SUSPENDED COACH DRIVE BOGIE

Abstract

A suspended coach drive bogie advantageously provides several enhancements to existing systems, including junction switching, higher speeds, reserved energy storage for emergency operations and for assistance with meeting peak grid electrical load demand, cooperative computing with multiple bogies, and self-diagnostics of the bogies which serves to make systems employing the same more reliable, faster, safer, and more energy efficient than other automated people movers.

Description

CROSS REFERENCE TO RELATED PATENT APPLICATIONS

The present invention is related to, and claims priority to U.S. Provisional Patent Application Ser. Nos. 61/726,281 filed Nov. 14, 2012 and 61/736,263 filed Dec. 12, 2012, the disclosures of which are herein specifically incorporated by this reference in their entirety. The present invention is further related to the subject matter of U.S. patent application Ser. No. (SWIFT002) for “Suspended Coach Transit System” filed on even date herewith and assigned to the assignee of the present invention, the disclosure of which is herein specifically incorporated by this reference in its entirety.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

The present invention relates, in general, to the field of suspended monorails, also known as hanging trains or suspended coaches.

Hanging trains are used to carry passengers, and in some cases, freight. They utilize a fixed guide way from which passenger coaches or containers are suspended. There is most commonly an electric motor powering a bogie, which incorporates drive wheels that are used to propel the coaches along the guide way. The motors and wheels are integrated into the bogies, which travel along with the coaches. The electricity used to power the motors and wheels is generally made available to the motors through a system of bus-bars and shoes or brushes. In systems from the late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries, the drive wheels and electric motors were exposed to the weather, and the drive wheels rode on a single iron rail. In later systems, the bogies were enclosed within the guide ways, with the wheels driving on a set of internal guide way tracks.

The earliest operating suspended monorail that is still in service today was designed by Carl Eugen Langen for use in Wuppertal, Germany (1901). This German system utilized a single rail, similar to those found on conventional rail lines, and a set of wheels that ride on the single overhead rail. The passenger coaches hang, balanced directly beneath the overhead rail. A set of electric motors is connected to the wheels to propel the vehicles. This system currently carries about 75,000 riders per day on a dual-track, bidirectional route up and down the Wuppertal valley.

During the mid-twentieth century, a new approach was developed in which the bogies are concealed within a fixed guide way structure. The guide way is a rectilinear, hollow structural member incorporating a continuous slot opening in the bottom side. The electrically-powered bogies are completely contained within the guide way, except for a hinge affixed to the bogies aligned with, and accessible through, the slot in the bottom of the guide way. Passenger coaches are fastened to the hinges, thus allowing the coaches to swing in response to gravity and centrifugal forces acting on the coaches as the coaches travel around curved portions of the guide way. The bogies ride on two rails, or tracks: one on each side of the slot in the guide way structure.

For these systems, electrical bus-bars and connecting electrical shoes carry electrical power to the bogies. Motors use the electrical power to propel the coaches, and to provide lighting and door actuation on board the coaches.

Some of the suspended coach systems currently in operation are automated and do not use an operator or conductor to regulate the coach movement or communicate with passengers. These systems are part of a larger group known as automated people movers. Automated people movers, as a designation, also includes non-suspended technologies where the coaches or trains use rubber or steel wheels and ride on concrete or steel tracks respectively.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

Hanging trains, or suspended coaches, have been in service for more than a century. This mode of transit offers smoother and safer passenger service than any of the well-known, grade level modes. The hanging of a passenger coach allows it to swing while rounding a curve, thus keeping the passengers in equilibrium. Because the coaches are elevated above grade, there is little chance of their colliding with pedestrians or other vehicles. In comparison to previous generations of the technology, the present invention provides technical improvements to the drive bogies, from which the coaches are hung, and which are also the means of propulsion.

The present invention advantageously provides several enhancements to existing systems, including junction switching, higher speeds, reserved energy storage for emergency operations and for assistance with meeting peak grid electrical load demand, cooperative computing with multiple bogies, and self-diagnostics of the bogies. The present invention serves to make systems employing the same more reliable, faster, safer, and more energy efficient than other automated people movers.

