U.S. patent application number 16/448044 was filed with the patent office on 2020-12-24 for railroad crossing safety assembly.
The applicant listed for this patent is Keith White. Invention is credited to Keith White.
Application Number | 20200398877 16/448044 |
Document ID | / |
Family ID | 1000004181490 |
Filed Date | 2020-12-24 |
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United States Patent
Application |
20200398877 |
Kind Code |
A1 |
White; Keith |
December 24, 2020 |
RAILROAD CROSSING SAFETY ASSEMBLY
Abstract
A railroad crossing safety assembly includes a plurality of
object sensors that is each positioned on a respective one of four
corners of a railroad crossing. The object sensors emit a sensing
signal across the railroad crossing to detect an obstruction on the
railroad crossing. A data storage unit is provided and each of the
object sensors is in electrical communication with the data storage
unit. The data storage unit is in electrical communication with
emergency responders thereby facilitating the emergency responders
to be notified of the obstruction on the railroad crossing.
Additionally, the data storage unit is in communication with a
railway operation department thereby facilitating the railway
operation department to alter railway scheduling in response to the
obstruction.
Inventors: |
White; Keith; (Ft Worth,
TX) |
|
Applicant: |
Name |
City |
State |
Country |
Type |
White; Keith |
Ft Worth |
TX |
US |
|
|
Family ID: |
1000004181490 |
Appl. No.: |
16/448044 |
Filed: |
June 21, 2019 |
Current U.S.
Class: |
1/1 |
Current CPC
Class: |
B61L 29/30 20130101;
B61L 15/0027 20130101 |
International
Class: |
B61L 29/30 20060101
B61L029/30; B61L 15/00 20060101 B61L015/00 |
Claims
1. A railroad crossing safety assembly being configured to alert
authorities to an obstruction detected on a railroad crossing, said
assembly comprising: a plurality of object sensors, each of said
object sensors being positioned on a respective one of four corners
of a railroad crossing wherein each of said object sensors is
configured to emit a sensing signal across the railroad crossing to
detect an obstruction on the railroad crossing; and a data storage
unit, each of said object sensors being in electrical communication
with said data storage unit, said data storage unit receiving data
when any of said object sensors senses the obstruction, said data
storage unit being in electrical communication with an extrinsic
communication network wherein said data storage unit is configured
to be in communication with emergency responders thereby
facilitating the emergency responders to be notified of the
obstruction on the railroad crossing, wherein said data storage
unit is configured to be in communication with a railway operation
department thereby facilitating the railway operation department to
alter railway scheduling in response to the obstruction.
2. The assembly according to claim 1, wherein each of said each of
said object sensors is arranged to direct the sensing signal
diagonally across the railroad crossing.
3. The assembly according to claim 1, further comprising a
plurality of cameras, each of said cameras being positioned around
the railroad crossing wherein each of said cameras is configured to
capture images of the railroad crossing, each of said cameras being
turned on when any of said object sensors senses the obstruction
wherein each of said cameras is configured to capture images of the
obstruction, each of said cameras being in electrical communication
with said data storage unit,
4. The assembly according to claim 3, further comprising a
transceiver being positioned adjacent to the railroad crossing,
said transceiver being in remote communication with a global
positioning system (gps) wherein said transceiver is configured to
receive a physical location of the railroad crossing, said
transceiver being in electrical communication with said data
storage unit, said transceiver communicating the physical location
of the railroad crossing to said data storage unit when any of said
object sensors senses the obstruction.
5. The assembly according to claim 4, further comprising a data
server being in electrical communication with the extrinsic
communication network such that said data server is in
communication with said data storage unit, said data server
receiving said images from said cameras and the physical location
of the railroad crossing from said data storage unit, said data
server compiling said images and the physical location into a
database stored on said data server for subsequent analysis.
