Abstract
An aerial cable transportation system comprising: at least one hauling cable; a first fixed structure; at least one transportation unit; a plurality of sensors configured for detecting the passage of the transportation units; a control unit; wherein the plurality of sensors comprises at least a first sensor arranged at the exit area of the first fixed structure and at least a second sensor downstream of the first sensor, respectively, at is least a distance s1 from the first sensor measured in cable-meters; wherein the control unit is connected to the sensors and is configured for: upon the passage of each transportation unit at the first sensor, starting to count the meters of cable fed outside the first fixed structure; when the counting of the meters of cable fed outside the first fixed structure reaches amounts about equal to the at least one distance s1, autonomously activating safety procedures if the passage of the transportation unit is not detected by each corresponding second sensor downstream of the first sensor.
Claims
1. An aerial cable transportation system comprising: a hauling cable; a first fixed structure; a transportation unit; a plurality of sensors comprising at least a first sensor arranged at an exit area of the first fixed structure and a second sensor arranged downstream of the first sensor at a distance from the first sensor measured in cable-meters; and a control unit connected to the sensors and configured to: responsive to a passage of the transportation unit being detected by the first sensor, start to count a quantity of meters of hauling cable fed outside the first fixed structure, and when the counting of the quantity of meters of hauling cable fed outside the first fixed structure reaches a quantity of meters associated with the distance between the first sensor and the second sensor, autonomously activate a safety procedure if the passage of the transportation unit is not detected by the second sensor downstream of the first sensor.
2. The aerial cable transportation system of claim 1, wherein the first fixed structure comprises any of a terminal station, a pylon, and an intermediate station.
3. The aerial cable transportation system of claim 2, wherein the first fixed structure comprises a first terminal station and the aerial cable transportation system further comprises a second terminal station including a second entry terminal sensor arranged at an entry area of the second terminal station.
4. The aerial cable transportation system of claim 3, further comprising an intermediate structure between the first terminal station and the second terminal station, wherein the second sensor is arranged at the intermediate structure.
5. The aerial cable transportation system of claim 4, wherein the intermediate structure comprises an entry zone and an exit zone for the transportation unit, the second sensor being arranged at the exit zone.
6. The aerial cable transportation system of claim 4, wherein the intermediate structure comprises an entry zone and an exit zone for the transportation unit, a first second sensor is arranged at the entry zone of the intermediate structure and a second second sensor is arranged at the exit zone of the intermediate structure.
7. The aerial cable transportation system of claim 3, wherein the intermediate structure is any of an intermediate station and a pylon configured to support the hauling cable.
8. The aerial cable transportation system of claim 2, wherein: the terminal station comprises a U station associated with two opposite directions of travel of the transportation unit, the U station comprising an entry terminal sensor and an exit terminal sensor, and the intermediate structure comprises, for each direction of travel, an entry sensor and an exit sensor.
9. A method for operating an aerial cable transportation system, the method comprising: responsive to a passage of a transportation unit detected by a first sensor arranged at an exit area of a first fixed structure, starting to measure, by a control unit, how many meters of a hauling cable are fed outside the first fixed structure; and when the measurement of meters of hauling cable fed outside the first fixed structure reaches an amount associated with a distance, measured in cable-meters, that a second sensor is arranged downstream from the first sensor, autonomously activating, by the control unit, a safety procedure if the passage of the transportation unit is not detected by the second sensor downstream of the first sensor.
10. The method of claim 9, wherein the first fixed structure comprises any of a terminal station, a pylon, and an intermediate station.
11. The method of claim 10, wherein the first fixed structure comprises a first terminal station and the aerial cable transportation system includes a second terminal station including a second entry terminal sensor arranged at an entry area of the second terminal station.
12. The method of claim 11, wherein an intermediate structure is between the first terminal station and the second terminal station, wherein the second sensor is arranged at the intermediate structure.
13. The method of claim 12, wherein the intermediate structure comprises an entry zone and an exit zone for the transportation unit, the second sensor being arranged at the exit zone.
