초록 ▼

A rail-car status-indicating assembly is provided for mounting to the axles of railcars. A solenoid and a magnet are part of the assembly installed each to one of a non-rotating structure and a rotating structure which co-rotates with the axle so that each time the solenoid enters the magnets field

A rail-car status-indicating assembly is provided for mounting to the axles of railcars. A solenoid and a magnet are part of the assembly installed each to one of a non-rotating structure and a rotating structure which co-rotates with the axle so that each time the solenoid enters the magnets field a current is induced. Preferably, a housing forms the rotating structure for protecting the inductive components. A bearing and pendulum are mounted within the housing to form a non-rotating structure. Magnetically induced co-rotation is eliminated by mounting of the electrical components to an offset pivoted structure. One form of low-power status device is light emitting diodes, electrically connected to the solenoid for repeated emission of light visible to oncoming motorists. Other embodiments include use of low power temperature sensors and the use of LEDs to transmit two or more status condition or via RF transceivers. Alternatively, the housing forms the non-rotating pendulum structure and the axle rotates a rotary member bearing one of either the solenoid or magnet.

대표청구항 ▼

1. A rail-car status-indicating assembly which mounts to the rotating axle of a railcar comprising:a rotating structure mounted to the axis of the rail-car axle; a non-rotating structure connected with a first bearing to the rotating structure about the axis of rotation of the rail-car axle, the non

1. A rail-car status-indicating assembly which mounts to the rotating axle of a railcar comprising:a rotating structure mounted to the axis of the rail-car axle; a non-rotating structure connected with a first bearing to the rotating structure about the axis of rotation of the rail-car axle, the non-rotating structure having an offset mass connected to and depending radially therefrom, gravity acting on the offset mass to resist co-rotation of the non-rotating and rotating structures; an arm, pivotally connected to the non-rotating mounting structure at a position offset from the axis of rotation of the axle, and extending radially to a bottom end, the bottom end of the arm having a shorter arc of rotation than the rotating structure; a magnet and a solenoid mounted to one of either the arm's bottom end or the rotating structure and arranged so that the solenoid repeatedly passes through the magnetic field of the magnet as the axle rotates, inducing electrical energy in the solenoid; and a low-power status-indicating device connected electrically to the solenoid so that the induced electrical energy causes the low-power status-indicating device to operate.