Classifications

• • G—PHYSICS
  • G08—SIGNALLING
  • G08G—TRAFFIC CONTROL SYSTEMS
  • G08G1/00—Traffic control systems for road vehicles
  • G08G1/20—Monitoring the location of vehicles belonging to a group, e.g. fleet of vehicles, countable or determined number of vehicles
  • G08G1/205—Indicating the location of the monitored vehicles as destination, e.g. accidents, stolen, rental
• • G—PHYSICS
  • G07—CHECKING-DEVICES
  • G07C—TIME OR ATTENDANCE REGISTERS; REGISTERING OR INDICATING THE WORKING OF MACHINES; GENERATING RANDOM NUMBERS; VOTING OR LOTTERY APPARATUS; ARRANGEMENTS, SYSTEMS OR APPARATUS FOR CHECKING NOT PROVIDED FOR ELSEWHERE
  • G07C5/00—Registering or indicating the working of vehicles
  • G07C5/08—Registering or indicating performance data other than driving, working, idle, or waiting time, with or without registering driving, working, idle or waiting time
  • G07C5/0841—Registering performance data
  • G07C5/085—Registering performance data using electronic data carriers

Definitions

• the invention relates to a device for informing a control center about a non-operational impact process on a vehicle.
• Diagnostic devices for vehicles for informing a center about the functionality of individual vehicle units are known.
• the message relates to a status display, namely whether an aggregate has failed or is in danger of failing. Such a message is used to assess whether a vehicle is ready to drive.
• the invention is therefore based on the object of creating a device which satisfies this need to obtain the information required by informing a control center of a non-operational impact process on a vehicle.
• a central office is not only to be understood as a single, but depending on the use of the vehicles, any type of central location from which the use of vehicles is organized, managed, directed or controlled.
• first means are provided in the vehicle which attack the vehicle Record accelerations. These means must be rigidly connected to the vehicle in order to actually sense the vehicle vibrations.
• These first means preferably consist of electronic acceleration sensors. They are arranged in the vehicle in such a way that they are able to detect accelerations both in the direction of the vehicle's longitudinal axis and transversely thereto. For certain applications, these first means can be expanded to include acceleration sensors for detecting impact events in the vertical axis of the vehicle.
• Accelerations are recorded continuously since the time for the occurrence of an event to be registered is not known in advance. It is advantageous to design the readiness for detection of the sensors independently of the operating state of the vehicle in order to be able to register not only shock events when the vehicle is moving, but also when the vehicle is at rest.
• shock processes can also be detected by transducers that sense the effects of shock processes according to another principle of action.
• Sensors that detect structure-borne noise in the body of the vehicle or tactile sensors that react to deformations on the body should be mentioned here as examples.
• switch mats or fiber-optic sensors embedded in or attached to the body should be mentioned here.
• the sensed acceleration values are passed on to further means, which are provided in the vehicle, for evaluation.
• the measured values are read into a computing unit and temporarily stored there or in a storage unit connected to the computing unit for evaluation.
• Threshold values for the intensity ie the amount, and for the duration of action of the accelerations are stored in the computing unit.
• the position of the ignition start switch can be queried, for example, or the wheel rotation can be detected by means of pulse sensors.
• a communication device which is assigned to the second, evaluating means, is activated in order to provide the necessary technical requirement for informing the control center to create the detected impact process.
• the communication device can take various configurations.
• a transmission device for wireless transmission of the message is preferably provided, which is switched to be ready for operation and transmission by the evaluation means upon detection of an impact event.
• the transmission of the message may not always take place immediately after the detection of an impact event, but it can also be stored in a storage device assigned to the communication device ready for retrieval.
• a storage device assigned to the communication device ready for retrieval.
• the head office becomes aware of the impact process at the time the vehicle is returned.
• the vehicle may be parked on the landlord's property.
• a stationary microwave transmission and reception unit can be provided at the entrance, which, when the vehicle drives past it, carries out the exchange of information between the vehicle and the control center.
• this can also be transmitted to the control center by infrared or by an optical signal light, which is attached, for example, to the dashboard or on the roof of the vehicle.
• Information can also be exchanged via an induction loop embedded in the road.
• the transmitter and receiver of the communication device arranged in the vehicle operate according to the same principle of operation.
• an infrared receiver can be provided in the vehicle, and when a specific pulse is received, the information about the non-operational impact process is sent to the central station receiver by means of a microwave transmitter.
• the communication device If the communication device is to provide the central station with the message about the impact process at a point in time after the event, the communication device in the vehicle must of course have a receiver capable of receiving the request signal from the central station. In this case, the communication device must be designed as a bidirectional transmitting and receiving unit. However, in this case too, the communication device must be switched to receive and transmit readiness by the evaluation means as soon as an impact event is detected.
• the communication device automatically informs the center immediately at the time of the event, it is advantageous to require the driver to be acknowledged in addition to the event. If, for example, the driver cannot comply with the request for acknowledgment within a predetermined time because the severity of the pushing process has made him unable to act, the lack of an acknowledgment for the head office is further important information for initiating suitable auxiliary measures.
• the request for acknowledgment makes it possible to estimate the severity of the event, especially if this is not done. It becomes apparent whether there is a high probability of a partial or total failure of the vehicle.
• This acknowledgment option should be linked to the query whether the vehicle's ignition is switched on. Otherwise, the informational value intended with this measure would be falsified in the event of an impact on a parked vehicle in the absence of the driver.
• the request to acknowledge a detected shock event will not always be required by the device according to the invention or the communication device, but only if the control center decides to do so on its own initiative.
• threshold values for the intensity or the duration of action can also be stored in the computing unit of the device according to the invention.
• This has the advantage that the assessment of an impact operation which is not normal to the operation can do much better with the respective driving situation of the vehicle.
