Note: Descriptions are shown in the official language in which they were submitted.
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VISIBLE AND AUDIBLE WARNING SYSTEM FOR A TRANSPORT SYSTEM
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
s 1. Field of the Invention:
The present invention relates generally to a visible and audible warning
system, provided for a
transport system and activated in an accident and/or on fire,
- to immediately warn drivers of the oncoming transport systems (trains,
commuter trains, motor
vehicles, ships or aeroplanes);
- to help users (see Chap. "Definition") find the door-release levers of a
door-detachment device, the
doors and emergency exists in the accident, particularly when it is dark; and
- to instruct them of how to behave, how to operate the door-release levers
and how to egress out of
the transport system through the door openings of the detached doors.
2. Discussion of the Prior Art:
In order to formulate in single terminology a generalized definition is
presented for the proper term:
Definition; Proper Term:
"vehicle door" train- or vehicle door 8, 8S, tailgate door 8T (not drawn),
revolving door 8V (not drawn), double cargo door SW (not
drawn), sliding door 8X (not drawn) or any vehicular member
(not drawn) which is rotatably and/or movably connected to the
vehicle body 10 by at least two hinges.
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"accident" front-, side-, rear collision, rollover or multi-crash of transport
system and/or transport system is on fire.
"jammed vehicle door" vehicle door, jammed in the vehicle body in an accident,
cannot be opened even by great force, in contrary to a
clamped vehicle door.
"vehicle body" train- or vehicle body comprising a passenger compartment,
vehicle floor, front section- and rear section of the vehicle
body.
"rescue workers" aide personnel such as doctors, medical personnel,
paramedics, firefighters etc.
"users" passengers, drivers or pilots of oncoming transport systems,
crew members, rescue workers and/or third parties
(nonparticipants)
"aggressively driven vehicle is aggressively driven into the vehicles, which
are in a
vehicle" traffic-congestion or involved in an accident. Particularly, when
it is dark at night, the lives of the rescue workers and
passengers at the accident site are endangered by
aggressively driven vehicles.
"door detachment ref. to detachment of the jammed, locked and/or unlocked
vehicle
CA 2,373,040" door from the vehicle body.
"door detachment door detachment is operated when the transport system is on
occurring after the fire or after the accident is over or when the transport
system
accident" comes to a halt. In order to prevent the ejection of the
passengers from the motor vehicle, train or aeroplane, when it
rolls over, the door detachment has to be operated only when
the transport system comes to a halt.
"door-release lever" hand-brake lever, release button of buckle assembly,
press
button of buckle assembly, handle, shown in Figs. I to 5.
"audible device" cell phone, radio or navigator, each having at least one
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loudspeaker and at least one storage medium.
"helpful information" a sound and/or spoken message
"rescue of passengers salvage and rescue of passengers out of a vehicle or a
out of vehicle involved in transport system involved in an accident
an accident"
Injury severity of passengers in the ICE (high-speed) train accident in the
German city Eschede was
increased due to the time consumed for the rescue, which was hampered due to
- cutting discs, which were suited for cutting steel, but unsuited for
aluminium;
- time-consuming operation to detach the jammed, very stiff aluminium-doors of
the carriages; and
- lack of visible and audible warning systems to give helpful information to
the passengers, who,
being under great shock, no longer had the full power of perception or
orientation to find the
emergency exits.
I0 Having crashed into a centre-barrier, a six-year old BMW 525 rolled over on
to the opposite side of
the carriageway of a highway and lay on its roof. In the darkness this BMW was
rammed by a truck.
Both vehicles burst into flames. This fire-inferno could have been averted if
the warning device of the
luxury car could have been automatically turned on by the sensors of the
airbags. In general, many
crashes and fire-infernos could be prevented if the warning devices of the
vehicles, involved in an
accident, were automatically turned on.
Ref. to USA TODAY issued July 13, 1999, which is incorporated herein, an MD-82
of American
Airlines, carrying 145 passengers, when landing at Little Rock National
Airport, careened past the end
of the runway, skidded over an embankment, broke apart, after having hit
runway's light poles, and
caught fire. Panic and chaos dominated the process of self-evacuation.
Passengers clambered past
one another, screamed at others to move out of the way to the emergency exits
and cracks on the
fuselage and/or fought over who would leave first therethrough. In panic they
froze at the emergency
exits and/or were afraid of opening them or jumping through the door openings
or cracks. According to
NTSB and FAA experts, with whom the inventor of this application was
discussing, panic and chaos
always hamper self-evacuation of passengers. In the future such tragedies can
be averted by the
visible and audible device which gives the passengers as well as crew members
helpful information in
several languages of how to behave and encourages them to follow the rules and
guiding lights to the
emergency exits.
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Ref. to a German Newspaper, issued Jan. 14, 2002, In a pile-up on the highway
from Nuremberg to
Munich, covered by fog, 13 of 28 vehicles burst into flames, two passengers
were burnt alive and two
others in critical condition, were subjected, presumably, to bum and toxic
smoke, Drivers of oncoming
3 motor-vehicles have to be warned by warning lights of the vehicles at the
accident site, in particular,
when hidden by fog. Imagine the total loss, which, resulting from the
severelfatal injuries, all 28
vehicles, piling up, and the environmental pollution linked to nearly 50 % of
the piling up vehicles,
bursting into flames, could, to a great extent be averted by the visible and
audible device!
