초록 ▼

A system is provided for sensing misalignment of a railroad signaling system. The railroad signaling system includes at least one railroad signal coupled to at least one elongated member adjacent to a railroad. The system includes at least one transmitter positioned within at least one elongated mem

A system is provided for sensing misalignment of a railroad signaling system. The railroad signaling system includes at least one railroad signal coupled to at least one elongated member adjacent to a railroad. The system includes at least one transmitter positioned within at least one elongated member, and at least one receiver positioned from each of said at least one transmitter within at least one adjacent elongated member to the at least one elongated member. More particularly, the system includes at least one electronic device coupled to each of a transmitter and each of at least one receiver, to sense detection of each transmitter by at least one receiver of at least one receiver indicative of misalignment of the railroad signaling system.

대표청구항 ▼

That which is claimed is: 1. A system for sensing misalignment of a railroad signaling system comprising at least one railroad signal coupled to at least one elongated member adjacent to a railroad, said system comprising: at least one transmitter positioned within said at least one elongated membe

That which is claimed is: 1. A system for sensing misalignment of a railroad signaling system comprising at least one railroad signal coupled to at least one elongated member adjacent to a railroad, said system comprising: at least one transmitter positioned within said at least one elongated member; at least one receiver positioned from each of said at least one transmitter within at least one adjacent elongated member to said at least one elongated member; at least one electronic device coupled to each of said transmitter and of said at least one receiver, for sensing misalignment of said railroad signaling system. 2. The system for sensing misalignment of a railroad signaling system according to claim 1, wherein said at least one transmitter comprises one transmitter positioned within said at least one elongated member and proximately positioned from each of said at least one receiver; and wherein said at least one electronic device comprises one electronic device coupled to each of said transmitter and of said at least one receiver. 3. The system for sensing misalignment of a railroad signaling system according to claim 2, wherein said at least one elongated member comprises at least one vertical tube extending out from said railroad signal, at least one horizontal tube connected to said at least one vertical tube, a horizontal bar coupled to said at least one horizontal tube and a vertical bar coupled to said horizontal bar and extending into a ground adjacent to said railroad; and wherein said at least one transmitter and said at least one receiver are positioned within said at least one vertical tube and said at least one horizontal tube. 4. The system for sensing misalignment of a railroad signaling system according to claim 3, wherein said transmitter and said at least one receiver comprise a respective LED transmitter and at least one LED receiver having narrow angle spreads. 5. The system for sensing misalignment of a railroad signaling system according to claim 4, wherein said transmitter is mounted on respective inside surfaces of said vertical tube and said horizontal tube, and said at least one receiver are mounted on a ring coupled to the respective inside surfaces of an adjacent vertical tube and an adjacent horizontal tube. 6. The system for sensing misalignment of a railroad signaling system according to claim 5, wherein said transmitter and said at least one receiver within each of said vertical tubes and said horizontal tubes are proximately separated by a proximate distance based upon said narrow angle spread of each LED transmitter and said at least one LED receiver. 7. The system for sensing misalignment of a railroad signaling system according to claim 5, wherein said transmitter is mounted to the respective inside surfaces of said vertical tube and said horizontal tube and said ring coupled to the respective inside surfaces of said adjacent vertical tube and said adjacent horizontal tube includes a center hole to facilitate passage of a cable through said vertical tubes and said horizontal tubes to said railroad signal. 8. The system for sensing misalignment of a railroad signaling system according to claim 3, wherein said transmitter and said at least one receiver are positioned within a plurality of said adjacent vertical tubes for sensing horizontal misalignment of said railroad signal, and wherein said transmitter and said at least one receiver are positioned within a plurality of said adjacent horizontal tubes for sensing vertical misalignment of said railroad signal. 9. The system for sensing misalignment of a railroad signaling system according to claim 2, wherein said sensing misalignment of said railroad signaling system comprises sensing a variation of said transmitter by at least one receiver of said at least one receiver. 10. The system for sensing misalignment of a railroad signaling system according to claim 9, wherein said sensing a variation in the detection of said transmitter by at least one receiver of said at least one receiver comprises sensing a variation from a single receiver detecting said transmitter to one of at least one adjacent receiver detecting said transmitter. 11. The system for sensing misalignment of a railroad signaling system according to claim 2, wherein said electronic device is switchable between a calibration mode for sensing a proper alignment of said transmitter by at least one calibration receiver of said at least one receiver and recording proper alignment data in a memory within said electronic device including an identity of each calibration receiver; wherein upon recording said proper alignment data within said memory, said electronic device switches from said calibration mode into a detection mode for said sensing detection of each transmitter indicative of said misalignment of said railroad signaling system. 12. The system for sensing misalignment of a railroad signaling system according to claim 11, wherein said memory stores misalignment threshold granularity for determining whether said sensing detection of each transmitter by at least one receiver of said at least one receiver is indicative of said misalignment. 13. The system for sensing misalignment of a railroad signaling system according to claim 12, wherein said misalignment threshold granularity comprises a maximum number of adjacent receivers to said at least one calibration receiver for detecting each transmitter beyond which is indicative of misalignment. 14. The system for sensing misalignment of a railroad signaling system according to claim 13, wherein said electronic device is further switchable from said detecting mode to an alert mode upon detecting misalignment of said railroad signaling system for communicating an alert signal to a remote terminal to arrange for realignment of said railroad signaling system. 15. The system for sensing misalignment of a railroad signaling system according to claim 1, further comprising a processor coupled to each electronic device, said processor switchable to a calibration mode for receiving the identity of at least one calibration receiver when sensing a proper alignment of each transmitter in the calibration mode, said processor including a memory for storing proper alignment data including the identity of each calibration receiver; wherein upon recording said proper alignment data within said memory, said processor switches from said calibration mode into a detection mode for receiving sensed detection information from said electronic device of each transmitter by at least one receiver of said at least one receiver indicative of said misalignment of said railroad signaling system. 