Patents by Inventor Frank Wegner

Frank Wegner has filed for patents to protect the following inventions. This listing includes patent applications that are pending as well as patents that have already been granted by the United States Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO).

  • Patent number: 7369499
    Abstract: To transmit data packets between a transmitter and a receiver, the data packets are transmitted in coded from as coding units. The received data packets are stored in coded or uncoded form in the receiver inside a memory. The receiver notifies the transmitter of the capacity utilization of the memory.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: May 30, 2001
    Date of Patent: May 6, 2008
    Assignee: Siemens Aktiengesellschaft
    Inventors: Thomas Gruhn, Christina Gessner, Reinhard Koehn, Georgios Papoutsis, Jürgen Schindler, Jörg Schniedenharn, Armin Sitte, Frank Wegner
  • Patent number: 7349797
    Abstract: A locomotive is provided that includes: a receiver operable to receiving a locating signal, the locating signal indicating a current spatial location of a selected locomotive and a processor operable to (a) determine that the selected locomotive has entered, is entering, and/or is about to enter a spatial zone having at least one controlled parameter, the controlled parameter being at least one of a fuel combustion emissions level and a noise level and (b) configure the operation of the selected locomotive to comply with the controlled parameter.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: March 30, 2005
    Date of Patent: March 25, 2008
    Assignee: Railpower Technologies Corp
    Inventors: Frank Wegner Donnelly, Douglas W. Swartz, John David Watson
  • Patent number: 7304445
    Abstract: The present invention is directed to a power control architecture for a vehicle, particularly a locomotive, in which a number of energy sources are connected to a common electrical bus and selectively provide energy to the bus based on the relationship between their respective output voltages and the bus voltage.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: August 9, 2005
    Date of Patent: December 4, 2007
    Assignee: Railpower Technologies Corp.
    Inventor: Frank Wegner Donnelly
  • Patent number: 7124691
    Abstract: The present invention is directed to a locomotive comprising energy storage units, such as batteries, a prime energy source, such as a diesel engine, and an energy conversion device, such as a generator. The locomotive comprises one or more of the following features: a separate chopper circuit for each traction motor; energy storage units that can be switched from parallel to series electrical connections, an fluid-activated anti-lock brake system, a controller operable to control separately and independently each axle/traction motor, and a controller operable to control automatically a speed of the locomotive. The present invention includes an integrated system for monitoring, controlling and optimizing an electrically powered locomotive using a combination of sensors and software to provide feedback that optimizes power train efficiency and individual drive axle performance for a locomotive that utilizes one of several possible electrical energy storage systems to provide the tractive power.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: August 26, 2003
    Date of Patent: October 24, 2006
    Assignee: Railpower Technologies Corp.
    Inventors: Frank Wegner Donnelly, Brian Gulayets Iwan, John David Watson, David Herman Swan
  • Patent number: 7084602
    Abstract: The present invention is directed to the termination of the occurrence of wheel slip/skid and prediction and prevention of the onset of wheel slip/skid in a locomotive. In one configuration, a lookup table of adhesion factors is used to predict the occurrence of wheel slip/skid.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: February 16, 2005
    Date of Patent: August 1, 2006
    Assignee: Railpower Technologies Corp.
    Inventors: Frank Wegner Donnelly, David Herman Swan, John David Watson
  • Patent number: 7064507
    Abstract: The present invention is directed to the termination of the occurrence of wheel slip/skid and prediction and prevention of the onset of wheel slip/skid in a locomotive. In one configuration, a lookup table of adhesion factors is used to predict the occurrence of wheel slip/skid.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: February 16, 2005
    Date of Patent: June 20, 2006
    Assignee: Railpower Technologies Corp.
    Inventors: Frank Wegner Donnelly, John David Watson
  • Patent number: 6984946
    Abstract: The present invention is directed to a locomotive comprising energy storage units, such as batteries, a prime energy source, such as a diesel engine, and an energy conversion device, such as a generator. The locomotive comprises one or more of the following features: a separate chopper circuit for each traction motor and a controller operable to control separately and independently each axle/traction motor.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: August 26, 2003
    Date of Patent: January 10, 2006
    Assignee: Railpower Technologies Corp.