In particular, the inventions disclosed are applicable to the bogies, which generally have four wheels and one or more electric motor(s). The bogies are fastened to the passenger coaches through a hinge aligned with, and passing through, a slot in the bottom of the guide way.

Although the designation of “suspended monorail” may not be strictly accurate since there are actually two rails within the guide way, the name tends to be used synonymously with “hanging train” and “suspended train”. In the earlier incarnations of this mode of transit, there was generally more than just a single coach, and thus the reference to “train” would be appropriate. As for the inventions disclosed in the present application, only single coaches are disclosed and illustrated for the sake of clarity, and thus they do not strictly qualify as “trains”. Thus, for the sake of accuracy the designation of “suspended coach” will be used throughout the specification. The disclosed suspended coach technologies fall within the industry known as automated people movers (APM), which are commonly found at airports, campuses as well as in public transit.

The inventions disclosed in the present application cover several features related to the bogies used on modern suspended coach transit systems. In general, the bogie is electrically powered and rides on four or more wheels. A bogie as disclosed herein incorporates an embedded central processing unit in addition to a means for storing energy. Although the bogies' primary purpose is to carry coaches, it will also be appreciated that they can also operate without the attachment of a coach or any other device.

In all known conventional systems, switches are used to cause a coach or train to continue on the right or left guide way upon reaching a junction. Switched junctions are mechanical devices that move the rails within the guide ways, or move sections of the guide ways, in order to divert the bogies and their hanging trains in a desired direction. A bogie in accordance with the present invention need not use or require such switched junctions, but rather the bogie itself is operative to select either the right or left guide way at a junction. Essentially then, the bogie is steerable at junctions within the guide way.

Conventional systems also usually use either steel/iron wheels or rubber tires that ride on a steel/iron track or concrete track respectively. In accordance with a representative embodiment of the present invention there is incorporated a resilient composite tread affixed to a composite wheel. The track can be stainless steel with a predetermined coating to maximize its useful life. The wheel tread and guide way track are engineered to ensure the long term life of the track at the expense of the tread.

It is also envisioned that the present invention may include service bogies that will be used to travel though the guide ways without coaches attached. The primary purpose of the service bogie is to provide assistance to disabled bogies and their associated passenger or freight coaches. The service bogies can join with a stranded bogie to supply electrical energy or propulsion assistance. In some cases a service bogie can be used to assist a fully functioning bogie up or down a steep incline. Service bogies can operate automatically or autonomously to assist in these situations. Service bogies can also be outfitted with tools to provide maintenance or repair to the guide way tubes, and to record and otherwise document the conditions inside and outside the guide ways. This may include a service of recording or transmitting information related to ambient conditions in the vicinity. Since the bogies can operate independently of coaches, they can carry a collection of other devices including other robotic devices that can be dispatched throughout the guide way network, as needed.

In addition to monitoring conditions of the guide ways and the surrounding area, the bogies may advantageously monitor and report on their own internal conditions. This may include such things as motor currents, voltages, and internal impedances to analyze the motor's state of readiness for its tasks. Motor current can be used to determine the amount of torque the wheels can accept prior to slipping, to ascertain the quality of the wheel and track interface.

The bogies can also receive commands from, and report their locations and conditions to, a control center or other elements in the system. The control center can function to coordinate all the bogies within its command area. The bogies can also communicate directly to other bogies, whether remote or in their immediate vicinity. This may be done, for example, to check and confirm commands received from the control center, to ensure against adverse effects of a cyber-attack, and to be ready in case of a loss of communications from the control center. If there is a loss of communications from the control center, then the bogies may be provided with the ability to communicate among themselves to coordinate a course of action. Actions may include an orderly movement of the bogies to nearby locations for passengers to disembark, or continued operations with the bogies acting autonomously. This protocol may be generally known as “swarm computing”.

