Vital wheel detector
US5628479A · kind A · utility
Assignee
Inventor
Key dates
| Filing date | Dec 12, 1995 |
| Grant date | May 13, 1997 |
| Priority date | — |
| Expiry date | Dec 12, 2015 |
Classification
- Technology area (CPC B)Performing Operations; Transporting
- CPC primaryB61L1/165
- WIPO fieldTransport
- WIPO sectorMechanical engineering
Abstract
A vital wheel detector for railways injects an oscillating electrical current into a short rail segment and produces a monitor signal in response the magnetic field around the rail. A high Q pickup coil is employed which, when a car wheel is present on the rail segment, sharply decreases in Q and significantly reduces the level of the monitor signal. Any failure of the detector apparatus is in a safe mode, as a loss of rail current results in a loss of the monitor signal whether through an electrical or a mechanical failure. Also, internal mechanical or electrical failures either interrupt the current to the rail or interrupt transmission of the monitor signal to the processing logic.
Source: USPTO / EPO open patent data. Objective bibliographic and citation counts.