Boarding Bridge Tunnel Overlap Sensing for Cable Failure Detection
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Solution Overview
Problem
Existing safety mechanisms for telescopic boarding bridges are prone to false alarms and require difficult periodic checks, and uncontrolled movements can lead to material and personal damage due to unmonitored cable failures.
Innovation Solution
A safety system with sensors measuring overlapping distances between neighboring tunnels to ensure synchronized telescoping movements, generating alarms and activating brakes when deviations exceed safety thresholds, and incorporating a braking unit with actuators to prevent undesired movements.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Difficulty of detecting and measuring
If cable tension monitoring is used to detect cable failures, then safety detection capability is improved, but false alarms increase and system reliability deteriorates
Solution Approach 1:
The patent introduces an intermediary measurement system (laser displacement sensor and scale) that indirectly monitors cable status by measuring tunnel position and overlap distances, rather than directly monitoring cable tension. This intermediary approach eliminates false alarms caused by direct cable sensor sensitivity while maintaining detection capability through geometric relationship analysis.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent replaces the mechanical cable tension monitoring system with an optical measurement system (laser displacement sensor). This substitution eliminates the problems of mechanical sensor false alarms by using non-contact optical measurement of tunnel positions to infer cable status through mathematical relationships.
2Reliability
If periodic checks of safety mechanisms are performed, then safety operation verification is improved, but maintenance complexity and time consumption increase
Solution Approach 1:
The patent implements continuous automatic monitoring of tunnel positions and overlap distances during bridge operation, eliminating the need for periodic manual safety checks. The system continuously measures and compares actual positions against expected positions, providing ongoing verification without interrupting bridge operations.
Solution Approach 2:
The safety system performs self-verification by automatically monitoring its own operational parameters (tunnel positions, overlap distances) and comparing them against expected values. The system self-diagnoses potential cable failures without requiring external periodic inspection, reducing maintenance burden while maintaining reliability.
3Reliability
If uncontrolled movement of intermediate tunnel is prevented by existing safety mechanisms, then safety is improved, but response speed to actual failures deteriorates due to false alarms
Solution Approach 1:
The patent implements a feedback control system that continuously measures tunnel positions and overlap distances, compares actual values against expected values calculated from bridge geometry, and automatically triggers braking when deviations indicate cable failure. This feedback mechanism provides rapid response to actual failures without being triggered by false alarms, as it monitors actual geometric relationships rather than direct cable tension.
Data Source
Figure 1~2A
Figure 2B
Figure 3A~3B
AI summary
Safety system (1) for a boarding bridge (10, 100) and the bridge comprising it. The system comprises a processing unit (13) for examining a telescoping movement of the boarding bridge (10, 100), a first sensor (11) for measuring a first overlapping distance between a first pair of neighboring tunnels, a second sensor (12) for measuring a second overlapping distance between a second pair of neighboring tunnels different from the first. The process unit (13) makes it possible to check that the telescoping movement corresponds to a retraction or extension maneuver, determines a variation in the first overlapping distance and a variation in the measured second overlapping distance, compares whether both variations are outside a maneuver safety range, and generates an alarm instruction.