EP 0786 378 A2 teaches an emergency automatic lighting system, which, equipped
with a piston-
activator, comprising a piston and a cylinder, and installed in vehicles,
automatically operates in the
event of collision, sudden stoppage (emergency braking), overturning or
skidding off a road. Because
the piston is moved in the cylinder by its inertia force in longitudinal
direction of the vehicle, exerted
only in a front collision, the following problems arises;
1. Taken as given, the threshold value is set for an emergency braking about 1
g. When "safety'
cars, equipped with the emergency automatic lighting systems, travel on bumpy
roads, all
warning lights flash. How many times the car manufacturer must recall hundreds
of thousands
of "safety" cars? When a three-month old BMW 328 crashed into another BMW,
both front
airbags were properly inflated while two side airbags of co-driver side and a
roof airbag thereof
were falsely inflated due to the low threshold value. Upon receiving an
investigation report of
the inventor of this application the Board of Directors of the BMW Group
recalled 280,000
BMW 3s, as reported by the German newspapers and the ZDF (Second Broadcasting
Corporation). In 2002, three years later, the US Administration NHSTA
requested the BMW
Group to recall 200,400 BMW 3s in USA by presenting solid evidence of falsely
inflated side-
and roof airbags of BMW 3s, while driving on bumpy roads, as reported by two
German
magazines Auto Motor and Sport and Capital, both issue 20/2002. The reports
are
incorporated herein.
2. Taken as given, the threshold value is set for front collisions about 5 or
6 g, The system falls in
the event of emergency braking or skidding off.
3. In the event of overturning or skidding off the road the "safety" car and
the system, both are
subjected to a roll- or yaw-acceleration dependant force. Hence, the piston
remains unmoved
in the cylinder.
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4. For sure, drivers of the oncoming conventional cars get confused when all
warning lights of the
"safety" car, equipped with the system, flash every time the driver brakes
hard or it skids off.
Administrations worldwide won't give permission for its use.
5. When the angle to the longitudinal direction of the vehicle in a front
collision is larger than
350, a Coriolis-acceleration dependant force presses the ball, coated with
gold, into the
cylinder, also coated with gold. As a result, the ball remains unmoved and the
sensor does not
work. Because the piston and cylinder are not coated with gold and the contact
area of the
piston on its cylinder is bigger than that of the ball on the gold-coated
cylinder, the friction of
the piston, moving along the non gold-coated cylinder, is far larger than the
ball, moving along
the gold-coated cylinder. As a result, the piston-activator doesn't work in
front collisions with an
angle, larger than, I assume 100.
6. In a rear or side collision the system does not work at all.
7. Both inventors recommend not conventional sensors, but mercury switches as
piston- activator
substitutes (see column 2/lines 55-57), which pollute the environment!!
Beyond doubt, the description and drawings are poor. Ref. to Fig. 1 of EP 0786
378 three components
(devices), such as an electronic component 9 and a pair of remote controlled
switches 5, have the
same intermittent function for the warning lights 4a-4d. Two devices are
redundant! To persons skilled
in the art and/or science it is obvious that any conventional warning device
78a comprises, a single
device 120a for intermittent lighting, provided with an emergency-switch light
4xa, warning
(emergency) lights 4a to 4d, an emergency switch 78.1a and a current warning-
lights circuit 79.12a,
wired to a main current circuit 79.1a, wired to the plus pole 89.1a of a
battery 89b and to the minus
pole 89.2a, as shown in Fig. 1C. Upon switching on the emergency switch 78.1a
the warning lights 4a
to 4d as well as the emergency-switch light 4xa flash.
Ref to US 5,874,892 and Fig. 6 a vehicle warning system for a,,safety" vehicle
210-218 comprises
a) a receiver 202,
b) a sound generator,
c) an airbag of co-driver,
d) warning lights 4a-4d,
e) a receiver 202 and
f) a pressure-activated switch, which, arranged in a steering wheel and
provided with a
transmitter 200, is activated by the driver of an initiating õsafety" vehicle
210, when facing a
hazardous situation, instinctively gripping the steering wheel harder.
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In contrast standard vehicles 220-232 are not equipped with warning systems.
As a result of the strong pressure, larger than the threshold value, the
transmitter 200 transmits a radio
frequency signal 201, acting as first signal, to all the receivers 202 in the
warning units of the initiating
,,safety" vehicle 210 and the other õsafety" vehicles 211-218, both oncoming
and approaching from
behind that initiating õsafety" vehicle 210 within the range of transmitted
signal 201 for a specified radial
distance of 50 to 75 feet. The warning units of the õsafety" vehicles 210-217
cause their warning lights
4a-4d to flash, while the warning units of the õsafety" vehicles 211-218
generate a warning sound to
alert all the drivers thereof.
Ref. to Fig. 6, claim 5 of US 5,874,892 and column 5/lines 5-19 a second
circuit, installed in the
steering wheel, is wired to the co-driver airbag of the initiating õsafety"
vehicle 210 and transmitter 200.