6. A railroad crossing safety assembly being configured to alert
authorities to an obstruction detected on a railroad crossing, said
assembly comprising: a plurality of object sensors, each of said
object sensors being positioned on a respective one of four corners
of a railroad crossing wherein each of said object sensors is
configured to emit a sensing signal across the railroad crossing,
each of said each of said object sensors being arranged to direct
the sensing signal diagonally across the railroad crossing wherein
each of said object sensors is configured to detect an obstruction
on the railroad crossing; a plurality of cameras, each of said
cameras being positioned around the railroad crossing wherein each
of said cameras is configured to capture images of the railroad
crossing, each of said cameras being turned on when any of said
object sensors senses the obstruction wherein each of said cameras
is configured to capture images of the obstruction; a transceiver
being positioned adjacent to the railroad crossing, said
transceiver being in remote communication with a global positioning
system (gps) wherein said transceiver is configured to receive a
physical location of the railroad crossing; a data storage unit,
each of said object sensors being in electrical communication with
said data storage unit, each of said cameras being in electrical
communication with said data storage unit, said data storage unit
receiving the images from said cameras when any of said object
sensors senses the obstruction, said transceiver being in
electrical communication with said data storage unit, said
transceiver communicating the physical location of the railroad
crossing to said data storage unit when any of said object sensors
senses the obstruction, said data storage unit being in electrical
communication with an extrinsic communication network wherein said
data storage unit is configured to be in communication with
emergency responders thereby facilitating the emergency responders
to be notified of the obstruction on the railroad crossing, wherein
said data storage unit is configured to be in communication with a
railway operation department thereby facilitating the railway
operation department to alter railway scheduling in response to the
obstruction; and a data server being in electrical communication
with the extrinsic communication network such that said data server
is in communication with said data storage unit, said data server
receiving said images from said cameras and the physical location
of the railroad crossing from said data storage unit, said data
server compiling said images and the physical location into a
database stored on said data server for subsequent analysis.
7. The assembly according to claim 6, further comprising a railroad
crossing safety system being configured to alert authorities to an
obstruction detected on a railroad crossing, said assembly
comprising: a railroad crossing including a roadway extending
across a railroad, said railroad crossing having four corners; a
plurality of object sensors, each of said object sensors being
positioned on a respective one of said four corners of said
railroad crossing to emit a sensing signal across said railroad
crossing, each of said each of said object sensors being arranged
to direct the sensing signal diagonally across said railroad
crossing to detect an obstruction on said railroad crossing; a
plurality of cameras, each of said cameras being positioned around
said railroad crossing to capture images of said railroad crossing,
each of said cameras being turned on when any of said object
sensors senses the obstruction to capture images of the
obstruction; a transceiver being positioned adjacent to said
railroad crossing, said transceiver being in remote communication
with a global positioning system (gps) wherein said transceiver is
configured to receive a physical location of said railroad
crossing; a data storage unit, each of said object sensors being in
electrical communication with said data storage unit, each of said
cameras being in electrical communication with said data storage
unit, said data storage unit receiving the images from said cameras
when any of said object sensors senses the obstruction, said
transceiver being in electrical communication with said data
storage unit, said transceiver communicating the physical location
of said railroad crossing to said data storage unit when any of
said object sensors senses the obstruction, said data storage unit
being in electrical communication with an extrinsic communication
network wherein said data storage unit is configured to be in
communication with emergency responders thereby facilitating the
emergency responders to be notified of the obstruction on said
railroad crossing, wherein said data storage unit is configured to
be in communication with a railway operation department thereby
facilitating the railway operation department to alter railway
scheduling in response to the obstruction; and a data server being
in electrical communication with the extrinsic communication
network such that said data server is in communication with said
data storage unit, said data server receiving said images from said
cameras and the physical location of said railroad crossing from
said data storage unit, said data server compiling said images and
the physical location into a database stored on said data server
for subsequent analysis.
8. A method of alerting authorities and emergency responders to an
obstruction on a railroad crossing, the steps of said method
comprising: providing a railroad crossing; providing a plurality of
object sensors, each of said object sensors being positioned on a
respective one of four corners of said railroad crossing, said
object sensors being turned on when said object sensors senses an
obstruction on said railroad crossing; providing a plurality of
cameras, each of said cameras being positioned around said railroad
crossing for capturing images of the railroad crossing, each of
said cameras being turned on when any of said object sensors senses
the obstruction; providing a transceiver being positioned adjacent
to said railroad crossing, said transceiver being in electrical
communication with a global positioning system for identifying the
physical location of said railroad crossing; providing a data
storage unit, each of said object sensors being in electrical
communication with said data storage unit, each of said cameras
being in electrical communication with said data storage unit, said
transceiver being in electrical communication with said data
storage unit, said data storage unit receiving images from said
cameras and the physical location of said railroad crossing when
any of said object sensors senses the obstruction; placing said
data storage unit in electrical communication with an extrinsic
communication network; providing a data server; placing said data
server in electrical communication with an extrinsic communication
network; uploading the images from said cameras and the physical
location of said railroad crossing that are stored in said data
storage unit into said data server; communicating the images from
said cameras and the physical location of said railroad crossing to
emergency responders for clearing the obstruction; and
communicating the images from said cameras and the physical
location of said railroad crossing to a railway operations
department to alter railway scheduling in response to the
obstruction.