Each bogie may also be enabled to carry a predetermined amount of electrical energy storage on-board. The on-board energy storage means may be electrochemical batteries, large (super) capacitors, and/or other means such as flywheels and fuel-cells and the like. The electrical energy stored in the bogies may serve as a buffer for uphill grade application or with respect to the varying voltages of the supply electricity during a peak electrical load time of day, as well as any short-term interruptions of the supply electricity. This stored energy will allow the bogie to control its demand on the supply electricity and ultimately on the power grid. In some cases the bogies in an area may coordinate their demand on the grid with the use of their stored energy in order to limit the system-wide power levels. The supply electricity may be connected to the guide ways from different points throughout a network, and thus each different electrical grid connection could be kept isolated from the others. The stored energy is intended to enable a bogie to move from one segment of the supply electricity to another without a loss of motive power.

Many other inventions and improvements are disclosed in the detailed description of the representative embodiments disclosed below.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

The aforementioned and other features and objects of the present invention and the manner of attaining them will become more apparent and the invention itself will be best understood by reference to the following description of a preferred embodiment taken in conjunction with the accompanying drawings, wherein:

FIG. 1 is an illustration of a representative embodiment of a bogie in accordance with the present invention inside of a guide way (shown in phantom) having a coach hanging beneath.

DESCRIPTION OF A REPRESENTATIVE EMBODIMENT

With reference now to FIG. 1, a steerable bogie 12, a guide way 14 (in phantom lines) and a coach 10 hanging beneath are shown. In this representative embodiment the bogie 12 rides on four traction wheels 16, which ride on the tracks 28 of the guide way 14. Centering wheels 34 are used to keep the bogie 12 centered within the guide way 14. Directional wheels 32 are mounted on the top of the bogie 12 and are used to force the bogie 12 either to the right or to the left as the bogie 12 approaches a junction in the guide way 14. The directional wheels 32 can exert a force against the walls of the guide way 14 or against the electrical bus-bar 38 channel walls.

In the representative embodiment illustrated, two electric motors are incorporated in the bogie 12 to drive the traction wheels. The motors may drive the traction wheels 16 through a chain, belt, gears or other suitable means. The motors are also capable of producing electrical power when driven by the traction wheels, as during regenerative braking. The traction wheels 16 have a tread 36 formulated to maintain a high level of friction with the guide way track 28 during all weather conditions. The tread 36 may advantageously be engineered to wear before the track 28. The tread 36 and track 28 contact surfaces are designed to center the traction wheel 16 during straight-line travel, and to normalize the track 28 length to the rolling circumference of the traction wheels 16 as the bogie 12 travels on curved guide way 14 sections. Curved sections of guide way 14 will preferably be “banked” such that the slot will face outward to allow the coach 10 to swing in an outward direction, still keeping the position of the traction wheels 16 in the track 28 centers within the guide way.

The bogie 12 in accordance with an embodiment of the present invention incorporates a means for energy storage, which may be electrochemical batteries, super capacitors, flywheels or fuel cells. The energy storage 26 is centered in the middle of the bogie 12 and is fed electricity from the electrical bus-bar 38 via the electrical shoes 22, or through the use of regenerative braking. The electrical bus-bar 38 may be discontinuous within the guide way, as required to manage grid voltage levels throughout segregated portions of the grid.

A microprocessor 30 is incorporated into the bogie, along with a collection of sensors. Sensors may be provided to monitor: current, voltage, temperature, machine vision, humidity, turn coordination, and other functions as may be necessary for optimal system operation. The microprocessor 30 also handles communications with the control center and with other bogies 12, whether remote or in the general vicinity. Communications may be implemented via fiber optic cable which can be installed in the upper portion of the guide way 14 posterior to, directly adjacent to, or longitudinally aligned with, the electrical bus-bar 38. Communications between the bogies 12 and fiber-optic cable, can be by radio or other appropriate media. Communications with the other bogies 12 can be by way of radio using a standard protocol, which might include Zigbee, IEEE 802, or any other short range radio protocol, intra-swarm computation over the fiber optic cable, cellular communication or other near field communication technique.

In some instances, specialized service bogies 12 can be used to provide another service other than carrying coaches. Service bogies 12 may conveniently carry effectors such as towing appendages, automatic electrical power connections, guide way 14 cleaning devices, and guide way 14 maintenance or repair tools.