When the inflating co-driver airbag cracks the co-driver's airbag housing in a
front collision, the
transmitter 200 transmits a second signal 203,
= recognized by the receiver 202 in the warning unit of the initiating
"safety" vehicle 210, which
activates the warning lights 4a-4d to flash, and
= intercepted by the receivers 202 in the warning units of the other,,safety"
vehicles 211-218, both
oncoming and approaching from behind the initiating õsafety" vehicle 210
within the range of
transmitted signal 203, the distance of which is not specified, hence,
unlimited, where all the
warning units activate
1. their warning lights 4a-4d to flash and
2. their warning chips to repetitively issue a warning "An accident has
occurred ... Proceed
with caution" to all their drivers.
Administrations worldwide won't give permission for its use due to the
following deficiencies of the
vehicle warning system:
1) Taken as given, the threshold value is set for fragile beauties from
Hollywood about 0.5 kg. No data
regarding gripping pressures are available. When millions of obese people and
millions of strong
drivers in USA start driving by only touching the steering wheels of õsafety"
vehicles 210.218, the
warning lights 4a-4d of their cars and the other õsafety" vehicles 211-218,
both oncoming and
approaching from behind their respective cars, immediately flash, thus
resulting in traffic-
congestion across the US states, chaos in the traffic, irritation among all
passengers and great
loss in economy.
2) Taken as given, the threshold value is set for over 150 kg heavy wrestlers
about 20 kg. Every fragile
beauty from Hollywood can grip the steering wheel of õsafety" vehicle 210.218
as hard as
possible, no signals are transmitted. Thus, the system fails.
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3) Ref. to Fig. 6 the õsafety" vehicles 210-218 and standard vehicles 220-232
on two highways 250,
260, each of which is divided into two carriageways, on which 250S, 250N; NOW,
260E the traffic
flows in opposite direction, come to a halt because the signal 201 of the
initiating õsafety" vehicle
210, involved in a side collision, is intercepted by the receivers 202 of
1. the oncoming õsafety" vehicles 211, 214 and
2. the safety" vehicles 212, 213, 215-218, approaching from behind that
initiating õsafety" vehicle
210 and travelling on the accident-free lanes of the carriageways 250S, 260W
and 260E. The
system causes traffic-congestion and irritation among all passengers of the
õsafety" vehicles
212, 213, 215-218, anticipating the warning "An accident has occurred ... ",
searching for it in
vain, getting diverted from the traffic and finding out there is no accident!
Being subjected to
the repetition of the warning the drivers start again the searching operation
and get irritated.
The repetition of misleading warning and irritation can result in a crash!
4) The driver of the standard vehicle 228 gets irritated, when watching
through his window the flashing
of the warning lights of the õsafety" vehicle 218, adjacent to his vehicle
228, and the emergency
braking. The repetition of misleading warning and irritation can result in a
crash!
5) The rupture of the co-driver's airbag housing is exploited to transmit the
second signal 203. In
compliance with the rules, issued by administrations worldwide to protect
children and babies,
seated on the co-driver seats, from being killed by co-driver airbags, a
weight sensor, built in the
co-driver seat, senses the weight of the co-driver. It automatically switches
off the co-driver
airbag, when a child or baby is using the seat. Hence, the system fails in
front collisions because
no second signal 203 is transmitted. The system fails too in side-, rear- or
rollover crashes.
Beyond doubt, the transmitter 200 is incapable of transmitting radio frequency
signal 201 as well as
second signal 203 to the receivers 202 in the warning units of all õsafety"
vehicles 210-218 in the
following accidents, the reports of which are incorporated herein:
1. Both a VW Golf IV, travelling at 120 km/h on the highway A60, and the
driver were engulfed in
flames, because, I assume, the fastening sleeve of injection pump was shorn
off while the
injection pump injected gasoline to hot parts of the diesel engine, just like
two Volvos, listed
hereinafter. The VW Golf, uncontrolled, crashed into the left barrier.
2. A four year old Volvo S80, travelling on a highway to Frankfurt and losing
power, caught fire.
After having parked his burnt car on the hard shoulder the driver stepped out.
Upon
investigation the inventor of this application found out that the fastening
sleeve of injection
pump was shorn off due to fatigue failure. A brand-new Volvo V70 caught fire
while travelling.
Both cars were equipped with diesel engines, made by AUDI. After having
evaluated the
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inventor's accident report not Volvo Corp., but Volkswagen and AUDI Corp.,
feeling
responsible for preserving the environment and, particularly, ensuring the
safety of the
customers, recalled 290,000 cars, equipped with diesel engines, worldwide.
3. In Toronto a jeep crashed into the side wall of Innocon Gravel Haulage. As
a result, a natural
gas meter was shorn off and both the 39 year old driver and his jeep were
engulfed in flames.
4. When the driver lost control over a four-year old MB C230 Turbocharger due
to the icy road
condition the MB C230 crashed at the rear section into a stiff traffic-sign
post. As a result of the
deformation of about 250 mm, all the doors were jammed, fire linked to the
total deformation of
the tank broke out and all five young passengers, trapped therein, were burnt
alive while
inhaling toxic smoke. Note, there are no mandatory requirements for rear-end
crashing cars. If
that MB C230 were equipped with the rescue system ref. to CA 2,373,040 as well
as the
visible and audible warning system those youngsters under shock could perceive
the life-
saving and helpful information, below-mentioned, of how to evacuate themselves
out thereof
and third parties, being alerted by the warning lights and help calls blared
out of the
loudspeakers, would run to the accident site and try to extinguish the fire.
