System and method for associating wireless nodes of a consist

Abstract

A train control system enables rapid, reliable, and verifiable association of a mobile component carried by an operator with at least one of a device, feature, or short range transceiver located on one or more locomotives of one or more consists in a train. The train control system may include a mobile component configured to be carried by an operator from one of the locomotives to another in the one or more consists. The at least one of a device, feature, or short range transceiver and the mobile component may be configured to communicate with each other wirelessly when brought within a threshold distance or less from each other. The mobile component may be configured to exchange a unique identifier with each locomotive automatically or upon an action of the operator when the operator brings the mobile component to within the threshold distance or less of each of the one or more locomotives. The train control system may be configured to limit communication of wireless control commands or diagnostic information from a lead locomotive such that the commands or diagnostic information are communicated only to others of the one or more locomotives that have been verifiably identified as being associated with the lead locomotive by exchange of the unique identifier with the mobile component carried by the operator.

What is claimed is: 
     
         1 . A train control system configured to enable rapid, reliable, and verifiable association of a mobile component carried by an operator with at least one of a device, feature, or short range transceiver located on one or more locomotives of one or more consists in a train, the train control system comprising:
 the mobile component configured to be carried by an operator from one of the one or more locomotives to another of the one or more locomotives in the one or more consists in the train;   the at least one of a device, feature, or short range transceiver located on each of the one or more locomotives in the one or more consists in the train and the mobile component being configured to communicate with each other wirelessly when brought within a threshold distance or less from each other;   the mobile component being configured to communicate with each of the one or more locomotives and exchange a unique identifier associated with the one or more consists in the train or associated with a wireless network operational on the one or more consists;   the mobile component being configured to exchange the unique identifier with each of the one or more locomotives automatically or upon an action of the operator when the operator brings the mobile component to within the threshold distance or less of each of the one or more locomotives; and   the train control system being configured to limit communication of wireless control commands or diagnostic information from a lead locomotive of the one or more locomotives such that the commands or diagnostic information are communicated only to other locomotives of the one or more locomotives that have been verifiably identified as being associated with the lead locomotive by exchange of the unique identifier with the mobile component carried by the operator.   
     
     
         2 . The train control system of  claim 1 , wherein the at least one of a device, feature, or short range transceiver located on one or more locomotives of one or more consists in the train comprises a Bluetooth device. 
     
     
         3 . The train control system of  claim 1 , wherein the at least one of a device, feature, or short range transceiver located on one or more locomotives of one or more consists in the train comprises an Infrared (IR) device. 
     
     
         4 . The train control system of  claim 1 , wherein the at least one of a device, feature, or short range transceiver located on one or more locomotives of one or more consists in the train comprises a radio frequency identification (RFID) device. 
     
     
         5 . The train control system of  claim 1 , wherein the mobile component comprises a transceiver communicatively compatible with the at least one of a device, feature, or short range transceiver. 
     
     
         6 . The train control system of  claim 5 , wherein the mobile component comprises a radio frequency identification (RFID) card. 
     
     
         7 . The train control system of  claim 1 , wherein the mobile component is configured to exchange the unique identifier with each of the one or more locomotives upon the operator moving the mobile component to within the threshold distance or less of each of the one or more locomotives. 
     
     
         8 . The train control system of  claim 7 , wherein the mobile component is configured to exchange the unique identifier with each of the one or more locomotives upon the operator scanning a bar code located on each of the one or more locomotives with a bar code reader of the mobile component or presenting a bar code on the mobile component to a bar code scanner on each of the one or more locomotives. 
     
     
         9 . The train control system of  claim 1 , wherein the unique identifier comprises at least one of a Wi-Fi secured password or an employee identification. 
     
