U.S. patent application number 11/622466 was filed with the patent office on 2008-05-01 for warning apparatus.
Invention is credited to Ching Hsiung Chen.
Application Number | 20080101859 11/622466 |
Document ID | / |
Family ID | 39330346 |
Filed Date | 2008-05-01 |
United States Patent
Application |
20080101859 |
Kind Code |
A1 |
Chen; Ching Hsiung |
May 1, 2008 |
Warning Apparatus
Abstract
A warning apparatus is provided, whose main body includes a
monolithically formed transparent tempered material with a
thickness. The top of the main body includes at least two
injections units. The injection units are upward bumps. The
injection units are less than 10 mm in height. The curvature on the
surface of injection unit bumps changes at different height of the
bumps. The bottom of the main body includes at least two reflection
units. The reflection units are downward bumps. The bottom of the
main body also includes a reflective layer attached to the outer
surface of the reflection units so that the light entering the main
body can be reflected by the reflective layer to provide warning.
The durable, low-height injection unit bumps will minimize the
impact on the driving safety when the tires run over, while
providing effective visual warning.
Inventors: |
Chen; Ching Hsiung; (Hsinchu
Hsien, TW) |
Correspondence
Address: |
LIN & ASSOCIATES INTELLECTUAL PROPERTY, INC.
P.O. BOX 2339
SARATOGA
CA
95070-0339
US
|
Family ID: |
39330346 |
Appl. No.: |
11/622466 |
Filed: |
January 12, 2007 |
Current U.S.
Class: |
404/14 ;
404/16 |
Current CPC
Class: |
E01F 9/529 20160201;
E01F 9/553 20160201 |
Class at
Publication: |
404/14 ;
404/16 |
International
Class: |
E01F 9/06 20060101
E01F009/06 |
Foreign Application Data
Date |
Code |
Application Number |
Oct 27, 2006 |
TW |
095139853 |
Claims
1. A warning apparatus, comprising: a main body, having a thickness
and monolithically formed by a transparent tempered material, with
at least two injection units formed as upward bumps on the top and
at least reflection units formed as downward bumps at the bottom,
said injection unit having a curve surface with circumference
gradually decreasing from the bottom up, said injection unit having
a height no taller than 10 mm, said reflection units having a curve
surface with circumference gradually decreasing from the top down;
and a reflective layer, stuck to the outer surface of said
reflection units for reflecting the light entering from said
injection units.
2. The warning apparatus as claimed in claim 1, wherein each said
injection unit at the top corresponds to a said reflection unit at
the bottom, and the diameter of said reflection unit is larger than
the diameter of said injection unit.
3. The warning apparatus as claimed in claim 1, wherein the surface
of said bottom of said main body contacting the road surface is
coarsened.
4. The warning apparatus as claimed in claim 1, wherein said the
height of said injection unit is less no taller than 5 mm.
5. The warning apparatus as claimed in claim 1, wherein said main
body further comprises a downward protruding frame, and the
protruding distance of said frame is at least as the height of
reflection unit bumps.
6. The warning apparatus as claimed in claim 1, wherein said curve
injection surface includes at least two different curvatures, with
diameter gradually decreasing from the bottom up.
7. The warning apparatus as claimed in claim 1, wherein said curve
reflection surface includes at least two different curvatures, with
diameter gradually decreasing from the top down.
8. The warning apparatus as claimed in claim 1, wherein said main
body further comprises a layer of protective thin film at the top
surface.
9. The warning apparatus as claimed in claim 8, wherein said
protective thin film is made of one of nano-scaled TiO, ZnO,
Al.sub.2O.sub.3, SiO.sub.2, glass powder, Au, Ag, Cu, or Sn.
10. The warning apparatus as claimed in claim 1, wherein said main
body is made of glass with low iron ingredient; that is,
Fe.sub.2O.sub.3 is no more than 0.05%.
11. The warning apparatus as claimed in claim 1, wherein said main
body is made of transparent clear glass material, with the bottom
covered with a metal reflective layer.
12. The warning apparatus as claimed in claim 1, wherein said main
body is made of transparent glass material of specific color
13. The warning apparatus as claimed in claim 1, wherein said main
body is made of transparent clear glass material with a thin film
of specific color sandwiched between said curve reflection surface
and said reflective layer.
14. The warning apparatus as claimed in claim 1, wherein said main
body is made of glass with refractive index between Nd 1.4-1.9.
15. The warning apparatus as claimed in claim 1, wherein the shape
of said main body is triangular, rectangular, round, oval, and
other irregular shape.
