Patents
US 11967229 B1: Systems and methods for monitoring vehicular traffic
- Granted
- 2024-04-23
- Filed
- 2020-04-20 application 16853200
- Type
- Utility · 20 claims
- Elsewhere
- Google Patents ↗ · USPTO patent document ↗ · USPTO Patent Center record ↗
Abstract
A traffic monitoring system has a controller and sensors placed in or on roads such that vehicles pass over or near the sensors, thereby casting shadows on the sensors as they pass. The sensors may be configured to detect the shadows, and a controller may be configured to determine any of a variety of information about the passing vehicles based on the detected shadows. For example, the controller may count the number of vehicles that pass, determine a speed of each passing vehicle, and determine a length of each passing vehicle. The sensors can be relatively inexpensive so that a relatively large number of sensors can be used to monitor a large area at a relatively low cost. In some embodiments, solar cells are used to power the sensors, and if desired, the solar cells may be used as the sensors for detecting the shadows of the vehicles being monitored.
Source: PVGPATDIS, file of 2026-04-10 (ipg240423.xml).
Assignees
| Assignee | Type | Place | Also on furp.org | Source |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Board of Trustees of the Univeristy of Alabama, for and on behalf of the University of Alabama in Huntsville 88 patents | US company or organization | Huntsville, AL | PVGPATDIS, file of 2026-04-10 |
Inventors
| Inventor | Place | Patents | Person page | Source |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Biswajit Ray | Huntsville, AL | 34 | PVGPATDIS, file of 2026-04-10 |
CPC categories
| Subclass | Category | First group | Source |
|---|---|---|---|
| G08G | Traffic control systems | G08G1/0116 | PVGPATDIS, file of 2026-04-10 |
| H02S | Generation of electric power by conversion of infrared radiation, visible light or ultraviolet light, e.g. using photovoltaic [pv] modules | H02S20/21 | PVGPATDIS, file of 2026-04-10 |
Cooperative Patent Classification, as currently assigned (one row per subclass).
Assignments and security interests
| Recorded | What | From | To | Reel/frame | Source |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2021-11-09 | Assignment Assignment of assignor's interest | RAY, BISWAJIT signed 2021-11-04 | BOARD OF TRUSTEES OF THE UNIVERSITY OF ALABAMA, FOR AND ON BEHALF OF THE UNIVERSITY OF ALABAMA IN HUNTSVILLE HUNTSVILLE, AL | 58066/608 | ECORSEXC, file of 2026-09-25 |
Documents recorded with the USPTO Assignment Recordation Branch that list this patent. A security interest is a lender’s claim on the patent as collateral; a release ends it.
USPTO bulk data: PatentsView granted patents, disambiguated (PVGPATDIS) for patents, assignees, inventors, places and CPC categories; the USPTO Patent Assignment Dataset (ECORSEXC) for assignments and security interests. Patents filed in the last 20 years. No claims or full text. Links to other records are by name (and state): EXACT means the identical full name and state; FUZZY means a looser name match, with the confidence shown.