Communications: electrical – Condition responsive indicating system – Specific condition
Patent
1994-07-28
1997-04-29
Mullen, Thomas
Communications: electrical
Condition responsive indicating system
Specific condition
340565, 340573, G08B 1326
Patent
active
056253400
DESCRIPTION:
BRIEF SUMMARY
It can be established that today there are in practice no safe devices to supervise the crossing area, for instance the area between railway gates, at crossings between railways and roads so as to detect objects occurring in the crossing area, such as road vehicles and persons in order to avoid them being run into by trains.
Efficient devices for supervising are missing also in many other situations. It may then be the question of supervising of objects in the form of aeroplanes or other crafts or vehicles which are not bound to rails. Thus, the detection may have the purpose to supervise the movement of these objects within the area in question. The device according to the invention may then be adapted to provide control or simplify such control of the object in question to a determined position for e.g. docking or give alarm in respect of undesired deviations between the actual position and the one desired.
There is no device for supervising areas which may be dangerous to set foot on which combines a reasonable cost with great flexibility and range. When docking for instance aeroplanes to a gate the positioning is critical since a collision often costs millions. The lead beacon systems occurring today give very simple and insufficient information to the pilot.
OBJECT OF THE INVENTION
The object of the present invention is to provide a supervising device, with the assistance of which the deficiencies presented hereinabove may be reduced or eliminated.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
The device according to the invention achieves the object of overcoming deficiencies of the prior art as noted above. It becomes possible, by means of the solution defined, to use a relatively uncomplicated, pivotably arranged detector, the efficient detection area of which is obtained by processing the detection signals from the detector so that delimited distance values in the pivoting angular area are the basis for the assessment of the detection so that one in practice obtains an efficient detection area corresponding to the area to be supervised, but not more. In other words one can accordingly, by design, adjustment or programming of the signal processing unit, achieve an accurate definition of the extent of the supervising area by causing the distance value concerning the detection range to vary in the pivoting angular area. For example, the supervising area may be caused to be substantially rectangular, which normally would be desirable when supervising crossings between railways and roads.
The device according to the invention involves great advantages since it can easily be adjusted to the most varying supervising conditions with the same hard ware. Furthermore, the device according to the invention involves the advantage that it, besides instantaneous determination of position also can sense speed and speed gradients. This is of considerable value for instance in application for supervising the docking area between aeroplanes and a gate. It is pointed out that the device in such a case does not require any adjustment of the aeroplane or the object whatever. Instead, information detected by the detector may be indicated on a display unit, which may be of the table type or viewing screen type so that the operator or pilot obtains needed information about the position of the aeroplane during docking by viewing the same. The signal processing unit may then be designed to indicate, on the display unit, an optimal position for the aeroplane at each given point of time.
The device according to the invention may without change be used for most installations within railway crossings, aeroplane dockings and area supervision with a hard and soft ware which is substantially identical.
Specific developments of the invention are defined more closely in the dependent claims.
BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS
With reference to the enclosed drawings, a more specific description of embodiments of the invention cited as examples will follow hereinafter.
In the drawings:
FIG. 1 is a perspective view illustrating a passage preventing
REFERENCES:
patent: 4995102 (1991-02-01), Ichinose et al.
patent: 5180122 (1993-01-01), Christian
patent: 5386285 (1995-01-01), Asayama
Mullen Thomas
Wong Albert K.
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