14. The method of claim 12, wherein the intermediate structure comprises an entry zone and an exit zone for the transportation unit, a first second sensor is arranged at the entry zone of the intermediate structure and a second second sensor is arranged at the exit zone of the intermediate structure.
15. The method of claim 11, wherein the intermediate structure is any of an intermediate station and a pylon configured to support the hauling cable.
16. The method of claim 10, wherein: the terminal station comprises a U station associated with two opposite directions of travel of the transportation unit, the U station comprising an entry terminal sensor and an exit terminal sensor, and the intermediate structure comprises, for each direction of travel, an entry sensor and an exit sensor.
17. A method for operating an aerial cable transportation system, the method comprising: responsive to an exit of a transportation unit from a first fixed structure, calculating a theoretical split time of when the transportation unit should pass a finish line downstream of the first fixed structure, the calculation being based on a distance of the finish line from the first fixed structure and a theoretical speed of the transport unit; and activating a safety procedure if a passage of the transportation unit at the finish line does not occur within a pre-set range relative to the calculated theoretical split time of when the transportation unit should pass the finish line.
Description
BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS
[0033] Further features and advantages of the present disclosure will be apparent from the following description of a non-limiting embodiment thereof, with reference to the figures of the accompanying drawings, wherein:
[0034] FIG. 1 is a schematic view of a portion of an aerial cable transportation system;
[0035] FIG. 2 is a schematic view of the component indicated as II in FIG. 1 (i.e., a transportation unit in the form of a gondola);
[0036] FIG. 3 is a schematic view of the component indicated as III in FIG. 1 (i.e., an intermediate fixed structure supporting the cable, in the form of a vertical pylon);
[0037] FIG. 4A shows a first example of a system according to the present disclosure;
[0038] FIG. 4B shows a second example of a system according to the present disclosure; and
[0039] FIG. 5 is a schematic view of a third system according to the present disclosure.
DETAILED DESCRIPTION
[0040] Therefore, with reference to the accompanying figures, FIG. 1 schematically shows a portion of an aerial cable transportation system indicated as a whole with the reference number 1. In particular, FIG. 1 shows an example of an aerial cable system in which the solution proposed by the present disclosure brings considerable advantages in terms of safety. In this non-limiting example, the aerial cable system 1 is of the single-cable type and therefore comprises a single cable 2 which acts both as a supporting cable and a hauling cable. Said cable 2 is looped by two pulleys—one of which is motorized—between two terminal stations, in particular a first terminal station or bottom station 3 and a second top terminal station (3′ shown in FIG. 4A). Therefore, there are two parallel branches which identify an upward branch and a downward branch. The arrows A and B in FIG. 1 indicate precisely the directions of travel of the upward and downward branches of the cable 2. FIG. 1 shows one of the many transportation units 4 present in the system, which are arranged one after the other along both the upward and downward branches. In the representation of FIG. 1, a first transportation unit 4 is located at the bottom station 3, inside which the transportation units 4 are usually disengaged from the cable 2 to advance more slowly. This slowing down is advantageous to enable relatively easy embarkation and disembarkation of passengers without reducing the speed of travel of the line between stations. The second transportation unit 4 shown in FIG. 1 is travelling along the upward branch of the cable 2 and is located between the bottom station 3 and a first fixed intermediate support structure 5 (in the form of a pylon) arranged along the route. The function of the pylons 5 arranged between the terminal stations, and optionally between the intermediate stations, is to support and divide the cable 2 into spans. Although both the transportation unit 4 and the pylon 5 will be the subject of the description of FIGS. 2 and 3, in FIG. 1 it is already possible to appreciate that the transportation unit 4 of the example shown comprises a gondola 6 at the bottom and a support arm 7 (called suspension) at the top which connects it to the cable 2. As shown in FIG. 2, the gondolas 6 (at least in the section outside the stations) are suspended in mid-air, not resting at the bottom on any lower structure, and therefore, by virtue of being constrained at the top to the cable 2, can be subjected to rolling movements around the axis of the cable 2, for example due to the effect of lateral wind, as well as to longitudinal pitch movements. Reference number 8 in FIG. 1 schematically shows the device connecting the support arm 7 to the cable 2. This device may comprise a releasable clamp. Finally, FIG. 1 shows that the pylon 5 comprises a vertical portion 9 at the top of which there is a row of rollers 10 supporting the cable 2.
