Trackside railway apparatus and method for detecting use of at least one trackside component of a railway installation

Abstract

A trackside railway apparatus includes at least one sensor device which is configured to detect at least one use of at least one trackside component of a railway installation. A storage device stores at least one item of use information dating or tracing back to the detection of the use. A transmission device is configured to wirelessly transmit the usage information to at least one receiving device entering a transmission range in a manner which is temporally decoupled from the storage. The apparatus is configured to detect the at least one receiving device entering the transmission range. A device for determining use of at least one trackside component of a railway system and a method for detecting use of at least one trackside component of a railway installation are also provided.

Claims

1. A trackside railway apparatus, comprising: at least one sensor device configured to detect at least one use of at least one trackside component of a railway system; a storage device for storing at least one item of use information dating from the detection of use; a transmission device configured to wirelessly transmit the use information, independently of a time of storage of the use information, to at least one receiving device entering a transmission range; and the apparatus being configured to detect the at least one receiving device entering a detection range.

2. The apparatus according to claim 1, which further comprises at least one detection device configured to detect the at least one receiving device entering the detection range.

3. The apparatus according to claim 2, wherein said detection device is configured to apply an activation signal to said transmission device as soon as said detection device has detected the at least one receiving device in order to initiate transmission of the use information.

4. The apparatus according to claim 2, wherein said detection device includes at least one of at least one infrasound, vibration or magnetic field sensor.

5. The apparatus according to claim 1, wherein said transmission device is configured to transmit the use information as a broadcast signal.

6. The apparatus according to claim 1, wherein said transmission device is configured to transmit the use information over a wireless local area network or a WLAN.

7. The apparatus according to claim 6, wherein said transmission device is configured to transmit the use information using a substantially fixed frequency band or using a frequency band of approximately 5.9 GHz.

8. The apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the use information includes at least one of at least one time of use or type of use.

9. The apparatus according to claim 1, which further comprises at least one of at least one energy storage device or energy harvesting device for autonomous energy supply.

10. The apparatus according to claim 1, wherein said storage device is configured to delete the at least one item of use information in at least one of a time-controlled or volume-controlled manner.

11. A device for determining use of at least one trackside component of a railway system, the device comprising: at least one apparatus according to claim 1; at least one receiving device to which said apparatus transmits the use information, said at least one receiving device being configured to forward the transmitted use information; and an evaluation device to which said at least one receiving device forwards the use information, said evaluation device evaluating the use information to determine the use.

12. The device according to claim 11, wherein said at least one receiving device is connected to a non-rail vehicle or a rail vehicle.

13. The device according to claim 11, wherein said at least one receiving device is a mobile device, a mobile telephone, a tablet or a handheld device.

14. A method for determining use of at least one trackside component of a railway system, the method comprising the following steps: detecting use of the component; storing at least one item of use information dating from the detection of use; detecting entry of at least one receiving device into a detection range; and wirelessly transmitting the use information to the at least one receiving device independently of a time of storage of the use information.

15. The method according to claim 14, which further comprises initiating transmission of the use information as soon as the at least one receiving device is detected entering the detection range.

Description

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE SEVERAL VIEWS OF THE DRAWING

(1) The invention will now be explained with reference to the exemplary embodiment of the invention as shown in the accompanying drawing.

(2) The FIGURE schematically illustrates an exemplary embodiment of a device according to the invention for determining use of at least one trackside component of a railway system.

DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

(3) In the FIGURE, an exemplary embodiment of an inventive device 1 for determining use is illustrated in schematic form. The device 1 comprises an inventive trackside railway apparatus 2, a receiving device 3 and an evaluation device 4. The device 1 is designed to determine use of at least one component 5 of a railway system 6. The railway system 6 has, for example, rail vehicles 7.1, 7.2 which travel along a track 8. The railway system 6 also comprises, in addition to the rail vehicles 7.1, 7.2 and the track 8, the at least one trackside component 5 which can be, for example, a switch motor or even a track section of the track 8.

(4) In the exemplary embodiment in the FIGURE, the railway apparatus 2 disposed trackside has a sensor device 9, a storage device 10, a transmission device 11, and a detection device 12. The apparatus 2 also has a separate housing 23 in which said devices are disposed.

(5) The sensor device 9 is designed to detect use of the component 5. In the exemplary embodiment in the FIGURE, the component 5 is a track section of the track 8, the traversing of which by the rail vehicle 7.1, 7.2 is to be verified and recorded as use thereof. For this purpose the sensor device 9 comprises, for example, an infrasound sensor (not shown) which detects the passing rail vehicle 7.1, 7.2. The use of the component 5, here by the rail vehicle 7.1, 7.2, produces a signal 13 which reaches the sensor device 9. The signal 13 is here, for example, an infrasound signal. Alternatively, this signal 13 can also be, for example, a vibration signal, a light signal or image signal which can be captured by a camera, for example, or a pressure signal. The sensor device 9 detects the signal 13 and converts it into characteristic quantity, e.g. an analog current signal. The sensor device 9 also determines the time at which the signal 13 was detected. From the time of use and the characteristic quantity, the sensor device 9 in the exemplary embodiment in the FIGURE creates use information 14 which it transmits to the storage device 10. The use information 14 can also include other data.

(6) The storage device 10 comprises, for example, a data storage medium on which the use information 14 is stored. A large number of items of use information 14 can be stored in the storage device 10. These can all relate to the same component 5, but also to a plurality of components 5. In the exemplary embodiment, the storage device is designed for time-controlled deletion of the use information, i.e. items of use information are automatically deleted when a predefined storage time is exceeded. Alternatively, the storage device 10 can also be designed, for example, for volume-controlled deletion of the use information. Here items of use information are deleted when a particular storage volume of the storage device 10 is reached. The storage device 10 has a signaling link to the transmission device 11 so that the use information 14 can be transmitted from the storage device 10 to the transmission device 11.

