Portable Weighing Pad Alignment Anchoring
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Solution Overview
Problem
Portable weigh-in-motion systems face challenges such as inaccurate positioning during installation, pad migration, and roadway surface deformation, which affect the accuracy and reliability of vehicle weight measurements.
Innovation Solution
A weighing system with a pad configuration that includes load cells and foot members anchored to a support surface using registration elements and anchors, allowing for rapid and accurate alignment and secure attachment to prevent deformation, ensuring precise weight measurements across multiple locations.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Measurement precision
If portable WIM systems are deployed in roadway, then vehicle weight measurement is enabled, but inaccurate positioning of pads during installation occurs
Solution Approach 1:
The patent applies preliminary action by providing pre-drilled holes and registration elements (such as alignment pins or guides) on the weighing pads before deployment. These pre-prepared features enable accurate positioning to be achieved during installation without requiring complex alignment procedures on-site, thus resolving the contradiction between enabling measurement and achieving positioning precision.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent replaces manual mechanical alignment methods with automated or semi-automated positioning systems. For example, GPS-guided placement or laser alignment systems may be used to position the weighing pads accurately on the roadway, substituting labor-intensive manual alignment with more precise technological methods.
2Duration of action of stationary object
If portable WIM systems are used over time, then vehicle weighing capability is maintained, but pad migration occurs
Solution Approach 1:
The patent applies preliminary action by installing robust anchoring mechanisms and registration elements during the initial deployment of the weighing pads. These pre-installed features ensure long-term positional stability, preventing pad migration even after extended periods of use and repeated vehicle passages.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent may employ curved or contoured anchoring features that conform to the roadway surface, enhancing the mechanical interlock between the weighing pads and the supporting structure. This curvature-based design increases friction and resistance to displacement, thereby maintaining pad position stability over time.
3Productivity
If portable WIM systems operate continuously, then data collection efficiency is improved, but roadway surface deformation occurs
Solution Approach 1:
The patent applies segmentation by dividing the weighing system into multiple modular pads distributed across the roadway. Each pad is independently supported and anchored, distributing the mechanical load across multiple contact points rather than concentrating it in one location. This reduces the stress on any single point of the roadway surface, minimizing deformation while maintaining continuous data collection capability.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent introduces additional support dimensions by providing both vertical support (through anchoring mechanisms) and lateral stabilization (through registration elements extending in multiple directions). This multi-dimensional support structure disperses the mechanical stress across different spatial dimensions, reducing the harmful effect of localized roadway surface deformation during continuous operation.
Data Source
AI summary
A system for weighing a load is disclosed. The weighing system includes a pad having at least one transducer for weighing a load disposed on the pad. In some embodiments the pad has a plurality of foot members and the weighing system may include a plate that disposed underneath the pad for receiving the plurality of foot member and for aligning the foot members when the weighing system is installed. The weighing system may include a spacer disposed adjacent the pad and in some embodiments, a spacer anchor operatively secures the spacer to a support surface, such as a plate, a railway bed, or a roadway. In some embodiments the spacer anchor operatively secures both the spacer and the pad to a roadway.