[0041] FIG. 2 shows a schematic view of the component indicated as II in FIG. 1 (i.e., a transportation unit 4 comprising a corresponding gondola 6). In particular, FIG. 2 shows a front view of the unit 4 along the axis of the cable 2. As can be seen, the unit 4 comprises a gondola 6 provided with a floor or bottom 11, a roof 12, and side walls 13. On one side of the side walls 13 there is a movable door (not shown in the drawings), a footboard 14 to assist the entry and exit of the passengers, and pockets 15 in which objects such as skis 16, ski sticks, or other things can be placed. The unit 4 further comprises a support arm 7 (called suspension) having a first lower end 17 coupled to the roof 12 of the gondola 6, by an intermediate frame, and an upper end 18 provided with a clamp 19 configured to releasably couple to the cable 2. The clamping mechanism comprises a spring 20 and an actuating lever 21 which, in the station, by specially shaped guides, is moved to overcome the force of the spring 20 and release the cable 2 from the clamp 19. As can be seen, the bottom 11 of the gondola 6, as it does not rest on any guiding or supporting structure, is suspended in mid-air, and therefore, due to the constraint to the cable 2 placed above the roof 12, the gondola 6 can perform oscillations (for example, roll oscillations schematised with R in FIG. 2 about the axis defined by the cable 2). In particular, this roll R can be generated by the presence of a lateral force (schematised with F in FIG. 2), for example due to the presence of wind. It is therefore possible that in some circumstances the gondola 6 is in a tilted position, thus occupying a greater lateral volume than the encumbrance shown in FIG. 1 where there is no lateral force F. The embodiment shown in which the transportation unit is in the form of a gondola is a non-limiting example only.
[0042] FIG. 3 shows a schematic view of the component indicated as III in FIG. 1 (i.e., an intermediate fixed structure 5 supporting the cable 2). In particular, FIG. 3 substantially shows the upper half of said pylon 5 and makes it possible to appreciate that the rollers 10, mentioned above, are supported by said structure 5. The upper end of the pylon 5 comprises two support bracket structures 22 which, in a cantilever fashion, extend symmetrically with respect to the pylon 5. Each outer end of said brackets 22 supports two rows of rollers 10, 10′ superimposed on each other so as to provide a passage for the upward and downward branches of the cable 2. These brackets 22 further comprise a walkway 23 and a platform 24 to enable inspection of the rollers 10, 10′. Said walkway 23 and platform 24 can be accessed, for example, by a ladder 25 running along the pylon 5. FIG. 3 shows a representation in which no lateral wind acts against the gondolas 6, which are in a non-tilted position. However, as described with reference to FIG. 2, with a lateral wind F, the gondolas 6 roll about the axis of the cable 2 and can also exceed a limit tilt angle at which they collide with the lower wall of the platform 24 or generally with parts of the pylon. In this condition, it may happen that the gondola gets stuck against the pylon and thus cannot advance. At this point, the cable slides in the clamp (which is allowed for safety reasons) and continues to advance. In this way, a gondola upstream of the blocked one is advanced dangerously toward the blocked one, creating rear-end collisions and an extremely dangerous situation. Such a scenario does not necessarily occur at the pylons but can also occur in an external section between the pylons or between a pylon and a station. For example, a tree could fall, and its branches get entangled with the cable, thereby blocking the gondola and reproducing the dangerous scenario described above. Hitches or slowdowns may also occur in the case of strong longitudinal wind, which can lead to pitch movements of the transportation units, such that they impact with adjacent structures, slowing down or blocking their advance. Similar hitches can also occur with units provided with trolleys configured to couple to supporting cables or with units moved by motorized trolleys in the absence of a hauling cable.