    Inventors: Frank Wegner Donnelly, Brian Gulayets Iwan
  • Publication number: 20050105488
    Abstract: A method transmits data packets in a mobile radio system and corresponding mobile radio system. The method permits an immediate transmission of data packets to the receiver station along a new transmission path, after a handover of a connection along a transmission path, between a transmission station and a receiver station, to a new transmitting station. The new transmission station thus receives no information regarding the transmission status of data packets, which were transmitted before the handover of the connection.
    Type: Application
    Filed: June 17, 2003
    Publication date: May 19, 2005
    Inventors: Faiba Raji, Frank Wegner
  • Patent number: 6812656
    Abstract: A control system for individually controlling power from a single voltage source to a plurality of motors is described. A chopper circuit, in conjunction with the control system, generates drive-pulses, which operates the IGBT switching devices to sequentially provide pulses to each motor.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: February 27, 2002
    Date of Patent: November 2, 2004
    Assignee: Railpower Technologies Corp.
    Inventors: Frank Wegner Donnelly, Brian Ward Gulayets
  • Publication number: 20030177436
    Abstract: The invention relates to a method and a radio communication system for the transmission of packet data units (SN#10, SN#11), by means of a radio interface in a radio communication system with at least one transmitter and at least one receiver, whereby the original data to be sent may be encoded with various codes to give various encoded units (CW1, CW2, CW3). Said various encoded units (CW1, CW2, CW3) are transmitted either consecutively or parallel to increase the redundancy in the receiver-side reconstruction of the original sent data and information on the underlying packet data units (SN#10, SN#11) is transmitted with the encoded units. According to the invention, the reconstruction of data may be expedited and improved by the transmission of information about the corresponding codes (CW1, Cw2, CW3) to the receiver with the encoded units and by a request from the receiver to the transmitter for the transmission of one or several selected encoded units.
    Type: Application
    Filed: April 29, 2003
    Publication date: September 18, 2003
    Inventors: Thomas Gruhn, Christoph Mecklenbraeuker, Fariba Raji, Frank Wegner
  • Publication number: 20030160586
    Abstract: A control system for individually controlling power from a single voltage source to a plurality of motors is described. A chopper circuit, in conjunction with the control system, generates drive-pulses, which operates the IGBT switching devices to sequentially provide pulses to each motor.
    Type: Application
    Filed: February 27, 2002
    Publication date: August 28, 2003
    Inventors: Frank Wegner Donnelly, Brian Ward Gulayets
  • Publication number: 20030161280
    Abstract: To transmit data packets between a transmitter and a receiver, the data packets are transmitted in coded from as coding units. The received data packets are stored in coded or uncoded form in the receiver inside a memory. The receiver notifies the transmitter of the capacity utilization of the memory.
    Type: Application
    Filed: April 22, 2003
    Publication date: August 28, 2003
    Inventors: Thomas Gruhn, Christina Gessner, Reinhard Koehn, Georgios Papoutsis, Jurgen Schindler, Jorg Schniedenharn, Armin Sitte, Frank Wegner
  • Publication number: 20030053440
    Abstract: In a packet data transmission via a radio interface of a communication system, a packet number as identification information is transmitted for every data packet between data stations communicating with one another. To improve transmission security for the identification information, the identification information is multiplied and distributed separately to at least two data packets or transmitted separately in a separate information data packet.
    Type: Application
    Filed: October 25, 2002
    Publication date: March 20, 2003
    Inventors: Thomas Gruhn, Christoph Mecklenbraeuker, Fariba Raji, Frank Wegner
  • Patent number: 6308639
    Abstract: Prior battery-powered electric locomotives have used multiple diesel engines to charge the batteries and have not been commercially accepted. The present invention provides a yard switcher which combines battery storage with a gas microturbine generator to provide an effective fuel-efficient and environmentally friendly locomotive. locomotive.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: April 26, 2000
    Date of Patent: October 30, 2001
    Assignee: Railpower Technologies Corp.
    Inventors: Frank Wegner Donnelly, Gerard Henry Koldyk
  • Patent number: D464622
    Type: Grant
    Filed: July 10, 2001
    Date of Patent: October 22, 2002
    Assignee: Railpower Techologies Corp.
    Inventor: Frank Wegner Donnelly