Railways – Selective delivery – Electrical control
Patent
1997-12-01
1999-11-09
Oberleitner, Robert J.
Railways
Selective delivery
Electrical control
104 8803, 10413007, 104139, 104299, 104300, 246 28R, 246182R, B61J 300
Patent
active
059793341
DESCRIPTION:
BRIEF SUMMARY
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
1. Field of the Invention
This invention relates to a transportation system and more particularly to a system usable for transportation of people as well as automobiles and other freight loads with very high safety, efficiency, speed and convenience, with capital costs and fuel, labor and other operating costs being minimized and with minimal adverse environmental effects. The system is compatible with existing systems and is readily integrated therewith.
2. Background of the Prior Art
Conventional rail systems have become increasingly costly to construct, maintain and operate with the result that their use for transport of freight and for interurban passenger travel has been supplanted to a large degree by use of trucks and automobiles. For public transportation in cities, rail-supported street cars have been replaced by buses which have been used less and less as a result of the increased use of automobiles for personal travel. The resulting truck and automobile traffic over streets and highways is a problem of increasing magnitude.
Systems known as "Intelligent Vehicle Highway Systems" are now being proposed for reducing certain problems associated with automobiles and are receiving considerable attention, but it appears that they may be very expensive and the degree to which such systems will be successful is open to question. Systems have been also been used or proposed using automatically operated and driver-less vehicles supported on elevated "monorail" guideways, but such systems have generally been limited to use on a small scale in special applications and have not enjoyed widespread success.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
This invention was evolved with the general object of overcoming disadvantages of prior transportation systems and of providing a practical system for general use in transportation of people and freight in urban and interurban use.
Another object of the invention is to provide a transportation system which is compatible with existing transportation systems.
A further object of the invention is to provide a transportation system which makes practical use of existing technology and which is so constructed as to allow for expansion and for the use of improvements which may reasonably be expected in the future from advancing technology.
Important aspects of the invention relate to the recognition and discovery of problems with systems and proposed systems of the prior art and to an analysis of what is necessary to overcome such problems and otherwise provide an improved transportation system. Major problems with street-highway systems arise from roadways which are difficult and expensive to maintain and from the deaths and injuries and property losses from collisions of automobiles.
Rail systems, with steel wheels rolling on steel tracks, reduce the energy losses of automobiles and some of the noise generation associated therewith, but they have used very heavy locomotives pulling trains of heavy cars, making bridges and elevated supports very expensive and thereby requiring that tracks be supported from the earth through most of their length. Derailments have not been uncommon and there have been many fatalities from collisions with automobiles and trucks at crossings.
High speed trains and so called "light rail" systems which have been used or proposed for carrying passengers have been patterned after conventional rail systems and have had relatively heavy and expensive constructions. For handling of freight, longer and longer trains have been used to more efficiently utilize operating personnel, but increased costs have resulted from the need to load, move and assemble a large number of cars of a long train before departure and to disassemble, move and unload the cars upon arrival at a destination.
Personal transportation systems have also been proposed, using small vehicles carrying a single person and automatically controlled to move from one stop to another along an elevated guideway in an urban setting, but such systems have not been as practical an
REFERENCES:
patent: 3368496 (1968-02-01), Falk et al.
patent: 4991516 (1991-02-01), Rixen et al.
patent: 5775227 (1998-07-01), Mullen
Autran Corp.
McCarry, Jr. Robert J.
Oberleitner Robert J.
LandOfFree
System for automated transport of automobile platforms, passenge does not yet have a rating. At this time, there are no reviews or comments for this patent.
If you have personal experience with System for automated transport of automobile platforms, passenge, we encourage you to share that experience with our LandOfFree.com community. Your opinion is very important and System for automated transport of automobile platforms, passenge will most certainly appreciate the feedback.
Profile ID: LFUS-PAI-O-1442707