Although the
accident, occurring in a central area of the big city Ludwigshafen, was
immediately
communicated to the Police- and Fire Stations it was too late for the
paramedics, firefighters
and police when they arrived at the accident site. The accident report is
incorporated herein.
5. GDV, an Association of German Insurers, registered 31,682 vehicles, which,
caught fire in
2003, were parked in multi-storey carparks or parking lots or on roadsides
etc. due to short
circuit, plastic reflectors, wrong layout of electrical devices such as seat
heaters, cooling fans,
etc., as reported by the German magazine Auto Motor and Sport. A short circuit
in a BMW Z3
caught fire, engulfing the BMW itself, the carport of the BMW owner, in which
the BMW was
parked, and the house of his neighbour.
6. An increase of vehicles, catching fire in accidents or while travelling or
while parked, is
expected due to failure of electrical parts of hybrid cars, the increasing
number of electrical
devices, installed in every vehicle, and the lack of methods for detecting
fire!
See the third object of the present invention serving as countermeasures in
Chapter "SUMMARY OF
THE INVENTION".
PCT W099/07600 teaches an emergency exit system, comprising
a. a frame, defining a closable opening and including a plurality of locking
means, spaced apart,
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b. a closure panel to close the closable opening and to be secured therein by
the plurality of
spaced apart locking means,
c. a release mechanism, having a plurality of release means, each being
independently operable,
d. an actuation mechanism, which, upon actuation, operates to translate
activation of any release
means to release the closure panel from the frame to facilitate jettisoning of
that closure panel,
and
e. a plurality of LEDs (Light Emitting Diodes) 110.
The plurality of LEDs, arranged on the plurality of release means, helps an
operator monitor the state of
the closure panel, being secured in a closable opening or having been
jettisoned. Steady lighting of
LEDs indicates that the closure panel is in a locked position, whereas strobe
lighting of LEDs indicates
that the closure panel has been jettisoned. Four rows of LEDs 110 are located
on the top, bottom and
both sides regions of the opening frame (see Fig. 6 of PCT W099/07600). The
steady-lighting of LEDs
with strong illumination helps the crew survive in the darkness, when their
ship or helicopter sinks,
particularly, in an inverted position.
When this invention regarding strong illumination and the release mechanism is
applied to the vehicle
doors, the following problems arise:
1. Because cars and passengers are permanently strongly illuminated by the
LEDs during the
journey, the passengers get irritated and, in worst case, sick.
2. Nobody, being permanently strongly illuminated by the LEDs during the
journey, is able to drive
a car the whole day or, for sure, at night. In contrast, the guiding lights 4e
to 4n of the visible
and audible warning system are switched on only in accidents.
3. Moreover, the invention endangers the passengers. In accidents the
jettisoned doors hit and,
in worst case, kill persons and damage other cars and buildings and some
passengers are
ejected while the status of the light changes from steady- to strobe-lighting.
In contrast, the
detached vehicle doors, loaded by great energy, are secured by catch bands
ref. to CA
2,373,040 to prevent them from flying off, killing persons and/or damaging
cars/buildings.
The principle object of the emergency exit system to enable the passengers to
rescue themselves out
of a transport system, involved in accidents in water (see page 1 of PCT
W099/07600), for example a
helicopter sinking in water (see page 14), differs wholly from that of the
visible and audible warning
system of transport system, involved in accidents, occurring only on the r
und.
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In view of foregoing shortcomings, deficiencies, shock and instant death
linked to fire and inhaling
toxic smoke, there is a need
1. to detach the doors and/or emergency exits of the transport system by means
of the door-
detachment device ref. to CA 2,373,040;
II. to give the users, particularly passengers, life-saving and helpful
information by means of visible
and audible warning system;
Ill. to warn passengers and/or third parties of fire breaking out in the
transport system;
IV. to inform nonparticipants, staying near the accident site, about the
accident, particularly when
fire breaks out in a transport system, and
V. to solve the above-mentioned and following problems:
- To regain the power of perception or orientation passengers have to overcome
the shock, resulting
from high impact acceleration in a real-world accident and fire breaking out
in the transport system.
Before the fire engulfs them, owing to the power of perception drivers of
oncoming motor-vehicles
can evacuate them or they can evacuate themselves.
- When drivers of oncoming motor-vehicles can be warned by warning lights of
visible and audible
warning systems of the vehicles, involved in any accident or the
aforementioned mass-accident, at
the accident site, in particular, when hidden by fog, post accidents are
avoided. In particular, those
drivers, stepping out thereof and listening the life-saving and helpful
information, blared out of the
loudspeakers of those warning systems can accomplish the first aid and rescue
work before the
rescue workers and police arrive at the accident site and, if lucky, before
the fire breaks out.
- Due to the darkness at the accident site in Dec. 2002 two oncoming cars,
grazing along two front-
end colliding cars, VW Polo and Daewoo, came to rest. After stepping out of
their oncoming cars the
drivers walked to the accident site. During which the VW Polo and Daewoo burst
into flames
engulfing all four passengers of Daewoo and the driver of VW Polo. Given, the
warning lights are
flashing there is much time left for those drivers, stepping out thereof at
the accident site and being
guided by the life-saving and helpful information, to rescue the victims. The
accident report is
incorporated herein.
