Vehicle inspection system

Patent metadata

Field	Value
Publication number	US-11429100-B2
Application number	US-201815949375-A
Country	US
Kind code	B2
Filing date	Apr 10, 2018
Priority date	Apr 28, 2017
Publication date	Aug 30, 2022
Grant date	Aug 30, 2022

Abstract

A locomotive inspection system includes sensors that are selectively coupled to a locomotive during an inspection or maintenance event for the locomotive and a controller that is operable to cause a control system of the locomotive that controls plural operations of the locomotive to initiate a first operation and a different, second operation. The controller determines whether the control system has first sensor information indicative of a state of the locomotive during the first operation. The controller sends a command signal to the control system to direct the control system to change locomotive operations from the first operation to the second operation responsive to determining that the control system lacks the first sensor information. The controller obtains second sensor information from the one or more sensors based on the second operation and determines a condition of components of the locomotive based on the first and second sensor information.

First claim

What is claimed is:

1. An inspection system comprising:
one or more sensors configured to be selectively coupled to a rail vehicle during one or more of an inspection event or a maintenance event for the rail vehicle, the rail vehicle comprising a control system configured to control plural operations of the rail vehicle; and
a controller that is transferably coupled with the control system during the one or more of the inspection event or the maintenance event for the rail vehicle, the controller configured to control one or more settings of the control system to initiate one or more of the plural operations of the rail vehicle, wherein the controller is configured to:
determine whether the control system of the rail vehicle has first sensor information stored within a memory of the control system, the first sensor information indicative of a state of the rail vehicle during a first operation of the rail vehicle, the control system configured to initiate the first operation of the rail vehicle during a time outside of the one or more of the inspection event or the maintenance event;
send a command signal to the control system of the rail vehicle in order to direct the control system of the rail vehicle to initiate a second operation of the rail vehicle responsive to determining that the control system lacks the first sensor information that was requested, the second operation of the rail vehicle occurring during the one or more of the inspection event or the maintenance event;
obtain second sensor information from the one or more sensors based on the second operation of the rail vehicle, the second sensor information corresponding to the lacking first sensor information that would have been obtained by the control system during the first operation of the rail vehicle during the time outside of the one or more of the inspection event or the maintenance event; and
determine a condition of one or more components of the rail vehicle based on one or more of the first sensor information or the second sensor information.

2. The inspection system of claim 1 , wherein the second operation of the rail vehicle that is directed by the controller is an operation that may be performed by the control system during movement of the rail vehicle during the time outside of the one or more of the inspection event or the maintenance event.

3. The inspection system of claim 1 , wherein the condition is indicative of one or more of an operational state, a fault state, or a damaged state of the one or more of the components of the rail vehicle.

4. The inspection system of claim 1 , wherein the controller is configured to determine a health score of the rail vehicle based on the condition of the one or more of the components of the rail vehicle.

5. The inspection system of claim 1 , wherein the controller is configured to one or more of autonomously or semi-autonomously determine the condition of the one or more of the components of the rail vehicle.

6. The inspection system of claim 1 , wherein the controller is configured to control movement of the rail vehicle with the control system during the one or more of the inspection event or the maintenance event for the rail vehicle.

7. The inspection system of claim 1 , wherein the controller is configured to select a responsive action to implement from plural different responsive actions based on the condition of the one or more of the components of the rail vehicle.

8. The inspection system of claim 1 , wherein a first sensor of the one or more sensors is configured to determine an operating characteristic of the rail vehicle, and a second sensor of the one or more sensors is configured to determine an externality characteristic of the first sensor, wherein the externality characteristic is representative of one or more external conditions to which the first sensor is exposed.

9. The inspection system of claim 8 , wherein the controller is configured to diagnose an operational state of the rail vehicle based on the operating characteristic of the rail vehicle and based on the externality characteristic of the first sensor.

10. A method comprising:
selectively coupling one or more sensors of an inspection system to a rail vehicle during one or more of an inspection event or a maintenance event for the rail vehicle, the rail vehicle comprising a control system configured to control plural operations of the rail vehicle;
operably coupling a controller with the control system during one or more of the inspection event or the maintenance event for the rail vehicle, the controller configured to control one or more settings of the control system of the rail vehicle to initiate one or more of the plural operations of the rail vehicle;
determining whether the control system of the rail vehicle has first sensor information stored within a memory of the control system, the first sensor information indicative of a state of the rail vehicle during a first operation of the rail vehicle, the control system configured to initiate the first operation of the rail vehicle during a time outside of the one or more of the inspection event or the maintenance event;
sending a command signal to the control system of the rail vehicle in order to direct the control system of the rail vehicle to change vehicle operations from the first operation to a second operation of the rail vehicle responsive to determining that the control system lacks the first sensor information, the second operation of the rail vehicle occurring during the one or more of the inspection event or the maintenance event;
obtaining second sensor information from the one or more sensors based on the second operations of the rail vehicle, the second sensor information corresponding to the lacking first sensor information that would have been obtained by the control system during the first operation of the rail vehicle during the time outside of the one or more of the inspection event or the maintenance event; and
determining a condition of one or more components of the rail vehicle based on one or more of the first sensor information or the second sensor information.

11. The method of claim 10 , wherein the second operation of the rail vehicle that is directed by the controller is an operation that may be performed by the control system during movement of the rail vehicle during the time outside of the one or more of the inspection event or the maintenance event.

12. The method of claim 10 , further comprising determining a health score of the rail vehicle based on the condition of the one or more of the components of the rail vehicle.

13. The method of claim 10 , wherein determining the condition of the one or more of the components of the rail vehicle is carried out by the controller one or more of autonomously or semi-autonomously.

14. The method of claim 10 , further comprising selecting a responsive action to implement from plural different responsive actions based on the condition of the one or more of the components of the rail vehicle.

15. The method of claim 10 , further comprising determining, with a first sensor of the one or more sensors, an operating characteristic of the rail vehicle, and determining with a second sensor of the one or more sensors, an externality characteristic of the first sensor, wherein the externality characteristic is representative of one or more external conditions to which the first sensor is exposed.

16. The method of claim 15 , further comprising diagnosing an operational state of the rail vehicle based on the operating characteristic of the rail vehicle and based on the externality characteris

Assignees

• Transp Ip Holdings Llc

Inventors

• Nistler Paul Gerard
• Altonji Michael
• Shaffer Glenn
• Schroeck David Joseph

Classifications

• G07C5/085

  using electronic data carriers · CPC title

• G07C5/0808 Primary

  Diagnosing performance data (testing of vehicles G01M17/00; testing of electrical installation on vehicles G01R31/005) · CPC title

• G01M17/007

  Wheeled or endless-tracked vehicles (G01M17/08 takes precedence) · CPC title

• G01M17/08

  Railway vehicles · CPC title

• G05B2219/24065

  Real time diagnostics · CPC title