16. The warning apparatus as claimed in claim 1, wherein said is
made of transparent tempered clear plastic or of plastic specific
color.
17. The warning apparatus as claimed in claim 1, wherein the top of
said injection units is flattened and coarsened.
18. The warning apparatus as claimed in claim 1, wherein said main
body further comprises a flat mark unit at the central part of the
bottom.
19. The warning apparatus as claimed in claim 1, wherein the sizes
of said injection units are not all identical, and the sizes of
said reflection units are not all identical.
20. The warning apparatus as claimed in claim 1, wherein said
warning apparatus is installed on the road mark.
21. The warning apparatus as claimed in claim 1, wherein said
warning apparatus is installed on a vertical wall.
22. The warning apparatus as claimed in claim 1, further comprising
a protective layer on the outer surface of said reflective layer at
the bottom of said main body, and said protective layer being made
of resin, paint, or anti-erosion material.
23. The warning apparatus as claimed in claim 1, wherein said
bottom of said main body further comprises at least one downward
protruding tempering element, the height of said tempering element
is less than the height of said reflection unit.
24. The warning apparatus as claimed in claim 1, wherein a high
strength resin or a compound material fills the void spaces between
the elements of said bottom of said main body, and said void spaces
comprise the spaces between said reflective units on said bottom of
said main body.
25. The warning apparatus as claimed in claim 5, wherein a high
strength resin or a compound material fills the void spaces between
the elements of said bottom of said main body, and said void spaces
comprise the spaces between said frame of said bottom of said main
body and said reflective units on said bottom of said main
body.
26. The warning apparatus as claimed in claim 1, wherein said
bottom of said main body comprises a concave at the center area,
and a high strength resin or a compound material fills the void
spaces between the elements of said bottom of said main body, and
said void spaces comprise the spaces between said reflective units
on said bottom of said main body.
27. The warning apparatus as claimed in claim 1, wherein the
thickness of said main body is at least 3 mm.
Description
FIELD OF THE INVENTION
[0001] The present invention generally relates to a warning
apparatus for traffic roads, and more specifically to a road
warning apparatus that has lower surface bump, higher reflective
effect, and durable structure.
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
[0002] The marks on the road surface are for providing the drivers
with the visible direction so as to keep proper space between
vehicles. The ideal situation is that the marks on the road surface
must be able to provide suitable visibility under any
circumstances, rain or shine, day or night. FIG. 1 shows a
cross-sectional view of a conventional road mark. A conventional
road mark 91 is mainly made of thermal-plastic. To reflect light
for warning, small glass beads 92 with diameters ranging between
0.1-0.4 mm are added to the thermal plastic. Glass beads 92 can
reflect the light from the headlights of the vehicles so that the
driver can still see the lane division and the direction of the
road when the visibility is low. However, when it rains in the
evening, the 0.1-0.4 mm glass beads are easily immersed by the
rain, and fail to reflect the light properly. Therefore, the
usability of such conventional road marks is impaired.
[0003] To solve the intrinsic problem of thermal-plastic marks, the
conventional technique is to add a reflective warning apparatus at
one or both ends of the road marks. The reflective warning
apparatus is usually 19-25 mm in height, and made of glass,
aluminum alloy, or plastics. Because, in general, the normal rain
will accumulate about 1 mm to cover the road, this type of
reflective waning apparatus can still provide the warning
reflection, especially in the freeway system. Most traffic rules in
the world enforce the regulation that the reflective warning
apparatus should be less than 19 mm in height for highways, and
less than 25 mm for local roads, which imposes the constrain in the
use of reflective warning apparatus. In addition, the reflective
warning apparatus forms a bump on the road surface that may cause
discomfort, or even hazard, when the tires run over the reflective
warning apparatus, which causes the tire skid or shift. Another
concern is that the reflective warning apparatus may be easily
damaged by the snowplow in the snowy area when the roads are
covered in snow. On the other hand, it is difficult to keep the
height of the reflective warning apparatus less than 3 mm, as the
protective shell for such apparatus, usually made of aluminum alloy
or plastics, must be thicker than 3 mm to provide sufficient
protection to the apparatus as well as weather the weight of
vehicles.
[0004] Because there exists safety concerns about the road marks,
other types of structures have been proposed for improvement. For
example, during the marking of the road marks, as shown in FIG. 2,
a plurality of bumps 81 having 3 mm in height is formed on the
thermal-plastic road marks 8. The surface also includes a plurality
of small glass beads 82 for reflecting the light for warning.