• an adjustment of the triggering threshold values to the respective application and the respective road surface is highly recommended, because the settings for a good road surface inevitably lead to the use of vehicles in free, rough terrain False triggering. Setting the right one, ie depending on the Driving situation, the condition of the road surface and the threshold value suitable for the application can be carried out automatically or manually.
• At least one threshold value can be variably adjusted.
• the threshold values stored in the device can thereby be changed within a defined range, so that the settings made at the factory, for example, can be adapted specifically to that vehicle and thus also its suspension and damping as well as the vehicle mass and the shock absorption behavior of the body in which the device is installed. This option is particularly important for retrofitting the device in different vehicles.
• the first and second means according to claim 1 can be implemented in separate assemblies, but can also be combined in a housing to form a single technical unit.
• an accident data memory is usually equipped with two acceleration sensors arranged orthogonally to one another, so that it can detect accelerations in the direction of the longitudinal axis of the vehicle as well as transversely to it when installed appropriately in the vehicle. It also has a computing unit and a memory unit in order to evaluate the measured values acquired. In addition, it is equipped with means for registering the time at which an impact event occurs. The stored measured values in conjunction with the time recording allow an analysis of the course of the impact process, because the time course of the event is recorded. Even if the movement data should be zero, as in the case of a vehicle at rest, an accident data memory provides additional information when the event took place.
• an accident data memory has the advantage that it is usually able to register several shock events that differ in time. Overall, it offers additional, via a binary event detector with a simple yes / no detection additional information that is particularly suitable for clarifying the question of guilt and because of the archiving of the recorded data for accident reconstruction.
• the communication device can advantageously be designed by a radio telephone.
• Car telephones are becoming increasingly widespread, so that the device according to the invention can be implemented in a simple manner in connection with an accident data memory installed in the vehicle.
• the transmission of the message according to a standardized protocol defined for all vehicles is advantageous for the relevant information to the head office about a pushing operation on one of the vehicles assigned to it.
• This protocol also contains an identifier for vehicle identification. This can be coded by the official vehicle registration symbol or any other order criterion.
• the feature of automatic identification is particularly important for larger fleets.
• it is very advantageous to include a charge identifier in the transmission protocol, especially when using the device according to the invention in the area of dangerous goods transports.
• suitable input means for example a keyboard.
• the stored data include, in particular, the vehicle movement data, some essential vehicle operating data, such as the blinking signal or the operating state of the vehicle lighting device, and the data of the time counting means for specifying the time of the event.
• the stored data can either be combined to form a data record in the activated communication device upon detection of a non-operational impact process, or the control center must also transmit corresponding control commands in its query, which are used for Appropriate configuration of the interface between the accident data memory and the communication device allow direct access to the memory content of the accident data memory.
• the agreed transmission protocol also determines who is authorized to access which data.
• the device according to the invention is connected to a device arranged in the vehicle for detecting the geographical vehicle position.
• a device arranged in the vehicle for detecting the geographical vehicle position.
• Such location systems are known and can, for example, provide information about the respective vehicle location via satellite.
• the communicable information value can be expanded in such a way that the control center is informed not only of the fact that a non-operational shock event has occurred on a vehicle, but also when, where, on which vehicle and with which probable severity. If the scene of the accident can be localized, relief measures can be used more specifically.
• the emergency power supply can be implemented in that batteries or rechargeable batteries are provided for the operation of the individual devices, independently of the vehicle electrical system.
• the uses mentioned for the device according to the invention are to be understood only as examples.
• the inventive idea can be implemented in numerous other practical applications, namely wherever a central point for the management or administration of vehicles in a reliable and tamper-proof manner does not have one normal impact process on one of the vehicles assigned to it to initiate measures to limit and repair damage or to pursue the purpose pursued by the vehicle.
• the device according to the invention should not be tied to special types of use or driving orders.
• the commonality that connects the different applications is that the non-operational influence of a mechanical force in the vehicle is sensed by measuring sensors installed in the vehicle and evaluated according to previously defined criteria Information about the detected event is put into operational readiness.
• the impact process can be caused by an accident or improper use of the vehicle, but it can also be caused by an improper, ie harmful effect on the vehicle caused by third parties.
• the information provided to the control center should be able to be made dependent on the quality of the event, which is why the device must be able to influence the criteria for triggering a message.
• the possibilities of the center for evaluating the message can therefore take on a different scope as required.
• the device according to the invention serves in particular the purpose of averting danger and thus a safety aspect, but it can also be used in an advantageous manner for disposition tasks and for following up the intended use.
• the device according to the invention can be implemented inexpensively without installing an additional unit.
• the device according to the invention thus closes a gap for which an acute need has existed for a long time out of a wide variety of interests.

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• Physics & Mathematics (AREA)
• General Physics & Mathematics (AREA)
• Alarm Systems (AREA)

Priority Applications (3)

Applications Claiming Priority (1)

Publications (1)

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Families Citing this family (16)

Citations (6)

• 1993
  • 1993-06-01 EP EP93108739A patent/EP0627710A1/fr not_active Withdrawn
• 1994
  • 1994-04-13 DE DE9406115U patent/DE9406115U1/de not_active Expired - Lifetime
  • 1994-05-13 DE DE19944416813 patent/DE4416813A1/de not_active Withdrawn

Patent Citations (6)

Non-Patent Citations (2)

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