     
         10 . A method of rapidly, reliably and verifiably associating locomotives in a train with a lead locomotive of the train, the method comprising:
 carrying a mobile component to within a threshold distance or less from at least one of a device, feature, or short range transceiver located on one or more locomotives of one or more consists in the train;   wireles sly communicating between the at least one of a device, feature, or short range transceiver located on each of the one or more locomotives in the one or more consists in the train and the mobile component when the at least one of a device, feature, or short range transceiver and the mobile component are brought within the threshold distance or less from each other;   exchanging an identifier unique to the one or more consists in the train or unique to a wireless network associated with the one or more consists between the mobile component and each of the one or more locomotives, wherein the mobile component exchanges the unique identifier with each of the one or more locomotives automatically or upon an action of an operator when the operator brings the mobile component to within the threshold distance or less of each of the one or more locomotives; and   limiting communication of wireless control commands or diagnostic information from the lead locomotive of the one or more locomotives such that the commands or diagnostic information may be communicated only to others of the one or more locomotives that have been verifiably identified as being associated with the lead locomotive by exchange of the unique identifier with the mobile component carried by the operator.   
     
     
         11 . The method of  claim 10 , wherein the at least one of a device, feature, or short range transceiver located on one or more locomotives of one or more consists in the train comprises a Bluetooth device. 
     
     
         12 . The method of  claim 10 , wherein the at least one of a device, feature, or short range transceiver located on one or more locomotives of one or more consists in the train comprises an Infrared (IR) device. 
     
     
         13 . The method of  claim 10 , wherein the at least one of a device, feature, or short range transceiver located on one or more locomotives of one or more consists in the train comprises a radio frequency identification (RFID) device. 
     
     
         14 . The method of  claim 10 , wherein the mobile component comprises a transceiver communicatively compatible with the at least one of a device, feature, or short range transceiver. 
     
     
         15 . The method of  claim 14 , wherein the mobile component comprises a radio frequency identification (RFID) card. 
     
     
         16 . The method of  claim 10 , wherein the mobile component exchanges the unique identifier with each of the one or more locomotives upon the operator moving the mobile component to within the threshold distance or less of each of the one or more locomotives. 
     
     
         17 . The method of  claim 16 , wherein the mobile component exchanges the unique identifier with each of the one or more locomotives upon the operator scanning a bar code located on each of the one or more locomotives with a bar code reader of the mobile component or presenting a bar code on the mobile component to a bar code scanner on each of the one or more locomotives. 
     
     
         18 . The method of  claim 10 , wherein the unique identifier comprises at least one of a Wi-Fi secured password or an employee identification. 
     
     
         19 . A train control system configured to enable rapid, reliable, and verifiable association of a lead locomotive in a consist in a train over a first wireless network with a wireless node located on one or more other locomotives of one or more consists in the train, the train control system comprising:
 at least one of a mobile component configured to be carried by an operator from one of the one or more locomotives to another of the one or more locomotives in the one or more consists in the train, or a separate, second wireless network communicatively coupled to the one or more locomotives in the one or more consists in the train;   the wireless node located on each of the one or more locomotives in the one or more consists in the train and the at least one of the mobile component, or the separate, second wireless network being configured to communicate with each other wireles sly;   the mobile component and the separate, second wireless network being configured to exchange with each of the one or more locomotives an identifier unique to the one or more consists in the train or unique to the first wireless network;   the mobile component being configured to exchange the unique identifier with each of the one or more locomotives automatically or upon an action of the operator when the operator brings the mobile component to within the threshold distance or less of each of the one or more locomotives; and   the train control system being configured to limit communication of wireless control commands or diagnostic information from a lead locomotive of the one or more locomotives such that the commands or diagnostic information may be communicated only to others of the one or more locomotives that have been verifiably identified as being associated with the lead locomotive by exchange of the unique identifier with the mobile component carried by the operator or with the separate, second wireless network.   
     
     
         20 . The train control system of  claim 19 , wherein the mobile component is configured to exchange the unique identifier with each of the one or more locomotives upon the operator moving the mobile component to within the threshold distance or less of each of the one or more locomotives.