Hence, for the accumulated rain of 1 mm in the rainy night, glass
beads 82 on the 3 mm road marks can still reflect the light and
stay visible. However, in actual application, this design usually
suffers the problem of lack of durable strength. Thus, it is prone
to damage or worn out easily by vehicles in a short period of time,
and the glass beads may break off to lose the reflectivity. The
current technique is to integrate tens of small beads into a large
bead, which is further integrated into the thermal-plastic road
marks. However, the integration of glass beads and the
thermal-plastic road marks is still lack of the fixation strength,
and can be easily broken off after a longer period of time of
running over by vehicles. Based on the above disadvantages, the
inventor of the present invention provides a noel structure with
warning effect and traffic safety features to replace the
convention reflective road marks.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
[0005] The present invention has been made to overcome the
above-mentioned drawback of conventional reflective warning
apparatus. The primary object of the present invention is to
provide a warning apparatus that is low-height and durable. The
warning apparatus of the present invention is monolithically made
of a tempered transparent material, such as glass. The warning
apparatus has a thickness with the injection unit and the
reflection unit at the top and the bottom so as to reflect
horizontal lights effectively. The warning apparatus, after
installation, is only less 5 mm over the road surface, and will not
be immersed by the rain to lose the reflection for warning. As the
bump after the installation is low, the warning apparatus will not
affect the driving safety and remains to provide effective warning
for drivers.
[0006] Another object of the present invention is to provide a
warning apparatus that can be widely used in a plurality of
occasions. In addition to reflect horizontal light, the warning
apparatus of the present invention can also be slightly altered to
reflect vertical light; hence, the warning apparatus can also be
used on a vertical wall, such as the wall at a T-intersection, to
provide warning for the drivers. The present invention can also be
altered to reflect the light from above, such as installed on the
flat platform of the elevator.
[0007] To achieve the above objects, the present invention provides
a warning apparatus, whose main body includes a monolithically
formed transparent tempered material with a thickness. The top of
the main body includes at least two injections units. The injection
units are upward bumps. The injection units are less than 10 mm in
height. The curvature on the surface of injection unit bumps
changes at different height of the bumps. The bottom of the main
body includes at least reflection units. The reflection units are
downward bumps. The bottom of the main body also includes a
reflective layer attached to the outer surface of the reflection
units so that the light entering the main body can be reflected by
the reflective layer to provide warning.
[0008] The foregoing and other objects, features, aspects and
advantages of the present invention will become better understood
from a careful reading of a detailed description provided herein
below with appropriate reference to the accompanying drawings.
BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS
[0009] The present invention can be understood in more detail by
reading the subsequent detailed description in conjunction with the
examples and references made to the accompanying drawings,
wherein:
[0010] FIG. 1 shows a cross-sectional view of a conventional road
mark;
[0011] FIG. 2 shows a cross-sectional of yet another conventional
road mark;
[0012] FIG. 3 shows a three-dimensional view of the present
invention;
[0013] FIG. 4 shows a top view of the present invention;
[0014] FIG. 5 shows a cross-sectional view of the present
invention;
[0015] FIG. 6 shows a top view of the second embodiment of the
present invention;
[0016] FIG. 7A shows an actual application of the present
invention;
[0017] FIG. 7B shows another actual application of the present
invention;
[0018] FIG. 7C shows yet another actual application of the present
invention;
[0019] FIG. 8A shows a top view of the third embodiment of the
present invention;
[0020] FIG. 8B shows a cross-sectional view of the third embodiment
of the present invention;
[0021] FIG. 9A shows a top view of the fourth embodiment of the
present invention;
[0022] FIG. 9B shows a cross-sectional view of the fourth
embodiment of the present invention;
[0023] FIG. 10 shows a top view of the fifth embodiment of the
present invention;
[0024] FIG. 11 shows a bottom view of the sixth embodiment of the
present invention;
[0025] FIG. 12A shows a top view of the seventh embodiment of the
present invention;
[0026] FIG. 12B shows a cross-section view of the seventh
embodiment of the present invention; and
[0027] FIG. 13 shows a cross-sectional view of the eighth
embodiment of the present invention.
DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS
[0028] FIGS. 3, 4 & 5 show a three-dimensional view, a top view
and a cross-section view of the present invention, respectively. A
main body 1 of a warning apparatus of the present invention is
monolithically formed by transparent tempered material. Main body 1
has a thickness. The top of main body 1 includes at least two
injection units 2. Each injection unit 2 is an upward bump. The
curvature on the surface of injection unit 2 changes at different
height of the bumps. The present embodiment shows 7 injection
units. Curve injection surface 21 of injection unit 2 allows the
light from the horizontal direction to be refracted into main body
1. The bottom of main body 1 includes at least two reflection units
3. Each reflection unit 3 is a downward bump. The curvature on the
surface of reflection unit 3 changes at different height of the
bumps. The present embodiment shows 7 reflection units. The outer
surface of curve reflection surface 31 of reflection unit 3
includes a reflective layer 4. For the ease of manufacturing,
reflective layer 4 of the present invention is attached to the
entire are of the bottom of main body 1. When the light shines on
injection units 2 at the top of main body 1, curve injection
surface 21 refracts the entering light to reflection units 3 at the
bottom of main body 1. With reflective layer 4 on curve reflection
surface 31, the light is reflected, and then refracted by curve
injection surface 21 to provide the driver the visual warning.
[0029] To ensure that the warning apparatus of the present
invention will not interfere the traffic and the visibility in rain
when installed on the road, injection units 2 are limited to be
less than 10 mm in height, preferably less than 5 mm, so that the
normal rain will not immerse injection units 2 entirely. For the
snowy area, injection units 2 can be designed to be less than 2 mm
in height to prevent interfering snowplow operation. Hence, when
the warning apparatus is installed on the road, the potential
interference caused by small-sized, low-height injection units 2 to
the vehicles can be minimized, while maintaining the reflective
warning effects. As the warning apparatus of the present invention
is monolithically formed, injection units 2 will not break off
easily, and thus is more durable for extended period of use.
[0030] FIG. 5 shows that the bottom view of the bottom surface of
main body 1, contacting the road surface, can be further processed
or coarsened. The outer surface of reflective layer 4 is coarsened
to increase the contact surface with the glue and improve the
engagement with the road surface when installed. As shown in FIG.
5, the bottom of reflection units 3 can further includes cavities
32 to so that the glue can fill cavities 32 to increase the
engagement strength. The circumference of the bottom of main body 1
includes a downward protruding frame 11. The protruding distance of
frame 11 is at least the same as the height of the downward bump of
reflection units 3 so that the present invention can be conveyed on
the conveyor using frame 11 during the manufacturing process to
avoid tilting, and have a stronger structure.
[0031] In the present embodiment, main body 1 is made of tempered
glass material. To achieve good light penetration, the glass
material has a low iron ingredient. That is, the Fe.sub.2O.sub.3 is
less than 0.05%. The refractive index of the glass is between Nd
1.4-1.9. Because the refractive index will affect the refraction
and the reflection angles, the curvatures of curve injection
surface 21 of injection units 2 and curve reflection surface 31 of
reflection units 3 also depend on the refractive index. In the
present embodiment, curve injection surface 21 and curve reflection
surface 31 do not have the same curvatures, and each includes at
least two curvatures, which changes at different height on the
surfaces. For good reflectivity, each injection unit 2 has a
corresponding reflection unit 3 in this embodiment. The diameter
and the size of reflection unit 3 are both larger than those of
injection unit 2. The shapes of injections units 2 and reflection
units 3 are also dependent on the reflection effects.
[0032] In this embodiment, main body is made of transparent
tempered glass material. Reflective layer 4 at the bottom of main
body 1 is made of metal, such as aluminum or aluminum alloy, and
the reflected light is white. To reflect a specific color of light,
there are two approaches that the present invention can use. The
first is to use the specific color of glass as main body 1. For
example, a yellow glass used as main body can form yellow
reflective light. The second approach is to use the original clear
glass as main body and a thin film of specific color at the bottom
of main body 1 before reflective layer 4 is formed. Therefore, when
the light passes the color thin film, the reflective light shows
the color of the thin film. For example, if the thin film is
yellow, the reflective light will be yellow.
[0033] To protect injection units 2 of main body 1 from dust or mud
accumulation and affecting the light penetration, this embodiment
includes a dust preventive thin film on the top surface of main
body 1. The dust preventive thin film is a thin film made of one of
nano-scaled TiO, ZnO, Al.sub.2O.sub.3, SiO.sub.2, glass powder, Au,
Ag, Cu, Sn, and so on. The thin film can be formed by spray or
thermal spray method. The think film prevents the dust from
sticking to the surface, and when the tire of the vehicle runs over
the surface, the surface gets cleaned. A protective layer can also
be included on the outer surface of reflective layer 4 of main body
1. The protective layer can be formed by painting a layer of resin
or paint, or other anti-erosion material to prolong the life span
of the present invention.
[0034] FIG. 6 shows a second embodiment of the present invention.