- The shorter the self evacuation time, the greater the survival chance, which
is the principle goal of
all agencies and governments worldwide as well as the rescue system ref. to CA
2,373,040.
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SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
Accordingly, the principle object of the present invention is to provide for a
transport system a visible
and audible warning system which helps users find, particularly when it is
dark at the accident site, the
doors and/or emergency exits and the door-release levers of a door-detachment
device ref. to CA
2,373,040 and operate the door-release levers and gives them helpful
information of how to behave,
how to operate the door-release levers, how to egress out of the transport
system through the door
openings of the detached doors, how to treat injured passengers, etc.
A second object of the present invention resides in warning drivers or pilots
of oncoming transport
systems in order to avoid post accidents.
A third object of the present invention resides in informing third parties,
for example the drivers of
oncoming cars ref. to Chap. V, of how to help passengers evacuate out of the
vehicle as fast as
possible at the accident site, particularly about fire, sensed by a
temperature sensor and just breaking
out in the transport system. They and/or crew members, when stepping out
thereof, needs to listen the
life-saving and helpful information, above-mentioned, in order to perform the
first aid and rescue work
before policemen and rescue workers arrive at the accident site.
To resolve all the fire-related shortcomings of the vehicle warning system
ref. to US 5,874,892, above
mentioned, and others, fire must steadily be monitored by at least one
temperature sensor 84D, which,
provided for any visible and audible warning system (Fig. 5) and capable of
sensing the temperature of
fire (the start of fire) when fire breaks out in the transport system,
releases current to
1. the warning lights 4a to 4d which flash, and
2. the audible device, which transmits a text data in several languages to the
users via
loudspeakers,
independent of whether the emergency switch 78.1 and the audible device were
turned on or off.
Thanks to the temperature sensor 84D for detecting fire at its outbreak,
passengers have a chance to
escape an inferno. A reckless driver rammed his AUDI A4 at high speed into the
rear section of a VW
Golf III on a highway. Despite being severely injured the female VW driver,
scrambling out of her car
and crawling on her hands and knees over the carriageway to the hard shoulder,
witnessed an
explosion of the tank and ensuing inferno. The accident report is incorporated
herein. Logically, a
helpful information about the operation of the door-release levers and a
warning to immediately step
out to the passengers, despite being severely injured, increase the survival
chance in the accident,
particularly, when fire breaks out in the vehicle.
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A fourth object of the present invention resides in exploiting existing parts
of transport systems,
which are already put into use in motor vehicles or aeroplanes, for further
application in order to avoid
recalls, save R&D (Research- and Development) work and manufacturing costs as
well as to increase
the reliability of the visible and audible warning systems.
This principle and other objects of the present invention and the
aforementioned problem cases as
well as requirements therefor are accomplished by the following features
(proposals):
If for safety reasons the power supply of a car battery 89, shown in Figs. 1
and 1A, must be cut off in
an accident, an alternative power supply can be ensured, for example, by first
rechargeable batteries
89a (not drawn), connected to the minor current circuit. The power to operate
the device can be
ensured either by the car battery 89 or by the rechargeable batteries.
Despite the label, showing that the vehicle, involved in an accident, is
equipped with a door-
detachment device ref. to CA 2,373,040, rescue workers encounter the problem,
when it is dark, of
finding the vehicle and its door-release levers and of operating them. If the
warning device is not
switched on, aggressively driven vehicles pose a threat to the passengers,
being rescued, to third
parties, willing to help the passengers, and/or to the rescue workers.
When the vehicle bursts into flames due to a crack in the fuel supply and/or
explosion of the fuel tank
there is a danger of panic among the passengers who no longer have the full
power of perception to
find and operate the door-release levers and therefore in despair attempt to
open the doors in the
usual way. Due to great consumption of oxygen by the fire there is little time
left for the rescue
operation by the passengers themselves or by the rescue workers. The door-
detachment device
remains unused. Consequently, there is a need for a visible and audible
warning system 70, 70a to
70c, shown in Figs. I to 5, to give the users
- information about the location of the door-release levers and door openings
by guiding lights 4e to
4n and the location of the vehicle, involved in an accident, by warning lights
4a to 4d and
- instruction of how to operate the door-release levers and how to behave by
loudspeakers 7a to 7n
and/or loudspeakers of cell phone (cellular phone or phone) and/or radio.
The flashing of the warning lights 4a to 4d draws the attention of the drivers
of oncoming motor
vehicles. The car-, train- and aeroplane manufacturer can make its own
decision for switching on the
warning device during the accident, at the onset thereof or when the accident
is over. Preferably, the
warning device is switched on at the onset of the accident because the
passengers have the full power
of perception or orientation, giving the drivers of oncoming vehicles more
time.
Cell phone, radio and/or navigator, serving as reliable audible device, is
automatically switched on by
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- current, supplied in the second current circuit in the accident, or
- self-activating a switch, connected to a minor current circuit 79.2, in the
accident.
BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS
A number of embodiments, other advantages and features of the present
invention will be described
in the accompanying drawings with reference to the xyz global coordinate
system:
Fig.1 is a perspective view of a 1st embodiment of a visible and audible
warning system 70.