As illustrated an enclosure 24 covers the mechanical parts of the bogies, primarily to reduce aerodynamic drag. The enclosure 24 may be made of a high thermal transfer/conductive material and functions as a heat transfer radiator to cool the heat transfer liquid from the motors and the motor controllers. Copper tubing may be bonded to the underside of the enclosure 24 to facilitate rapid heat transfer to the enclosure 24 from the heat transfer fluid.

An alternative embodiment of the present invention may include powerful permanent and electro magnets, which are capable of lifting the mass of the coaches and passengers. The magnets would be affixed to the top portions of the bogies 12 and near the upper surface of the guide way. This magnetic levitation can be installed on the bogies 12 without any modifications to the guide ways, and can enable achievement of high speeds without creating drag through the use of traction wheels. The maglev embodiment can be used where wheel speed and rolling resistance are too limiting, and where higher speeds are desired over all or just selected portions of the system.

As shown in the representative embodiment of FIG. 1, the steerable drive bogie 12 rides on four or more traction wheels, and is enclosed within the guide way 14 tube. The traction wheels 16 ride on the inside of the guide way, on what might be referred to as a concave track 28 element. The bogie 12 is kept centered in the guide way 14 by the centering wheels 34. The centering wheels 34 function primarily when a larger than normal force acts on the coach 10 in such a way as to force the traction wheels 16 out of their self-centering tracks. The hinge 18 affixed to the bottom of the bogie 12 carries the coach 10 and allows the coach 10 to swing as necessary as it rounds a curve. This swinging of the coach 10 around corners provides the passengers with a dynamically stable ride as the force of gravity and the centrifugal forces are balanced. For curved sections of guide way 14 where higher speeds are anticipated, the guide way 14 may be advantageously banked such that the track 28 within the guide way, and the slot in the bottom of the guide way 14, are aligned with the resultant force vector due to gravity and centrifugal accelerations.

The directional wheels 32 provide directional control of the bogie 12 as it enters junctions within the guide ways. The junctions are static components within the network of guide ways, and thus do not have any moving components. In the embodiment illustrated, the directional wheel 32 rides against the inside of the guide way 14 that carries the electrical bus-bars 38. The bus-bars and the directional wheel 32 are separated by a vertical wall section of the steel comprising the guide way. The vertical walls that house the electrical bus-bars 38 traverse through the junctions, either combining or diverging. The directional wheels 32 on one side of the electrical bus-bar 38 housing will lower to disengage from the electrical bus-bar 38 housing, while the directional wheels 32 on the opposite side of the electrical bus-bar 38 housing maintains engagement. This differential wheel action causes the bogie 12 to move in the direction of the engaged directional wheels 32 and thus route for the associated direction at that junction. Other articulated means may be employed or substituted to assist or achieve the steerability of the bogie.

The two electric motors installed on each bogie 12 provide the tractive power needed to accelerate and otherwise propel the bogie 12 and the bogie's associated coach. Two motors are incorporated in the representative embodiment illustrated to increase reliability and obviate the need for the provision of a transmission in the event a single motor were utilized to drive all of the traction wheels. When the ambient weather conditions are correct for a reduction of traction between the traction wheels 16 and the guide way track 28, the motors can be used to ascertain the friction at the interface. By driving one motor 20 with a different torque than the other motor, the track 28 adhesion can be measured by determining the amount of torque that can be maintained prior to slippage of the traction wheels 16 against the track, and bogie 12 speeds can then be adjusted to ensure proper braking distances are maintained. The electric motors can use regenerative braking to recover the electrical energy for storage in the energy storage 26 equipment, or for feeding back into the electrical grid as may be programmed at control center.

The material selected for the traction wheels 16 may be of a composite that will provide the strength, service life, and resilience necessary for years of service. The composite may comprise a brass and carbon matrix with a polymeric stiffening/bonding agent. The tread 36 material on each traction wheel 16 will be selected for high adhesion to the track 28 balanced against a low rolling resistance. A possible tread 36 material could be polyurethane. Other attributes of the material are long wear with very little deposition of lost material onto the guide way 14 tracks, and the property of wearing out before the tracks themselves to provide for longer service life of the guide way tracks 28.

