Not Applicable
Not Applicable
This invention relates in general to highways and in particular to highway markings.
With the steady increase in the number of motor vehicles, highways are becoming more congested. At the same time, continual design improvements have resulted in significant ride and sound deadening enhancements to motor vehicles, while available engine horsepower has generally increased. Such improvements in the vehicles may result in higher speed operation without the operator sensing the increased speed. As a result, vehicle operators need to be increasingly attentive to the traffic conditions surrounding their vehicles. Nevertheless, drivers are known to follow other vehicles too closely, especially during rush hour traffic conditions, which can lead to multiple vehicle accidents.
In the past, many beginning vehicle operators have been taught to use a car-length rule for establishing a following distance for the vehicle immediately ahead. The car-length rule provides a space between the operator's vehicle and the vehicle ahead of one car length for every ten mph on the speedometer of the operator's vehicle. However, the car-length rule is no longer recommended because car lengths are difficult to estimate, nearly impossible to visualize when moving, and the rule may not provide enough space. For example, under the rule, six car lengths at 60 mph provides roughly 108 feet of space. At 60 mph, the reaction time for an alert vehicle operator consumes 60 to 130 feet. For a typical vehicle operator, who is often distracted by other factors such a cell phone or the broadcast being received over his vehicle radio, the reaction time may consume closer to 135 feet. Thus, with the car-length rule, after the vehicle operator reacts to the action of the vehicle ahead, there may be little or no time left to act.
Because of the problems described above, the car-length rule has generally been replaced by a two second rule that states that a vehicle operator should maintain at least two seconds of following distance. Application of the two second rule requires that the vehicle operator note when the vehicle immediately ahead passes an object, such as a sign post and then mentally count the elapsed time before his vehicle passes the same object. If less than two seconds pass, the operator does not have adequate space between his vehicle and the one ahead. Two seconds of following distance at 60 mph provides over 176 feet of pavement to react and respond. While it is necessary for the operator to respond quickly, it can be done under normal circumstances. However, application of the two second rule may be cumbersome and distracting to the vehicle operator. At best, the two second rule is applied intermittently (if at all) while driving. Accordingly, it would be desirable to provide a simple device to aid vehicle operators in maintaining spacing between their own and other vehicles on a continuous basis.
This invention relates to highway markings that aid vehicle operators in maintaining adequate and safe vehicle spacing for the posted speed limit on the road segment on which they are traveling.
The invention contemplates a highway marking that consists of a plurality of markers with the markers having a spacing or length that is a function of a desired assured safe following distance for the road. The safe following distance is determined from physical and/or environmental road conditions which are considered when determining a speed limit for the road. One embodiment of the invention utilizes a segmented stripe painted upon a surface of a road with each of the stripe segments having a length that is equal to the safe following distance from the preceding vehicle. Another embodiment of the invention utilizes a markers placed along a road with each of the markers separated the safe following distance.
The present invention also contemplates a method for maintaining a safe distance between a first and a second motor vehicle that includes providing a plurality of markers with the markers separated by a length that is function of the desired assured safe following distance for the road. The speed of the second motor vehicle is adjusted if the vehicles are not separated by at least the distance separating two adjacent markers. One embodiment of the invention utilizes segmented stripes having the length of each segment being a function of the desired assured safe following distance for the road. For this embodiment, the speed of the second motor vehicle is adjusted if the vehicles are not separated by at least the length of one of the stripe segments
Various objects and advantages of this invention will become apparent to those skilled in the art from the following detailed description of the preferred embodiment, when read in light of the accompanying drawings.
The present invention is intended to enhance traffic safety by encouraging the continuous awareness of adequate following space between a vehicle and an immediately preceding vehicle that provides an adequate reaction time for the operator of a following vehicle to avoid collisions. As such, the present invention also facilitates the application of the two second rule.