Fig. 1A is a section of Fig. 1, in which the 1st embodiment of the visible and
audible warning
system 70 is provided with a major current circuit 79.1 and a minor current
circuit 79.2.
Fig. 1C is a perspective view of a conventional warning device, provided with
a single device for
intermittent lighting instead of three devices ref. to EP 0786 378 A2.
Fig. 2 is a perspective view of a 2nd embodiment of members 71a, 72a of an
audible warning
system 70a.
Fig. 3 is a perspective view of a 3rd embodiment of members 71b, 72b, 83 of an
audible warning
system 70b.
Fig. 4 is a perspective view of embodiments of a door-release lever 86, 91.1,
91.2S, 88A to 88D,
an embodiment of a rescue system 55, equipped with sensors 84A to 84G, a gear
G1, a freewheeling
device 50, a door-detachment device 15, 15a to 15j ref. to CA 2,373,040 and
the visible and audible
warning system 70 and of a vehicle, whose contour is defined by the doors 8,
8S, 8U, 8Y, a front
bumper 12V, rear bumper 12H and warning lights 4a to 4d.
Fig. 5 is a view of an embodiment of an independent rescue system 55c of a
transport system,
equipped with a 4th embodiment of a visible and audible warning system 70c.
Fig. 6 is a top view of "safety" vehicles, each equipped with a vehicle
warning system ref. to US
5,874,892, and standard vehicles on two highways, one of which is located
above the other, on which
an accident occurs.
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DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS
Beyond doubt, the function of the inventions is always well described in the
preferred embodiments
of the US patent docs. However, in the scope thereof explanation of how to
manufacture and assemble
the parts of the preferred embodiments in the transport system is omitted,
hence, the aforementioned
problems related thereto remain undetected. One of the objects of the present
invention,
aforementioned, is to use the existing parts of transport systems. Hence, all
subjects regarding
assembling, manufacturing and using parts thereof must be taken into account
when the function of
the visible and audible warning systems and process to assemble them are
described in order to give
the reader a better understanding thereabout and avoid recalls and failure in
assembling,
manufacturing and real-world accidents.
All the features are applicable for trains, commuter trains, ships, boats,
aeroplanes and motor-
vehicles.
In order to describe the underlying principle of the invention of how to
bypass an emergency switch
78.1 of a warning device 78 or any conventional emergency switch 78.1a (Fig.
1C) in accidents, a
section of Fig. 1 is drawn in Fig. 1A.
There are different types of conventional sensors such as the sensors 84A to
84C of airbags and
sensors 84F to 84H of belt pretensioners (only 84G shown in Fig. 4). The
sensor, when put into use
for the visible warning system, is wired to a minor current circuit 79.2 and
serves in accidents as a
switch to allow current to flow to the airbag/s or belt pretensioner/s as well
as to an emergency-switch
light 4x (not drawn), warning lights 4a to 4d and guiding lights 4e to 4n as
well as to cell phone, radio
etc. However, the temperature sensor 84D, wired to the minor current circuit
79.2 and having a first
current circuit 79.1e (Fig. 5), wired to a main current circuit 79.1, is
supplied with current of the main
current circuit in order to sense the start of a fire, when breaking out in
the transport system (Figs. 4
and 5). For the purpose of steadily monitoring fire, when breaking out in the
transport system in
accidents or while travelling or stationary for example in a carpark, the
temperature sensor 84D must
be permanently supplied with current of the main current circuit 79.1 or a
battery 89 or second
rechargeable batteries 89c (not drawn) independent of whether the ignition key
is turned on or off.
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In order to bypass the emergency switch 78.1 and facilitate the warning lights
4a to 4d and guiding
lights 4e to 4n to flash in accidents (Fig. 1A)
1) a first current warning-lights circuit 79.12 is wired to a first contact
site 89.5 and a second contact
site 89.3 of the main current circuit 79.1, connected to the plus pole 89.1 of
the battery 89 and to
the minus pole 89.2;
2) that emergency switch 78.1 and a common contact site 89.4, connected to
those warning lights 4a
to 4d by warning-light current lines (not drawn), are wired to that first
current warning-lights circuit
79.12;
3) the minor current circuit 79.2, shown by dotted lines, is connected to the
plus pole 89.1 and the
second contact site 89.3;
4) all the audible devices (radio, cell phone and/or navigator), wired to the
main current circuit 79.1, at
least one sensor 84A-84H, the guiding lights 4e to 4n and a second current
warning-lights circuit
79.22, which, shown by dotted lines, connects a contact minor site 89.6 on the
minor current
circuit 79.2 to those warning lights 4a to 4d.
Upon the activation of the sensor 84E and/or the temperature sensor 84D in the
event of accident
(collision and/or fire according to the definition of "accident") current
automatically flows
1. in the second current warning-lights circuit 79.22 to the warning lights 4a
to 4d, all of which
flash to warn drivers of oncoming transport systems, rescue workers as well as
third parties,
and
2. in the minor current circuit 79.2
a. to the guiding lights 4e to 4n, all of which flash to guide them to the
door-release levers,
and
b. to all the audible devices, via loudspeakers of all of which helpful
information of how to
operate the door-release levers etc, is played back to them.