The track 28 may have a concave structure to create a centering force on the traction wheels. The tracks 28 may also be shaped to allow different portions of the traction wheels 16 to ride on different portions of the tracks 28 as the bodies move through curved portions of the guide way. By changing the contact circumferences of where the traction wheels 16 meet the track 28, the traction wheels 16 can always be forced to travel the same track 28 interface distances and not require a differential between the traction wheels 16 on either side of the bogie 12 as the bogie 12 negotiates guide way 14 curves.

As described previously, electrical energy may be stored in an electrochemical battery, capacitors, flywheels or any other appropriate and acceptable means. The stored electrical energy may be used to provide backup to the electrical grid connections, and also may be used to manage the level of powered demanded by the bogies. Limiting the power demand reduces the load on the electrical grid infrastructure, including the need to build more electrical power plants.

In case the electrical grid experiences an interruption of service and cannot supply electrical power for a short or extended period of time, then the energy stored in the bogie's electrical energy storage 26 can be used to continue the operation of the bogies 12 and the coaches. If the power outage is short then the bogies 12 will use only a fraction of their stored electrical energy, and if the power outage is extended then the bogies 12 will use that portion of their stored energy to take the coaches to a point where any passengers can be allowed to disembark.

The electrical energy supplied to power the bogies 12 is by way of a direct connection to the electrical grid. Normally, high voltage distribution lines carry the electricity throughout a region, and transformers are used to step the voltage down to a level used by commercial buildings and factories. The electrical voltage required to power the bogies 12 is the same or similar to the voltages used by these commercial buildings and factories. Common voltage transformers may be placed throughout the installed guide way 14 loops or networks to feed electrical energy into the electrical bus-bars 38 inside of the guide ways. Each transformer may be restricted from supplying power to a section of bus-bar that is also powered by a different transformer. This sectioned grid differentiation creates the need to isolate the sections of bus-bar, and then creates a need for the bogies 12 to transition electrically dead segments of the bus-bars, During travel through these dead zones, the bogies 12 will use the electrical energy stored in their on-board electrical energy storage 26 units.

The electrical energy regained through regenerative braking of the bogies 12 will be stored in the electrical energy storage 26 units. In some cases the stored electrical energy can be fed back through an inverter to power the grid as called for or as programmed. This power give-back may be done to lower regional power demand and thus minimize or obviate the need for more electrical infrastructure.

Each bogie 12 houses an embedded microprocessor 30 to perform the following functions:

1. Self-diagnostics to monitor the bogie's internal operations. This may include motor 20 temperatures, motor 20 currents, motor 20 voltages, electrical energy storage 26 level, microprocessor 30 temperatures, traction wheel 16 speeds, motor 20 coolant flow, motor 20 controller temperatures, internal memory, and any other useful data that the microprocessor 30 can use to ensure the continued operation and viability of the bogie.
2. Situational awareness will be monitored to determine the precise location, speed, ambient conditions including winds and temperatures, condition of the guide way 14 and the surrounding areas, coordination of gravity verses centrifugal forces, mass of passengers or cargo in the coach, and track 28 surface conditions.
3. Use of infrared cameras or other means can provide passenger count to monitor fares and to provide the microprocessor 30 the information needed to determine a course of action if there is an emergency. In emergency situations, the bogies 12 in the local area will use their passenger counts to coordinate their actions in moving their passengers to safety.
4. The bogies 12 within a region can be in communication with each other to coordinate their actions, and to validate commands received from the control center. The bogies 12 can contest commands from the control center if the commands appear to be the results of a cyber-attack and the other bogies 12 in the region agree. The microprocessor 30 will also monitor regional situations that may be the results of vandalism or other cyber-attacks.
5. Predictive behavior modeling and situational awareness sensors' data can be processed in real time or asynchronously in order to optimize the status, energy efficiency, reliability and mission completion for the bogies 12 individually and as a swarm.

The communications between the control centers and the bogies 12 may employ fiber optics, which can be laid in the upper portion of the guide way 14 above the electrical bus-bars 38. This fiber optic network can also be employed for non-bogie communications as an additional revenue stream to the implementers of the present invention-based devices and system. Communications between the bogies 12 and control centers, and between and among individual bogies, can use any available radio protocol such as Zigbee or IEEE 802, or other communication technologies as has been previously described.