[0043] FIGS. 4A and 4B show schematic views of two possible systems (in a relatively very simplified form) according to the present disclosure, identifying the devices provided along the route and the division thereof into intermediate check points or finish lines. FIG. 5 shows a system, still in a relatively simplified, although more complete form. The object of the present disclosure is that any blocking or slowing down of a transportation unit along the route between the terminal stations, either at the pylons or in the section between two adjacent pylons or between a pylon and an adjacent terminal station, is readily signalled. FIG. 4A schematizes a system in which some elements are omitted to only show the elements necessary for a correct understanding of the disclosure. Therefore, FIG. 4A shows the bottom station 3 or first terminal station acting as the first fixed structure, the top station 3′ or second terminal station, a pylon 5 located between the stations acting as an intermediate structure, a hauling and supporting cable 2 (single-cable system) running between the stations and along the pylon 5, and a transportation unit 4 exiting the bottom station 3 and travelling towards the pylon 5. In FIG. 4A, the arrow A represents the direction of motion of the unit 4, the reference number 30 represents a control unit, and the reference numbers 31, 32 and 33 represent sensors arranged at suitable points on the track and configured to detect the passage of the transportation unit 4. Sensors capable of performing this operation may be, for example, capacitive sensors which interact with the clamp connecting the transportation unit to the cable 2. Generally, according to the disclosure, an exit terminal sensor 31 acting as the first sensor is arranged in the exit area of the bottom station 3. An entry terminal sensor 32 acting as the second sensor is arranged in the entry area of the top station 3. An intermediate sensor 33 acting as the second sensor is finally arranged at the intermediate structure 5. The control unit 30 is connected to the sensors and configured as follows. When the unit 4 passes by the exit terminal sensor 31, the latter transmits this information to the control unit, which is provided with a counter capable of counting the cable meters that are subsequently fed outside the top station 3. Since the distances s1 and s2 (in terms of cable-meters) are known, when the cable meters fed outside the top station 3 substantially correspond (i.e., with a tolerance interval) to these distances s1 and s2, the control unit expects to receive from the corresponding sensors 32, 33 the indication that the unit 4 has passed. Additionally, or alternatively, the control unit may be provided with a time calculation device configured to calculate, as a function of the speed of the cable 2 and of the cable meters separating the sensors (distances s1 and s2), two theoretical time limits or split times t1 t2 at which the transportation unit should reach the established finish lines (i.e., pass by the at least one intermediate sensor 33 and the entry sensor 32). The control unit then starts counting the cable meters and/or starts a timer or time counter and waits to receive the signal that the unit has passed by the intermediate sensor 33. If the passage of the transportation unit 4 by the intermediate sensor is not detected upon the feeding of an amount of cable meters equal to s1 or in the calculated split time t1, the control unit carries out safety actions and, if necessary, emits an alarm signal. Instead, if the passage of the transportation unit 4 by the intermediate sensor 33 is detected as estimated, no alarm is emitted, and the system continues its normal operation. In this scenario, there is the certainty that in the section of the system upstream of the intermediate sensor 33 there are no reasons of danger for the passengers which could slow down or block the transportation unit. In this case, once the intermediate sensor 33 has been passed, the control unit waits to receive the next signal indicating that the unit has passed by the entry terminal sensor 32 and expects to receive it at the calculated split time t2 when the unit 4 has exited the first terminal station or upon counting an amount of cable meters delivered equal to the distance s2. Therefore, excessive delay or non-arrival of the unit at the station 3′ would indicate a problem in the line between the terminal sensor 32 and the intermediate sensor 33. As it appears, therefore, the present disclosure divides the route into a plurality of sections in which each section is delimited by a sensor at which it is checked whether the transportation unit advances as expected, starting from the passage by the exit terminal sensor 31. As stated above, the system in FIG. 4A is relatively very simple and schematic and can represent a “back-and-forth” system (therefore the entry and exit areas in the station coincide and the same terminal sensor acts as the entry and exit sensor depending on the direction of advance) or can represent one of the two directions of travel of a system with U stations with two parallel runways, as shown in FIG. 5. Before moving on to the next figure, it is emphasized that the present disclosure also relates to systems without intermediate structures (i.e., only comprising the terminal stations as the fixed structures). Finally, in FIG. 4A, the intermediate sensor 33 is shown arranged in a central position along the pylon. However, certain embodiments provides said intermediate sensor 33 is arranged in an exit area of the pylon.