Accordingly, each electrical part of the visible and audible warning system,
for example the radio 83
shown in Figs. 1, 1 A and 3, is provided with
a. a first current circuit 79.1n, wired to the main current circuit 79.1, and
b. a second current circuit 79.2n, drawn with dotted lines and wired to the
minor current circuit
79.2.
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In the 1st to 3rd embodiment of a visible and audible warning system 70, 70a,
70b, shown in Figs.
1A, 1 to 4, the functions of the standard parts of transport system, such as
radio, warning device,
navigator and cell phone, are supplemented and adapted to the system in order
to save costs and
R&D work, to lower failure rate and to increase the reliability.
All current circuits are protected against overload by fuses (not drawn),
stored in a fuse box (not
drawn).
The minor current circuit 79.2, the first current circuits 79.11 to 79.14 of
radio 83, warning device 78,
cell phone 72, navigator (navigational device) 71, the first current circuit
79.1e (Fig. 5) as well as other
first current circuits (not drawn) are wired to the main current circuit 79.1,
shown in Figs. 1 and 1A. The
power supply for the second current circuits 79.21 to 79.26 of radio 83,
warning device 78, cell phone
72, navigator 71, motor 91.7 of the door-detachment device ref. to CA
2,373,040 and guiding lights 4e
to 4n in the minor current circuit 79.2 is ensured by current, which is
released when at least one
sensor 84A to 84H is activated in an accident and/or due to fire, breaking out
in the transport system.
In case, the power supply to the pump of the fuel tank and fuel injection
apparatus must be cut off in
real-world accidents in order to prevent fire, when breaking out in transport
systems, the first
rechargeable batteries 89a (not drawn), wired to the minor current circuit
79.2, are provided for the
power supply. In order to ensure the operation the first rechargeable
batteries 89a, when empty, are
always charged by the battery 89 during the journey or when the transport
system stays idle.
Independent of whether both switches 83.1 of radio 83 and 78.1 of warning
device 78 are turned on or
off in an accident, a text data 69, stored in a storage medium 76, 76.1, is
played back via the
loudspeakers 7a to 7j of radio 83 and the other loudspeakers of cell phone,
navigator etc. and all
warning lights 4a to 4d and all guiding lights 4e to 4n flash, thus helping
the passengers and/or rescue
workers find the door-release levers and the transport system, particularly
when it is dark, and to
operate the door-release levers. The success of rescue passengers out of the
transport system, when
catching fire, depends on time, available to operate the door-release levers.
Therefore, it is highly
recommended to install many door-release levers, to which guiding lights and
loudspeakers are
arranged. Costs are very little upon using loudspeakers, already installed,
and installing a few ones:
1. loudspeakers 7a, 7b, located in the dash board (not drawn),
2. loudspeakers 7c, 7d in the wall (not drawn), separating the passenger
compartment from the
trunk compartment,
3. loudspeakers 7e in the vehicle doors 8, 8S,
4. loudspeakers if in the head rests (not drawn),
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5. loudspeakers 7g, 7h in the tank-spaces 77L, 77R,
6. loudspeaker 7i on the vehicle floor 13,
7. loudspeaker 7j on the trunk compartment; and/or.
8. loudspeakers 7o to 7s of other devices such as cell phone 72, 72a, 72b,
navigator 71, 71a,
71b and dictaphone (not drawn)
Foreign passengers and/or foreign rescue workers can perceive the text data
69, containing
"position and operation (pulling or depressing) of the door-release levers",
"how to behave,
how to perform the first aid and rescue work, how to operate the door-release
levers, how to
find the way to the doors and/or emergency doors of car, aeroplane or ship",
etc.
only in their respective languages. Hence, the text data is coded in several
languages, stored in a
storage medium 76, 76.1, 76.2 (Figs. 1A, 1 - 4). The basic text data 69 can be
supplemented and
amended. This storage medium, prefabricated, can be offered for sale. The
repetition of the text data
69 can be terminated by operation of a switch (not drawn) or in excess of a
time limit (a time relay).
Because the storage medium 76, 76.2 is a part of navigator 71 b or cell phone
72, 72a, 72b extra costs
for enlarging the storage capacity and for programming are low. The space-
saving storage medium
76.2 of cell phone 72b offers sufficient storage capacity for the text
information (data).
In the 1st embodiment of the audible warning system 70, 70c, shown in Figs. 1,
1A, 4 the sensor
84A-84C, 84E-84H, supplied with current of the minor current circuit 79.2, or
the sensor 84D is
activated in an accident so that the current flows in the second current
circuits 79.21 to 79.24 of radio
83, cell phone 72, put into a holder 72.2, navigator 71 and warning device 78.
The text data 69, stored in the storage medium 76, 76.1 to 76.2, is played
back by the radio 83 via
its own loudspeakers 7a to 7f and/or by the cell phone 72 via its own
loudspeaker. Independent of
whether the emergency switch 78.1 is turned on or off, all warning lights 4a
to 4n of warning device 78
are supplied with current of the second current warning-lights circuit 79.22.
The conventional warning
lights 4a to 4d (Fig. 4) are located at the four outer edges of the vehicle or
transport system and the
detecting and guiding lights 4e to 4n are positioned adjacent to the hand-
brake lever 86, door-release
levers 88A to 88E and door openings, shown in Figs. 4 to 5.
In the 2nd embodiment of the audible warning system 70a, equipped with the
radio 83, shown in Fig.