16. The system for sensing misalignment of a railroad signaling system according to claim 15, wherein said memory stores misalignment threshold granularity for determining whether said received sensed detection information of each transmitter by at least one receiver of said at least one receiver is indicative of said misalignment; wherein said misalignment threshold granularity comprises a maximum number of adjacent receivers to said at least one calibration receiver for detecting each transmitter beyond which is indicative of misalignment. 17. A method for sensing misalignment of a railroad signaling system comprising at least one railroad signal coupled to at least one elongated member adjacent to a railroad, said method comprising: positioning at least one transmitter within said at least one elongated member; positioning at least one receiver from each of said at least one transmitter within at least one adjacent elongated member to said at least one elongated member; coupling at least one electronic device to each of said at least one receiver, for sensing misalignment of said railroad signaling system. 18. The method for sensing misalignment of a railroad signaling system according to claim 17, wherein said at least one transmitter comprises one transmitter positioned within said at least one elongated member and proximately positioned from each of said at least one receiver; and wherein at least one electronic device comprises one electronic device coupled to each of said at least one receiver; wherein said at least one elongated member comprises a plurality of vertical tubes extending out from said railroad signal, a plurality of horizontal tubes connected to said vertical tubes, a horizontal bar coupled to said horizontal tubes and a vertical bar coupled to said horizontal bar and extending into a ground adjacent to said railroad; and wherein said transmitter and said at least one receiver are positioned within said vertical tubes and said horizontal tubes. 19. The method for sensing misalignment of a railroad signaling system according to claim 18, wherein said transmitter and said at least one receiver comprise a respective LED transmitter and at least one LED receiver having narrow angle spreads. 20. The method for sensing misalignment of a railroad signaling system according to claim 19, wherein said positioning said transmitter within at least one elongated member comprises mounting said transmitter on a respective inside surfaces of said vertical tube and said horizontal tube; and wherein said proximately positioning at least one receiver from said transmitter within said one of at least one adjacent elongated member comprises mounting said at least one receiver on a ring coupled to the respective inside surfaces of an adjacent vertical tube and an adjacent horizontal tube. 21. The method for sensing misalignment of a railroad signaling system according to claim 20, wherein upon said mounting said transmitter to the respective inside surfaces of said vertical tube and said horizontal tube and said coupling each ring to the respective inside surfaces of said adjacent vertical tube and said adjacent horizontal tube, said method further includes passing a cable for said railroad signal through a center hole of each ring and through said vertical tubes and said horizontal tubes to said railroad signal. 22. The method for sensing misalignment of a railroad signaling system according to claim 18, wherein said transmitter and said at least one receiver are positioned within said vertical tubes for sensing horizontal misalignment of said railroad signal, and wherein said transmitter and said at least one receiver are positioned within said horizontal tubes for sensing vertical misalignment of said railroad signal. 23. The method for sensing misalignment of a railroad signaling system according to claim 18, wherein said sensing misalignment of said railroad signaling system comprises sensing a variation in the detection of said transmitter by said at least one receiver. 24. The method for sensing misalignment of a railroad signaling system according to claim 23, wherein said sensing a variation in the detection of said transmitter by said at least one receiver comprises sensing a variation from a single receiver detecting said transmitter to one of at least one adjacent receiver detecting said transmitter. 25. The method for sensing misalignment of a railroad signaling system according to claim 18, wherein said electronic device is switchable between a calibration mode for sensing a proper alignment of said transmitter by at least one calibration receiver of said at least one receiver and recording proper alignment data in a memory within said electronic device including the identity of each calibration receiver; wherein upon recording said proper alignment data within said memory, said electronic device switches from said calibration mode into a detection mode for said sensing detection of each transmitter by said at least one receiver indicative of said misalignment of said railroad signaling system. 26. The method for sensing misalignment of a railroad signaling system according to claim 25, wherein said memory stores misalignment threshold granularity for determining whether said sensing detection of each transmitter by at least one receiver of said at least one receiver is indicative of said misalignment; and wherein said misalignment threshold granularity comprises a maximum number of adjacent receivers for detecting each transmitter relative to said at least one calibration receiver beyond which is indicative of misalignment. 27. The method for sensing misalignment of a railroad signaling system according to claim 26, wherein said electronic device is further switchable from said detecting mode to an alert mode upon detecting misalignment of said railroad signaling system for communicating an alert signal to a remote terminal to arrange for realignment of said railroad signaling system. 28. The method for sensing misalignment of a railroad signaling system according to claim 18, further comprising a processor coupled to each electronic device, said processor switchable to a calibration mode for receiving the identity of at least one calibration receiver for sensing a proper alignment of said transmitter in the calibration mode, said processor including a memory for storing proper alignment data including the identity of each calibration receiver; wherein upon recording said proper alignment data within said memory, said processor switches from said calibration mode into a detection mode for receiving sensed detection information from said electronic device of said transmitter by at least one receiver of said at least one receiver indicative of said misalignment of said railroad signaling system. 29. The method for sensing misalignment of a railroad signaling system according to claim 28, wherein said memory stores misalignment threshold granularity for determining whether said received sensed detection information from said electronic device of each transmitter by said at least one receiver is indicative of said misalignment; and wherein said misalignment threshold granularity comprises a maximum number of adjacent receivers for detecting said transmitter relative to said at least one calibration receiver beyond which is indicative of misalignment.