The patent badge is an abbreviated version of the USPTO patent document. The patent badge does contain a link to the full patent document.
The patent badge is an abbreviated version of the USPTO patent document. The patent badge covers the following: Patent number, Date patent was issued, Date patent was filed, Title of the patent, Applicant, Inventor, Assignee, Attorney firm, Primary examiner, Assistant examiner, CPCs, and Abstract. The patent badge does contain a link to the full patent document (in Adobe Acrobat format, aka pdf). To download or print any patent click here.
Patent No.:
Date of Patent:
Nov. 18, 2003
Filed:
Jun. 04, 2001
Daniel F. Wolf, Erie, PA (US);
Gerald James Hess, Jr., Erie, PA (US);
Jeffrey A. Twichel, Girard, PA (US);
General Electric Company, Schenectady, NY (US);
Abstract
An automatic start/stop system for locomotive engines which takes into account operator needs and concerns by enabling operators to locally prevent automatic shutdowns of their locomotives without disabling their AESS systems. Thus, operators can maintain their lead (and/or other) units running (i.e., for peace of mind, climate control, etc.) without prohibiting other locomotives in consist from automatically shutting down. The system preferably includes an inhibit switch located in each locomotive control cabin which, when actuated by an operator, prevents that locomotive (and only that locomotive) from automatically shutting down within a predefined duration of time. Techniques for reminding and prompting an operator to enable an AESS system include sounding an alarm, displaying and recording fault data, and inhibiting motoring of the locomotive when the AESS system is disabled and the operator calls for braking or motoring capability.