The major difference in this embodiment is to change the shape of
main body 1. As shown in FIG. 6, the shape of main body 1 is
square, and main body 1 includes nine injection units 2 and nine
reflection units 3, located on the top and the bottom of main body
1 respectively. The shape of the present invention is not limited
to any specific type. The shape can also be triangular,
rectangular, oval, or other shapes. The present invention can be
installed at one end of the road marks, as shown in FIG. 7A, or at
both ends of the road marks, as shown in FIG. 7B. Alternatively,
the entire road mark can be made of the warning apparatus of the
present invention, as shown in FIG. 7C. In the application of FIG.
7C, the shape of the warning apparatus of the present invention is
preferably square or rectangular.
[0035] FIGS. 8A and 8B show the third embodiment of the present
invention. This embodiment shows the different shape of the
injection units. To improve the driving safety, the top of
injection units 2 of main body 1 is flattened as a flat top surface
22 while the sides of the injection unit bumps remain as curve
injection surface 21. Flat top surface 22 is coarsened. The coarse
surface is made of protruding tiny bumps or cavities in order to
improve the friction to prevent skidding.
[0036] FIGS. 9A & 9B show the fourth embodiment of the present
invention. This embodiment includes a flat mark unit 12 at the
central part of the bottom of main body 1. Makr unit 12 can be
reserved for the government inspection certificate or mark, or for
manufacturer trademarks.
[0037] FIG. 10 shows the fifth embodiment of the present invention.
This embodiment shows a different arrangement and sizes of the
injection units and reflection units. The embodiment shows that
injection units 2A and reflection units 3 of smaller sizes can be
added to the top and the bottom of main body respectively so that
the gap between two adjacent injection units 2 or two adjacent
reflection units 3 can be filled by smaller injection units 2A and
reflection units 3A. This addition will improve the structural
strength of the present invention, as well as improving the
reflectivity of the present invention.
[0038] FIG. 11 shows a top view of the sixth embodiment of the
present invention. This embodiment includes a plurality of
enhancing elements 14 located at the bottom of main body 1.
Enhancing elements 14 are placed at the space among frame 11 and
reflection unit 13 of main body 1. Enhancing elements 14 can be
interconnected to form a net, as shown in FIG. 11, to enhance the
overall structure of the present invention. The thickness of
enhancing elements 14 should not be higher than the height of
reflective units 3. Enhancing elements 14 should be monolithically
formed during the manufacturing to ensure the overall structural
strength.
[0039] FIGS. 12A & 12B show a top view and a cross-sectional
view of the seventh embodiment of the present invention. This
embodiment shows the capability to reflect the light from the
vertical direction. Main body 1A of this embodiment includes a
plurality of injection units 2, and a plurality of reflection units
3. The curvatures of curve injection surface 21 and curve
reflection surface 31 are designed to reflect the light from the
vertical direction. Therefore, this embodiment of the present
invention can be installed on a vertical wall, such as the wall at
a T-intersection, the road side curb, or road blockade, to reflect
the light to provide visual warning. It can also be installed on
the ground to provide visual marks for helicopter landing.
[0040] FIG. 13 shows a cross-sectional view of the eighth
embodiment of the present invention. In this embodiment, the void
space between elements at the bottom of main body 1 is filled with
a high strength resin 5 or compound material to strengthen the
overall structure. The void space between the elements include
space 15 between frame 11 and each reflective unit 3, space 16
between neighboring reflective units 3, and the area formed by
concave 32 of reflective unit 3. When high strength resin 5 or
compound material fills space 15, space 16, and concave 32, high
strength resin 5 or compound material can attach tightly to the
bottom of main body 1. This design not only strengthens the overall
structure, but also completely seals the outer reflective layer of
reflective unit 3 for protection to prolong the reflectivity of
main body 1. In addition, the thickness d of main body is at least
3 mm to provide good durability.
[0041] In all the above embodiments, the main body is made of
transparent tempered glass material with good light penetration
effects. Any other similar material, such as transparent tempered
plastic or color tempered plastic can also be used. This structure
has the advantage of lower manufacturing cost, but the disadvantage
of shorter life expectancy
[0042] In summary, the present invention provides a warning
apparatus with a main body having at least two injection units on
the top and at least two reflection units on the bottom to achieve
reflectivity for visual warning. The structure is monolithically
formed, and thus is durable and easy to manufacture.
[0043] Although the present invention has been described with
reference to the preferred embodiments, it will be understood that
the invention is not limited to the details described thereof.
Various substitutions and modifications have been suggested in the
foregoing description, and others will occur to those of ordinary
skill in the art. Therefore, all such substitutions and
modifications are intended to be embraced within the scope of the
invention as defined in the appended claims.
* * * * *