Communications among a number of bogies 12 in an area will allow the bogies 12 to identify and validate communications from the control center, and to coordinate their activities if communications from the control centers are lost. Such communications will facilitate swarm computing. In situations where communications with the control center are lost, the bogies 12 will process the available data and generate solutions for the coordinated actions from all the local bogies 12 such that an authorized individual can take control of a swarm directly without being at the control center in appropriate circumstances.

The service bogies 12 are essentially normal bogies 12 with any number of modifications, attachments or effectors. Their primary purpose is to assist stranded bogies 12 (and any coaches) with supplemental electrical power, or to tow or push them. Additionally, a service bogie 12 may assist other loaded bogies 12 up and down steep grades, or may provide additional power for achieving higher speeds. The grade assistance can be rendered without the need to stop the coach-carrying bogie. The service bogie 12 can travel at high speeds then slow down to match speeds with the destination loaded bogie. Once speeds are matched, the service bogie 12 can hook up with the loaded bogie 12 without any interruption of service. Once over the steep grade, the service bogies 12 can disengage and quickly pursue another loaded bogie, perhaps coming from the opposite direction, to help it over the grade. The hook up may be effectuated by magnetic or mechanical coupling or a combination of both techniques.

Service bogies 12 can also monitor, maintain, and repair the guide way as well as monitor the surrounding environment as may be desired. Tools and effectors can be fitted as needed to clean the tracks 28 or weld cracks. They can also perform track 28 surface friction testing before sending loaded bogies 12 in to a section. They can provide supplemental communications and monitor the guide ways, towers, and surrounding areas for any obstructions that may hinder the travel of the coaches. Vision systems can be installed on the service bogies 12 to monitor anomalies found in different recordings of the guide way 14 interiors, Additionally, custom service bogies 12 can be fitted with specialized equipment and hired out to organizations needing particular data and images.

Aerodynamic enclosures cover most of the bogie 12 and function to cut the aerodynamic drag significantly, reducing total energy consumption, and reducing the power needed to achieve higher speeds. By using the surface of the enclosure 24 as a heat exchanger, the motors and motor controllers can be liquid-cooled without the additional aerodynamic drag normally associated with common radiator-style heat exchangers. The cooling liquid from the motors and motor controllers will pass through tubes that are thermally connected to the enclosure. The hotter liquid will enter the enclosure 24 heat exchanger on the downwind end of the bogie 12 and return to the motors and motor controllers from the upwind, or leading end. This path for the heat transfer liquid can be designed in such a way as to produce a constant delta T (difference in temperatures between the air and the enclosure 24 surface) over the length, from back to front, of the enclosure. Minimizing this delta T maximizes the efficiency of the heat exchanger.

Free-ranging bogies 12 are bogies 12 without coaches or other duties that travel, unseen, throughout the guide way 14 network until they are assigned a duty. They are dispatched from the control center as needed. Some free-ranging bogies 12 may carry sky crane lifting actuators and be sent out to pick up odd shaped freight items to transport them to some other location.

Briefly, what has been disclosed is a number of improvements and enhancements that can be applied to hanging coaches, hanging trains, or suspended monorails. The techniques and apparatus disclosed herein will provide transit system products that are faster, safer, more energy efficient, more reliable, and more useful than existing conventional systems.

While there have been described above the principles of the present invention in conjunction with specific apparatus, it is to be clearly understood that the foregoing description is made only by way of example and not as a limitation to the scope of the invention. Particularly, it is recognized that the teachings of the foregoing disclosure will suggest other modifications to those persons skilled in the relevant art. Such modifications may involve other features which are already known per se and which may be used instead of or in addition to features already described herein. Although claims have been formulated in this application to particular combinations of features, it should be understood that the scope of the disclosure herein also includes any novel feature or any novel combination of features disclosed either explicitly or implicitly or any generalization or modification thereof which would be apparent to persons skilled in the relevant art, whether or not such relates to the same invention as presently claimed in any claim and whether or not it mitigates any or all of the same technical problems as confronted by the present invention. The applicants hereby reserve the right to formulate new claims to such features and/or combinations of such features during the prosecution of the present application or of any further application derived therefrom.