[0044] FIG. 4B shows a first variant of the system in FIG. 4A. The only difference compared to the above-described system is that at the intermediate structure 5 there is not a single sensor but a pair of sensors 34 35, respectively, in the entry and exit areas of said structure 5, so as to identify a specific check area right along the section defined by the structure 5. The checking logic is the same (i.e., when the unit 4 passes by the exit terminal sensor 31), the control unit starts counting the delivered cable meters or, on the basis of the speed of the cable 2 and the cable-meter length s1, s2, s3 between the sensors, calculates estimated arrival times t1, t2 and t3 (understood as time intervals starting from the instant t0) in which the unit 4 should pass by the sensors 34, 35 and 32, respectively. If these sensors do not detect the passage upon delivery of an amount of cable meters about equal to the cable distances s1, s2, s3 and/or within a maximum time delay (or advance) threshold with respect to the times t1, t2 and t3, the control unit will activate to secure the system.
[0045] FIG. 5 shows a schematic view of a system with two opposite and parallel runways A and B, two terminal stations in which the units 4 are looped into a U-shape, and for each branch, a plurality of intermediate structures 5 as shown in FIG. 4B, (i.e., each intermediate structure, is provided with an intermediate entry sensor 34 and an intermediate exit sensor 35). The numerical references provided on the branch B are the same with apexes used for the branch A to show that the checking logic does not change. For each branch A or B, the control unit 33 is notified of the exit from the station 3 or 3′ of a unit 4 and from that moment, as before, it starts to measure the cable meters exiting the station and/or calculates the theoretical arrival split times t1, t1′, t2, t2′ to in which that unit should progressively pass by the sensors 34, 35, 32, 34′, 35′, 32′. As in the previous cases, if the sensors do not detect the passage when the cable meters delivered are about equal to the distances s1 s2 s3 s4 s5 and/or within a maximum time delay threshold with respect to the estimated arrival time, the control unit will activate to secure the system. It should be appreciated that the logics of checking the delivered cable meters and the split times can be applied alternatively or additionally to systems provided with a hauling cable. In systems without a hauling cable and equipped with motorized trolleys, only the split-time logic would be applied. However, both cases are examples of the application of identifying on the path some finish lines and check whether the units pass by such finish lines based on a (spatial or temporal) reference defined starting from the exit of the unit from the terminal station.
[0046] In this last example, which may represent a considerably lengthy system, as in other systems, several “first sensors” (i.e., several starting check or monitoring points) and several corresponding fixed structures, which act as first structures for said first sensors, can be provided. The concept of “starting point” of the check can also be generalized and shifted to an intermediate position of the system. In this respect, a pylon can also act as a first fixed structure and the system is divided into two or more divided check portions (i.e., a first portion between the first terminal station (with a first sensor) and said pylon, which acts as a first fixed structure with a corresponding first sensor for at least a second portion between said pylon and the second terminal station. In the latter case, the same sensor can act both as a second sensor for the upstream check section and as a first sensor for the downstream check section).
[0047] Lastly, it is clear that modifications and variations may be made to the disclosure described herein without departing from the scope of the appended claims. That is, the present disclosure also covers embodiments that are not described in the detailed description above as well as equivalent embodiments that are part of the scope of protection set forth in the claims. Accordingly, various changes and modifications to the presently disclosed embodiments will be apparent to those skilled in the art.
