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:
Dec. 16, 2014
Filed:
Sep. 03, 2013
General Electric Company, Schenectady, NY (US);
Joseph Forrest Noffsinger, Lee's Summit, MO (US);
Ajith Kuttannair Kumar, Erie, PA (US);
Yuri Alexeyevich Plotnikov, Niskayuna, NY (US);
Jeffrey Michael Fries, Melbourne, FL (US);
Srilatha Boyanapally, Bangalore, IN;
Steven Joseph Ehret, Erie, PA (US);
General Electric Company, Schenectady, NY (US);
Abstract
A route examining system includes first and second application devices, a control unit, first and second detection units, and an identification unit. The first and second application devices are disposed onboard a vehicle traveling along a route having conductive tracks. The control unit controls injection of a first examination signal into the conductive tracks via the first application device and injection of a second examination signal into the conductive tracks via the second application device. The first and second detection units monitor electrical characteristics of the route in response to the first and second examination signals being injected into the conductive tracks. The identification unit examines the electrical characteristics of the conductive tracks in order to determine whether a section of the route is potentially damaged based on the electrical characteristics.