As used herein, the terms “comprises”, “comprising”, or any other variation thereof, are intended to cover a non-exclusive inclusion, such that a process, method, article, or apparatus that comprises a recitation of certain elements does not necessarily include only those elements but may include other elements not expressly recited or inherent to such process, method, article or apparatus. None of the description in the present application should be read as implying that any particular element, step, or function is an essential element which must be included in the claim scope and THE SCOPE OF THE PATENTED SUBJECT MATTER IS DEFINED ONLY BY THE CLAIMS AS ALLOWED. Moreover, none of the appended claims are intended to invoke paragraph six of 35 U.S.C. Sect. 112 unless the exact phrase “means for” is employed and is followed by a participle.

Claims

1. A drive bogie for travel inside an elevated guide way carrying a suspended coach through a slot in the underside of said guide way, said bogie comprising:

at least one electrically powered motor; and

means for storage of electrical energy for said motor gained by regenerative braking of said bogie.

2. The drive bogie of claim 1, wherein said means for storage of electrical energy may be utilized to provide power to said bogie in cases of normal supply electrical power failure.

3. The drive bogie of claim 1, wherein said stored electrical energy may be utilized to supplement power required by said bogie during acceleration.

4. The drive bogie of claim 1 wherein said bogie further comprises:

steering actuation means for enabling said bogie to divert in alternate directions at a junction in said guide way.

5. The drive bogie of claim 1 wherein said stored electrical energy may be utilized to provide power to an electrical grid.

6. The drive bogie of claim 1 wherein said bogie comprises two or more electric motors to provide tractive propulsion to the bogie in the event of a single motor failure.

7. The drive bogie of claim 6, wherein each of said two or more electric motors are capable of being driven at different speeds and torques in order to ascertain the traction forces between wheels respectively driven by said motors and said guide way.

8. The drive bogie of claim 1 wherein said electrically driven motor is configured to be excited to produce electrical power during deceleration and to assist in reducing the speed of the bogie as required.

9. The drive bogie of claim 1 wherein said bogie further comprises:

four or more wheels, each wheel incorporating a tread, and wherein said tread is in contact with guide way tracks inside of said guide way, respective shapes of said tread and said track serving to center said tread in said track at higher velocities of said bogie.

10. The drive bogie of claim 1 wherein said bogie further comprises:

a microprocessor and associated sensors, to compile data and enable autonomous operation of said bogie.

11. The drive bogie of claim 10 wherein said microprocessor is configured to perform self-diagnostics concerning the conditions of components and systems within said bogie, a coach attached to said bogie and other systems associated with the fixed guide way.

12. The drive bogie of claim 10 wherein said microprocessor is configured to determine a location of said bogie and utilize information relative to said location during diagnostic analysis and while in communications with other bogies.

13. The drive bogie of claim 10 wherein said microprocessor is configured to analyze data received from said sensors and determine traction force and friction force between bogie wheel tread and guide way track, and determine specific actions to be taken based on said analysis.

14. The drive bogie of claim 10 wherein said microprocessor is configured to initiate actions designed to protect internal systems, components, and passengers in the event of a cyber-attack.

15. The drive bogie of claim 1 wherein said bogie is configured to communicate with a control center and other bogies to coordinate actions.

16. A service bogie for travel inside an elevated, fixed guide way through a slot in the underside of said guide way, said service bogie comprising:

at least one electrically powered motor; and

means for coupling said service bogie to other bogies traveling in said guide way to provide additional motive force thereto.

17. The service bogie of claim 16 wherein said service bogie is configured to perform measurements and gather data related to one or more of track conditions of said guide way, conditions of said guide way, communications quality, tower conditions, ambient weather conditions, other non-guide way conditions or obstruction monitoring.

18. The service bogie of claim 17 wherein said service bogie is configured to effectuate repair operations to said guide way, said guide way components and towers from which said guide way is suspended.

19. The drive bogie of claim 1 wherein said bogie further comprises:

an enclosure having a configuration serving to reduce aerodynamic drag of said bogie.

20. The drive bogie of claim 1 wherein said enclosure is functional as a fluid-to-air heat exchanger.