2, the first current circuit 79.13a of cell phone 72a, put into a holder
72.2a, as well as the first current
circuit 79.14a of navigator 71a are connected to the main current circuit 79.1
and the second current
circuit 79.23a of cell phone 72a is wired to the minor current circuit 79.2.
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To cut costs the radio 83 has usually no storage medium, but it can be
supplied with a storage medium
76.1 (Figs. 1, 1A). In an accident an electromagnetic (solenoid) switch 72.1a
of cell phone 72a is
activated to enable data transmission via the wire 71.2a. Hence, the cell
phone 72a receives the text
data 69 from the storage medium 76 of navigator 71 and plays it back via its
own loudspeaker.
Alternatively, the cell phone 72a can immediately play back the text data 69
from its own storage
medium 76.2 via its own loudspeaker.
In the 3rd embodiment of the audible warning system 70b, shown in Fig. 3, the
first current circuit
79.14b of navigator 71b and the second current circuit 79.24b thereof are
connected to the main
current circuit 79.1 and the minor current circuit 79.2. In an accident an
electromagnetic switch 72.1b
of navigator 71b is activated to enable data transmission to the cell phone
72b and to the radio 83 via
the wire 71.3b. Hence, the transmitted text data 69 from the storage medium 76
of navigator 71b is
played back via its loudspeaker, the loudspeaker of cell phone 72b and/or the
loudspeakers 7a to 7f of
radio 83.
In the rescue system 55 in co-operation with a door-detachment device ref. to
CA 2,373,040, shown
in Fig. 4, a united wire 2n is defined by the wires 2, 2S, 2U, 2Y of vehicle
doors 8, 8S, hood 8U, trunk
cover 8Y in association with the respective pivots 34, 34S, 33T, 34Y, 41, 35
and brackets.
This wire 2n is wound about the deflecting pulley 9 of gear G1 where the exit
wire 2n of which serves
as an entrance wire of the freewheeling device 50. The exit wire 2nn of the
freewheeling device 50 is
branched from the bracket 2.9 to the following wires of door-detachment device
15, 15a to 15j of
transport system ref. to CA 2,373,040 such as
- wire 2n1 of hand-brake lever 86 upon the use of pivots 36, 40 and swinging
arm 73,
- wire 2n2 of door-release lever 88B upon the use of pivots 36, 42,
- wire 2n3 of door-release lever 88C on the vehicle floor,
- wire 2n4 of door-release lever 88D upon the use of swinging arm 74 and pivot
43,
- wire 2n5 of door-release lever 88A upon the use of pivots 37, 42 and
- wire 2n6 of release buttons 91.1 and/or push buttons 91.2S upon the use of
pivots 37, 38, 44 and
belt pulley 91.8 driven by motor 91.7.
Particularly, when it is dark at night, the guiding lights 4e to 4n, arranged
adjacent to those door-
release levers 86, 88A to 88D, help the passengers properly operate them.
Passengers, guided and instructed by the visible and audible warning system,
can escape through the
door openings.
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In the rescue system 55c without freewheeling device independent door-
detachments, equipped with
visible and audible warning systems, are mounted to the doors 8, 8S and
emergency doors of ship,
train carriages, bus or aeroplane due to the long distance of the doors to
each other (Fig. 5). If the
wires 102, to operate and/or to open the doors, are destroyed by fire, the
door locks 103 of the doors
8, 8S remain locked and the passengers cannot escape the fire. Such tragedies
can be prevented by
an independent door-detachment, comprising a door-release lever 88E, the
entrance wire 2n of door
hinges 51 and 52, gear G2, motor 91.7 equipped with belt pulley 91.8, the exit
wires 2n6, 2n7 and a
fire-control unit 110, which consists of the temperature sensor 84D to sense
the start of a fire 66 and a
speedometer (tachometer) 105 (not drawn) or a time-lag relay 101. When the
transport system comes
to a halt after the accident is over, the speedometer 105 in co-operation with
the sensor 84D releases
current so that the belt pulley 91.8 of motor 91.7 pulls the exit wire 2n6.
The speedometer 105 can be
replaced by time-lag relay 101. The battery 89 or first rechargeable batteries
89a are provided for
power supply.
The door-release lever 88E cannot be operated when the current wires 79.1 e,
79.2, 79.25 are also
destroyed by the fire 66. A protective cover 106 protects the door-release
lever 88E from misuse. The
cover 106 is opened by a motor 104 (not drawn), activated by temperature
sensor 84D, or by pulling a
wire 107 or by a tool (plug-in tool) 108. If it fails to work in case of
emergency it can be shattered with a
hammer or similar.
Via the guiding lights 4k to 4n and the loudspeakers 7k to 7n of the visible
and audible warning
system 70c the passengers are instructed to hurry to the doors and operate the
door-detachment
device ref. to CA 2,373,040 and to leave through the door openings.
This embodiment is also suited for aeroplanes, trains and motor vehicles such
as buses.
Although the present invention has been described and illustrated in detail,
it is clearly understood that
the terminology used is intended to describe rather than limit. Many more
objects, embodiments,
features and variations of the present invention are possible in light of the
above-mentioned teachings.
Therefore, within the spirit and scope of the appended claims, the present
invention may be practised
otherwise than as specifically described and illustrated.
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