, transit ticket vending machines, ticket booth computers, emergency sensor(s), user input interface console, and location system(s), all of the transit system;

a memory for storing said data; and

a processing unit communicatively coupled with the communication interface and the memory, the processing unit configured to;

for each data source of the plurality of data sources, define a range of data values indicative of normal operation of the transit system, based on data values obtained for the data source over the period of time via the communication interface;

subsequent to defining the range of data values for each data source of the plurality of data sources, obtain additional data from a particular data source of the plurality of data sources via the communication interface;

compare a value of the additional data from the particular data source to the corresponding defined range of data values for the particular data source;

determine, based on the comparison, that an anomalous event has occurred in the transit system including a particular one or more transit system station or stop affected by the anomalous event;

in response to determining the occurrence of the anomalous event in the transit system, determine, from a plurality of predetermined response plans, a response plan to implement;

send, via the communication interface, at least one message to system devices, personnel and passengers, of the transit system in accordance with the determined response plan to implement; and

implement the response plan, from the plurality of the predetermined response plans, by including automatically aliasing passenger tickets to permit the passenger tickets to work if the passengers exit or enter a transit system station or stop that is before or after a determined affected transit system station or stop.

11. The computer of claim 10, wherein the processing unit is further configured to:

prior to determining the response plan to implement, send an indication of the occurrence of the anomalous event to a user, via the communication interface; and

receive, via the communication interface, a user input indicative of user approval confirmation of the determined response plan or an alternative response plan to implement;

wherein, implementing the response plan is based on the received user input.

12. The computer of claim 10, wherein the processing unit is configured to include, in the at least one message, instructions for causing at least one device in the transit system to alter its operation.

13. The computer of claim 10, wherein the processing unit is configured to send the at least one message to a person, the at least one message comprising at least one of:

a text message,

a telephone message,

a message sent via an application on a mobile device,

a message sent to a display device, causing the display device to display a warning, or

an email.

14. The computer of claim 10, wherein the processing unit further is configured to identify a location associated with the occurrence of the anomalous event.

15. The computer of claim 10, wherein the communication interface is further configured to receive, prior to obtaining additional data from the particular data source, user input correlating one or more solutions to a type of anomalous event, and wherein the processing unit is configured to determine the response plan to implement based on the user input.

16. The computer of claim 10, wherein the processing unit is further configured to identify a disrupting operator disrupted by the anomalous event.

17. A non-transitory computer-readable medium, having instructions stored thereon, implemented by an anomaly detector for detecting anomalous phenomena in a transit system, the instructions comprising computer code for:

obtaining, over a period of time by the anomaly detector, data from a plurality of data sources of the transit system, the data sources including journey planners, traffic system(s), access control points, transit ticket vending machines, ticket booth computers, emergency sensor(s), user input interface console, and location system(s), all of the transit system;

for each data source of the plurality of data sources, defining by a data monitoring module of the anomaly detector a range of data values indicative of normal operation of the transit system, based on data values obtained for the data source over the period of time;

subsequent to defining the range of data values for each data source of the plurality of data sources, obtaining by the anomaly detector additional data from a particular data source of the plurality of data sources;

comparing by the anomaly detector a value of the additional data from the particular data source to the corresponding defined range of data values for the particular data source;

determining by the anomaly detector, based on the comparison, that an anomalous event has occurred in the transit system including a particular one or more transit system station or stop affected by the anomalous event;

in response to determining the occurrence of the anomalous event in the transit system, determining by the anomaly detector, from a plurality of predetermined response plans, a response plan to implement; and

sending by the anomaly detector at least one message to system devices, personnel and passengers, of the transit system in accordance with the determined response plan to implement; and

implementing the response plan by including automatically aliasing passenger tickets to permit the passenger tickets to work if the passengers exit or enter a transit system station or stop that is before or after a determined affected transit system station or stop.

18. The non-transitory computer-readable medium of claim 17, wherein the instructions further comprise computer code for:

prior to determining the response plan to implement, sending by the anomaly detector an indication of the occurrence of the anomalous event to a user; and

receiving a user input, via a communication interface coupled to the anomaly detector, indicative of user approval confirmation of the determined response plan or an alternative response plan to implement;

wherein, the computer code for implementing the response plan further comprises computer code for basing the determination of the response plan on the received user input.