High volume vehicle inspection system and methods

• US 9,539,866 B2
• Filed: 10/30/2013
• Issued: 01/10/2017
• Est. Priority Date: 11/02/2012
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: ATEQ Corporation (Applied Materials Incorporated)
• Original Assignee: ATEQ Corporation (Applied Materials Incorporated)
• Inventors: Mouchet, Jacques
• Primary Examiner(s): Khatib, Rami
• Assistant Examiner(s): BOOMER, JEFFREY C
• Application Number:
  US14/067,063
• Publication Number:
  US 20140129076A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,168 Days
• Field of Search: None
• US Class Current: 1/1
• CPC Class Codes: B60C 11/246 Tread wear monitoring systems
• CPC Class Codes: B60C 23/04 mounted on the wheel or tyre
• CPC Class Codes: B60C 23/0479 Communicating with external units being not part of the vehicle, e.g. tools for diagnostic, mobile phones, electronic keys or service stations
• CPC Class Codes: G07C 5/008 communicating information to a remotely located station transmission systems for measured values G08C
• CPC Class Codes: G07C 5/0808 Diagnosing performance data testing of vehicles G01M17/00; testing of electrical installation on vehicles G01R31/005
• CPC Class Codes: G08G 1/0175 by photographing vehicles, e.g. when violating traffic rules

Abstract

An inspection system for use in measuring several vehicle conditions in a high volume vehicle inspection line. A plurality of sensors are installed on a vehicle for measuring a plurality of vehicle conditions to assist in the rapid evaluation of critical vehicle conditions or parameters. At least one tool is positioned along a vehicle path in a monitoring station. As the vehicle passes through the monitoring station, the tool received electronic data from the plurality of sensors and displays one or more signals to alert an inspector of acceptable or unacceptable vehicle conditions. In one example, the plurality of sensors includes tire pressure monitoring system (TPMS) data from the vehicle tires to rapidly assess the condition of the tire air pressure and other monitored tire conditions.

Claims

1. An inspection system for use in inspecting one or more operating conditions of a high volume quantity of transportation vehicles, the system comprising:

a path of travel for through passage of a high volume quantity of transportation vehicles;

an inspection station positioned along the path of travel;

a plurality of vehicle operating condition sensors comprising a tire pressure monitoring system tire air pressure measuring sensor connected to each vehicle wheel in pressurized air communication with an interior of a respective pneumatic tire, the plurality of tire air pressure measuring sensors including a first tire air pressure measuring sensor configured to transmit a sensor first measurement of tire air pressure on a first passage of the first tire air pressure measuring sensor through the inspection station at a first time and a sensor second measurement of tire air pressure on a second passage of the first tire air pressure measuring sensor through the inspection station at a second time subsequent to the first time;

a tire pressure monitoring system tool physically unconnected and independent of the plurality of tire air pressure measuring sensors, the tire pressure monitoring system tool comprising a first tire pressure monitoring system tool stationarily mounted on a first side of the path of travel and a second tire pressure monitoring system tool stationarily mounted on a second side of the path of travel opposite the first side in the inspection station, wherein each of the first and the second tire pressure monitoring system tools configured to receive a tire air pressure measuring sensor first sensor measurement of the tire air pressure operating condition and a tire air pressure measuring sensor second sensor measurement of the tire air pressure operating condition from the respective tire pressure monitoring system tire air pressure measuring sensor passing through a respective tire pressure monitoring system tool data communication beam;

an electronic data memory storage device physically unconnected and independent of the tire air pressure measuring sensors in data communication with the first and the second tire pressure monitoring system tool to electronically store in the memory storage device the tire air pressure measuring sensor first measurement data of the tire air pressure operating condition and the tire air pressure measuring sensor second measurement data of the tire air pressure operating condition at the respective first and second times;

a data processor physically unconnected and independent of the tire air pressure measuring sensors and in data communication with the memory storage device for comparing the tire air pressure measuring sensor first measurement of the tire air pressure operating condition and the tire air pressure measuring sensor second measurement of the tire air pressure operating condition; and

an indicator device in electronic communication with the processor adapted to signal a user to a predetermined condition following the tire pressure monitoring system tool comparison of the tire air pressure measuring sensor first measurement data of the tire air pressure operating condition and the tire air pressure measuring sensor second measurement data of the tire air pressure operating condition.

2. The inspection system of claim 1 wherein-one of the vehicle operating conditions comprises a unique vehicle identification, the inspection system further comprising:

a vehicle identification tool positioned in the inspection station upstream along the path of travel from the tire pressure monitoring system tool, the vehicle identification tool operable to scan a unique vehicle identification indicia positioned on the vehicle positioned in the inspection station and transmit the scanned unique vehicle identification to the electronic data memory storage device on each vehicle passage through the inspection station.

3. The inspection system of claim 2 wherein the data processor is further configured to compare the previously stored in memory first tire air pressure measuring sensor first measurement of the tire air pressure operating condition and the sensor second measurement of the tire air pressure operating condition for the scanned unique vehicle identification indicia.

4. The inspection system of claim 3 wherein the inspection station comprises a first inspection station and a second inspection station positioned along the path of travel downstream from the first inspection station, wherein the vehicle identification tool is positioned in the first inspection station and the tire pressure monitoring system tool is positioned in the second inspection station, wherein the scanned unique vehicle identification is received and stored in the data memory storage device prior to a next measurement of tire air pressure in the second inspection station.

5. The inspection system of claim 1 wherein the electronic data memory storage device further comprises predetermined acceptable levels data for the tire air pressure measuring sensors, the data processor is further operable to compare at least one of the first tire air pressure measuring sensor first measurement of the tire air pressure operating condition or the sensor second measurement of the tire air pressure operating condition against the predetermined acceptable levels for the tire air pressure measuring sensors.

6. The inspection system of claim 1 further comprising:

a vehicle tire tread sensor physically unconnected to the vehicle and positioned in the inspection station along the path of travel, the tire tread sensor having a scanning device configured to scan at least a portion of an exterior tread of each tire connected to the transportation vehicle positioned in the inspection station for transmitting tire tread data to the data processor.

7. The inspection system of claim 1 wherein the indicator device is a visual display device for visually displaying one of the first tire air pressure measuring sensor first sensor measurement of the tire air pressure operating condition and the second sensor measurement of the tire air pressure operating condition or a variance between the first and the second sensor measurements of the tire air pressure operating condition.

8. The inspection system of claim 1 wherein one of the vehicle operating conditions includes vehicle operating fluid levels, the inspection system further comprising:

a vehicle operating fluids sensor for sensing the level of a vehicle operating fluid.