Description
CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS
Statement Regarding Federally Sponsored Research or Development
[0001] Not Applicable
THE NAMES OF THE PARTIES TO A JOINT RESEARCH AGREEMENT
[0002] Not Applicable
INCORPORATION-BY-REFERENCE OF MATERIAL SUBMITTED ON A COMPACT DISC
OR AS A TEXT FILE VIA THE OFFICE ELECTRONIC FILING SYSTEM
[0003] Not Applicable
STATEMENT REGARDING PRIOR DISCLOSURES BY THE INVENTOR OR JOINT
INVENTOR
[0004] Not Applicable
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
(1) Field of the Invention
(2) Description of Related Art Including Information Disclosed
Under 37 CFR 1.97 and 1.98
[0005] The disclosure and prior art relates to railroad safety
devices and more particularly pertains to a new railroad safety
device for alerting authorities to an obstruction on a railroad
crossing.
BRIEF SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
[0006] An embodiment of the disclosure meets the needs presented
above by generally comprising a plurality of object sensors that is
each positioned on a respective one of four corners of a railroad
crossing. The object sensors emit a sensing signal across the
railroad crossing to detect an obstruction on the railroad
crossing. A data storage unit is provided and each of the object
sensors is in electrical communication with the data storage unit.
The data storage unit is in electrical communication with emergency
responders thereby facilitating the emergency responders to be
notified of the obstruction on the railroad crossing. Additionally,
the data storage unit is in communication with a railway operation
department thereby facilitating the railway operation department to
alter railway scheduling in response to the obstruction.
[0007] There has thus been outlined, rather broadly, the more
important features of the disclosure in order that the detailed
description thereof that follows may be better understood, and in
order that the present contribution to the art may be better
appreciated. There are additional features of the disclosure that
will be described hereinafter and which will form the subject
matter of the claims appended hereto.
[0008] The objects of the disclosure, along with the various
features of novelty which characterize the disclosure, are pointed
out with particularity in the claims annexed to and forming a part
of this disclosure.
BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF SEVERAL VIEWS OF THE DRAWING(S)
[0009] The disclosure will be better understood and objects other
than those set forth above will become apparent when consideration
is given to the following detailed description thereof. Such
description makes reference to the annexed drawings wherein:
[0010] FIG. 1 is a perspective in-use view of a railroad crossing
safety assembly according to an embodiment of the disclosure.
[0011] FIG. 2 is a first schematic view of an embodiment of the
disclosure.
[0012] FIG. 3 is a second schematic view of an embodiment of the
disclosure.
[0013] FIG. 4 is a third schematic view of an embodiment of the
disclosure.
DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION
[0014] With reference now to the drawings, and in particular to
FIGS. 1 through 4 thereof, a new railroad safety device embodying
the principles and concepts of an embodiment of the disclosure and
generally designated by the reference numeral 10 will be
described.
[0015] As best illustrated in FIGS. 1 through 4, the railroad
crossing safety assembly 10 generally comprises a plurality of
object sensors 12 that is each positioned on a respective one of
four corners of a railroad crossing 14. In this way each of the
object sensors 12 can emit a sensing signal across the railroad
crossing 14. Each of the each of the object sensors 12 is arranged
to direct the sensing signal diagonally across the railroad
crossing 14. In this way each of the object sensors 12 can detect
an obstruction 16 on the railroad crossing 14. Each of the object
sensors 12 comprises an electronic object sensor, including but not
being limited to, laser light emitters, electronic motion sensors
or any other electronic means of detecting a solid object.