(7) The transmission device 11 is designed for wireless data transmission and, in the exemplary embodiment in the FIGURE, has an antenna 15 for this purpose. The transmission device 11 can transmit the use information 14 stored in the storage device 10 within a transmission range 16. The transmission range 16 is designed relatively small, e.g. in a radius of about 50 to 100 m around the transmission device 11. Due to this short transmission range, the transmission device 11 advantageously requires relatively little energy. For power supply purposes, the apparatus 2 has an energy storage device (not shown). Alternatively, power can be supplied by an energy harvesting device which utilizes natural energy sources such as solar or wind power, for example, to generate and supply energy for the apparatus 2. In the exemplary embodiment shown in the FIGURE, the transmission device 11 comprises a WLAN router so that the use information 14 is transmitted in the WLAN produced which operates at a fixed frequency of 5.9 GHz.

(8) The detection device 12 is designed to detect a receiving device 3 entering the transmission range 16. For this purpose the detection device 12 has an infrasound, vibration or magnetic field sensor, for example, with which an approaching rail vehicle 7.1, 7.2 can be detected within a detection range 24. The detection range 24 is advantageously larger than the transmission range 16. Alternatively, the detection device 12 can also have a suitable sensor which detects a mobile telephone entering the detection range 24 and to which the use information 14 can be transmitted. As soon as the detection device 12 has detected a receiving device 3, it applies an activation signal 17 to the transmission device 11 to begin transmitting the use information 14. The use information items are transmitted by the transmission device 11 as a broadcast signal. The broadcast signal is advantageous in that it is transmitted to all the participants of the local area network within the transmission range 16 without these participants having to be explicitly specified as receivers. This makes transmission particularly simple.

(9) The receiving device 3 is designed to receive the use information 14 transmitted by the apparatus 2 and, in the embodiment shown in the FIGURE, has an antenna 18 for receiving said use information 14. In addition to the antenna 18, in the exemplary embodiment in the FIGURE the receiving device 3 also has a receiving module 19 and a transmitting module 20. The receiving device 3 receives the use information 14 using the receiving module 19. The use information 14 is forwarded from the receiving module 19 to the transmitting module 20 which is designed to transmit the use information 14 to the evaluation device 4. The transmitting module 20 can be, for example, the transmitter of a mobile telephone or also a transmitting apparatus in a depot of the railway system, for example, which transmits the use information 14 to a cable-based network.

(10) In the exemplary embodiment shown in the FIGURE, the evaluation device 4 comprises a computing device 21 and a memory 22. In the computing device 21, the use information 14 is evaluated and the use of the components 5 is determined therefrom. Thus, for example, it is determined that the component 5 was traversed by a vehicle 7.1, 7.2 at a particular point in time. This use is stored in the memory 22, thereby constituting a verification of use. This verification of use can be read out again at some later time, e.g. when it is to be demonstrated that the section of track 8 has been used within a particular period.

(11) The stored uses can also be used, for example, to adjust maintenance schedules for the track 8 and/or the component 5. The determined use stored in the memory 22 is compared with a scheduled use of the component 5 or the track 8. If more frequent use than scheduled is present, a maintenance interval possibly needs to be reduced. If use is less frequent, the maintenance interval can possibly be increased. If no use is transmitted for a long period of time, this can be evaluated as a defect, for example, and appropriate action taken.

(12) The device 1 according to the invention in the exemplary embodiment in the FIGURE can be used to detect use of the trackside component 5 of the railway system 6 as described below.

(13) The component 5 is used at a time of use X by being traversed by the rail vehicle 7.1. This causes a signal 13 to be generated which is detected by the sensor device 9 of the apparatus 2. Use information 14 determined therefrom is stored in the apparatus 2 by the storage device 10. The use information 14 remains stored in the storage device 10 until such time as a receiving device 3 enters the transmission range 16 and receives the use information 14. As the transmission device 11 of the apparatus 2 is only designed to transmit the use information 14 over a relatively short distance within the transmission range 16, forwarding of the use information 14 by means of the receiving device 3 is necessary in order to transmit the se use information 14 to the evaluation device 4.

(14) The receiving device 3 is located, for example, on board another rail vehicle 7.2 which enters the transmission range 16 at a later time Y with respect to the time of use X. The detection device 12 detects the approaching rail vehicle 7.2 in the detection range 24 and applies the activation signal 17 to the transmission device 11. The use information 14 is then sent out by the transmission device 11 and transmitted to the receiving device 3. The receiving device 3 is designed to communicate the use information 14 to the evaluation device 4.

(15) The use information 14 transmitted to the evaluation device 4 is evaluated in the evaluation device 4 and the determined use of the component 5 is stored in the memory 22. For transmitting the use information 14, the invention advantageously uses any suitable receiving device 3 entering the transmission range 16 randomly or on a scheduled basis. This type of transmission can also be termed crowd sourcing. As a result, the apparatus 2 according to the invention is implemented using a very simple transmitter, thereby making it particularly inexpensive and low-maintenance.

(16) The apparatus 2 according to the invention is usually implemented separately from the components 5, e.g. axle counters, i.e. in the separate housing 23. The advantage of this is that existing approvals of the components 5 do not need to be renewed and the apparatus 2 can be easily retrofitted. The apparatus 2 can be disposed and designed such that, for example, the uses of a plurality of components 5 can also be jointly detected and forwarded by an apparatus 2.