Work zone alert system and method

Patent metadata

Field	Value
Publication number	US-12020558-B2
Application number	US-202017440263-A
Country	US
Kind code	B2
Filing date	Mar 18, 2020
Priority date	Mar 18, 2019
Publication date	Jun 25, 2024
Grant date	Jun 25, 2024

Abstract

An exemplary method and system is disclosed that facilitates a readily-re-deployable and self-enclosed geofencing and proximity-based intrusion sensing and alerting system in a roadway or construction work zone. The sensing and alerting system is configured in the form factor of a safety cone, barricade or drum to sense and uses acoustic-echoes or LiDAR-based sensing to detect intruders that are in proximity to the sensing and alerting system to generate a siren or loud audible alert, as well as flashing lights, to warn workers of such intrusion.

First claim

What is claimed is:

1. A geofencing alert apparatus comprising:
a proximity sensor unit attachable to a construction or traffic device, the proximity sensor unit comprising a plurality of electromagnetic or acoustic-based sensors that are each configured to emit and receive said emitted respective electromagnetic or acoustic waves, wherein each of the plurality of electromagnetic or acoustic-based sensors is positioned at a different radial position to form an overlapping detectable area;
a controller coupled to the proximity sensor unit, the controller being configured to generate an alert signal output based on at least one of (i) a determined change in the received emitted electromagnetic or acoustic waves from at least one of the electromagnetic or acoustic-based sensors of the proximity sensor unit, and (ii) a message received through a network from another geofencing alert apparatus, wherein the change is indicative of an intruder object or person in the detectable area covered by the emitted electromagnetic or acoustic waves, and wherein the controller is configured to report intrusion events to a cloud-based system to facilitate site condition monitoring; and
one or more alert devices each coupled to the controller, wherein the one or more alert devices is configured to generate warning sound or warning visual output based on the alert signal output.

2. The geofencing alert apparatus of claim 1 , further comprising:
a communication device, the controller being coupled to the communication device to direct a stored intrusion event data set having data acquired from at least the geofencing alert apparatus, through a network associated with the communication device, to a remote computing device.

3. The geofencing alert apparatus of claim 2 ,
wherein the stored intrusion event data set includes stored intrusion event data collected at a second geofencing alert apparatus operatively communicating with the geofencing alert apparatus.

4. The geofencing alert apparatus of claim 2 , wherein the remote computing device comprises a cloud server, a remote server, or a local server, wherein the remote computing device is configured to store transmitted intrusion event data to be subsequently presented, through curation operation performed by the remote computing device or another computer device, at a monitoring application executing at a monitoring terminal.

5. The geofencing alert apparatus of claim 1 , further comprising:
a low-power communication device, the controller being coupled to the low-power communication device to establish a plurality of links with one or more second geofencing alert apparatuses to form a mesh network.

6. The geofencing alert apparatus of claim 5 , wherein each of the one or more second geofencing alert apparatuses is configured to transmit an intruder event message to the geofencing alert apparatus, the controller being configured to generate the alert signal output based on the received intruder event message.

7. The geofencing alert apparatus of claim 5 , wherein each of the one or more second geofencing alert apparatuses comprises:
a respective construction or traffic device;
a respective proximity sensor unit comprising one or more respective electromagnetic or acoustic-based sensors that are each configured to emit and receive said emitted respective electromagnetic or acoustic waves;
a respective controller coupled to the respective proximity sensor unit, the controller being configured to determine a change in the received respective emitted electromagnetic or acoustic waves from at least one of the respective electromagnetic or acoustic-based sensor of the respective proximity sensor unit, wherein the change is indicative of an intruder object or person in a respective detectable area covered by the emitted respective electromagnetic or acoustic waves; and
a respective low-power communication device to establish a plurality of respective links with other one or more second geofencing alert apparatuses and the geofencing alert apparatus.

8. The geofencing alert apparatus of claim 7 , wherein the one or more electromagnetic or acoustic-based sensors of the proximity sensor unit comprises:
a first stationary electromagnetic or acoustic-based sensor and a second stationary electromagnetic or acoustic-based sensor, wherein the first electromagnetic or acoustic-based sensor is disposed along an outward face of the construction or traffic device at a first radial position and the second electromagnetic or acoustic-based sensor is disposed along the outward face of the construction or traffic device at a second radial position different from the first radial position.

9. The geofencing alert apparatus of claim 8 , wherein the first stationary electromagnetic or acoustic-based sensor and the second stationary electromagnetic or acoustic-based sensor each comprises an air-based ultrasonic sensor, wherein the proximity sensor unit comprises the first stationary electromagnetic or acoustic-based sensor, the second stationary electromagnetic or acoustic-based sensor, and a third stationary electromagnetic or acoustic-based sensor, wherein each of the first, second, and third electromagnetic or acoustic-based sensors is disposed along the outward face of the construction or traffic device to provide a coverage around the construction or traffic device of at least about 150 degrees.

10. The geofencing alert apparatus of claim 5 , wherein the each of the one or more second geofencing alert apparatuses has a different configuration than the geofencing alert apparatus, including not having an alert device.

11. The geofencing alert apparatus of claim 5 , wherein the controller is configured to establish, through the mesh network, a link with a third geofencing alert apparatus, wherein the third geofencing alert apparatus is identical in mechanical and system configuration to the geofencing alert apparatus.

12. The geofencing alert apparatus of claim 1 , wherein the one or more electromagnetic or acoustic-based sensors of the proximity sensor unit comprises:
a first rotatable electromagnetic or acoustic-based sensor, the first rotatable electromagnetic or acoustic-based sensor being coupled along the outward face of the construction or traffic device or on a top portion of the construction or traffic device to sweep the emitted respective electromagnetic or acoustic waves over a defined sweep coverage region around the construction or traffic device.

13. The geofencing alert apparatus of claim 1 , wherein the one or more electromagnetic or acoustic-based sensors of the proximity sensor unit comprises:
an electromagnetic or acoustic-based sensor array comprising a plurality of electromagnetic or acoustic-based sensors that operates, collectively, to sweep the emitted respective electromagnetic or acoustic waves over a defined sweep coverage region around the construction or traffic device.

14. The geofencing alert apparatus of claim 13 , wherein the first rotatable electromagnetic or acoustic-based sensor or the electromagnetic or acoustic-based sensor array is configured for LiDAR operation.

15. The geofencing alert apparatus of claim 1 , wherein the controller is configured to direct the proximity sensor unit to emit and receive emitted respective electromagnetic or acoustic waves according to a sensing period selected from the group consisting of: about every 100 milliseconds (ms), about every 200 ms, about every 300 ms, about every 400 ms, about every 500 ms, about every 600 ms, about every 700 ms, about every 800 ms, about every 900 ms, and about every 1000 ms.

16. The geofe

Assignees

• Georgia Tech Res Inst

Inventors

• Cho Yong
• Kim Pileun

Classifications

• G08B13/1609

  using active vibration detection systems · CPC title

• G08B13/187

  by interference of a radiation field · CPC title

• G01S17/86

  Combinations of lidar systems with systems other than lidar, radar or sonar, e.g. with direction finders · CPC title

• F16P3/147

  using electro-magnetic technology, e.g. tags or radar · CPC title

• G08G1/0955

  transportable · CPC title