[0016] A plurality of cameras 18 is provided and each of the
cameras 18 is positioned around the railroad crossing 14 to capture
images of the railroad crossing 14. Each of the cameras 18 is
turned on when any of the object sensors 12 senses the obstruction
16. In this way each of the cameras 18 captures images of the
obstruction 16. Each of the cameras 18 may comprise a digital video
camera or the like. A transceiver 20 is positioned adjacent to the
railroad crossing 14 and the transceiver 20 is in remote
communication with a global positioning system (gps) 22. In this
way the transceiver 20 can receive a physical location of the
railroad crossing 14. The transceiver 20 may be a radio frequency
transceiver or the like.
[0017] A data storage unit 24 is provided and each of the object
sensors 12 is in electrical communication with the data storage
unit 24. Additionally, each of the cameras 18 is in electrical
communication with the data storage unit 24. The data storage unit
24 receives the images from the cameras 18 when any of the object
sensors 12 senses the obstruction 16. The transceiver 20 is in
electrical communication with the data storage unit 24. The
transceiver 20 communicates the physical location of the railroad
crossing 14 to the data storage unit 24 when any of the object
sensors 12 senses the obstruction 16. The data storage unit 24 may
comprise, but not be limited to, a personal computer, solid state
memory banks or any other type of electronic data storage. Each of
the object sensors 12, the cameras 18, the transceiver 20 and the
data storage unit 24 are electrically coupled to a power source 25
that may comprise an electrical utility service line or the
like.
[0018] The data storage unit 24 is in electrical communication with
an extrinsic communication network 26, including but not being
limited to, the internet or a cellphone network. In this way the
data storage unit 24 is in communication with emergency responders,
such as local police or fire departments, thereby facilitating the
emergency responders to be notified of the obstruction 16 on the
railroad crossing 14. Moreover, the data storage unit 24 is in
communication with a railway operation department. In this way the
railway operation department can alter railway scheduling in
response to the obstruction 16.
[0019] A data server 28 is provided and the data server 28 is in
electrical communication with the extrinsic communication network
26. In this way the data server 28 is in communication with the
data storage unit 24. The data server 28 receives the images from
the cameras 18 and the physical location of the railroad crossing
14 from the data storage unit 24. Moreover, the data server 28
compiles the images and the physical location into a database
stored on the data server 28 for subsequent analysis.
[0020] The data server 28 may be positioned in an operations
headquarters of a company that is contracted to monitor railroad
crossings or the like. A representative of the company can employ
the data server 28 to remotely access the data storage unit 24. In
this way the representative can send the images and the physical
location to the emergency responders and the railway operation
department in response to the obstruction 16. FIG. 3 of an
embodiment of the disclosure shows a schematic of potential
communication between the data storage unit 24 and the data server
28. FIG. 4 of an embodiment of the disclosure shows a schematic of
a potential communication between the emergency responders, the
railroad operations department and the data server 28.
[0021] In use, the object sensors 12 sense an obstruction 16, such
as a vehicle or any other solid object that is positioned on the
railroad crossing 14. The cameras 18 are turned on the capture
images of the obstruction 16. The images of the obstruction 16 and
the physical location of the railroad crossing 14 are communicated
to the data storage unit 24. The data storage unit 24 subsequently
communicates the images of the obstruction 16 and the physical
location of the railroad crossing 14 to the data server 28, the
emergency responders and the railway operations department. In this
way emergency responders can immediately respond to the obstruction
16 and the railway operations department can make any scheduling
changes to avoid a crash at the railroad crossing 14.
[0022] With respect to the above description then, it is to be
realized that the optimum dimensional relationships for the parts
of an embodiment enabled by the disclosure, to include variations
in size, materials, shape, form, function and manner of operation,
assembly and use, are deemed readily apparent and obvious to one
skilled in the art, and all equivalent relationships to those
illustrated in the drawings and described in the specification are
intended to be encompassed by an embodiment of the disclosure.
[0023] Therefore, the foregoing is considered as illustrative only
of the principles of the disclosure. Further, since numerous
modifications and changes will readily occur to those skilled in
the art, it is not desired to limit the disclosure to the exact
construction and operation shown and described, and accordingly,
all suitable modifications and equivalents may be resorted to,
falling within the scope of the disclosure. In this patent
document, the word "comprising" is used in its non-limiting sense
to mean that items following the word are included, but items not
specifically mentioned are not excluded. A reference to an element
by the indefinite article "a" does not exclude the possibility that
more than one of the element is present, unless the context clearly
requires that there be only one of the elements.
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