Referring now to the drawings, there is illustrated in
One embodiment of the present invention contemplates replacing the continuous road marking stripe 10 shown in
The present invention contemplates that the length of the segments 22, 24, 26 and 28 are determined by road physical and/or environmental conditions. Road physical conditions include factors such as the safe or optimal following distance for the road segment as determined by the highway engineers. Thus, the length of line segments may change based upon the road surface coefficient of friction, as determined by the pavement material; i.e., concrete or asphalt, grade, visibility around curves, and desired road capacity. Environmental conditions include potential traffic congestion and distractions. Thus, a road in Montana, which is sparsely settled may well have longer line segments than a road in downtown Los Angeles where the traffic will be more dense. Distractions, which may occur along scenic roadways, may require longer segments to allow drivers more reaction time to stop since they may be looking off to the sides of the roads. Typically, both physical and environmental conditions are considered in selecting the posted speed limit. Accordingly, the invention also contemplates correlating the segment lengths to the posted speed limit.
In the embodiment of the invention illustrated in
L=(S miles/hr.)*5,280 feet/mile*( 1/3,600)hrs./second*T seconds;
where: L is the segment length in feet;
S is the speed limit for the portion of road in miles per hour,
5,280 is a conversion factor to convert miles to feet;
1/3,600 is a conversion factor to convert hours to seconds; and
T is a calibration time period in seconds, which would be two seconds for the two second rule stated above.
As an example of the above formula, if it is desired to calibrate the segment lengths L for a posted speed limit of 60 miles per hour and a calibration time period of two seconds, the above equation yields:
L=60*5,280*( 1/3600)*2=176 feet,
as shown in
As shown in
The use of the segmented road marking stripe 20 will now be described. As shown in
If the vehicles 18 and 40 are to remain separated by a safe distance, the leading vehicle 40 will be entering the beginning of the next segment 28 before the following vehicle 18 exits the segment labeled 24, as illustrated by the positions of the vehicles shown in
Continuing with the above example, if the vehicle operator of the following vehicle 18 finds that his vehicle is within the length of the same segment occupied by the leading vehicle 40, then the distance between vehicles is less that the safe distance. Additionally, the following vehicle 18 may be traveling faster that warranted by the physical and/or environmental road conditions. When such a situation exists, the distance between vehicles may be decreasing. This situation is illustrated in
Conversely, if the following vehicle 18 is more than one segment behind the leading vehicle 40, and the leading vehicle is traveling at a safe speed, the following vehicle is traveling below the safe speed and falling further behind the other vehicle 40. This situation is illustrated in
Heavier vehicles, such as loaded trucks, generally require a much greater stopping distance than automobiles. As such trucks usually use a 4 second rule. Accordingly, the present invention contemplates that a truck operator would maintain at least two segments between his truck and a leading vehicle (not shown).
While a two second calibration time period is used to scale the length of the marking segments in the above examples, it will be appreciated that the use was intended to be exemplary and that the invention may be practiced utilizing other assured safe stopping distances as determined by highway engineering references as illustrated by the alternate embodiment 50 of the marking stripe having segments 52 shown in
It will be appreciated that the lengths of the stripe segments shown in
While the embodiment of the invention described above contemplates painting the segmented stripes along the side of a road, the invention also may be practiced by painting calibrated segments 60 along center of the road as shown in
While the above embodiments above have been illustrated and described as utilizing segmented marking strips, the invention also contemplates use of other markers. For example, as shown in
Alternately, the reflective markers that are spaced apart by assured safe following distance may be mounted along the center line of the road or placed within the road lanes (not shown). In another embodiment, the vertically extending markers 64, as illustrated in
The use of calibrated segments or marker spacing would also assist the enforcement of the speed limit. By noting the time needed by a vehicle to transverse one of the segments, a law enforcement office may estimate the speed of a vehicle. Thus, for the example shown in
While the invention has been illustrated and described with reference to English units of measure, the invention also may be practiced utilizing metric units of measure, in which case the equations given above become:
L=(S km/hr.)*1,000 meters/km*( 1/3,600)hrs./second*T seconds;
where: L is the segment length in meters;
S is the speed limit for the portion of road in kilometers per hour,
1,000 is a conversion factor to convert kilometers to meters;
1/3,600 is a conversion factor to convert hours to seconds; and
T is again a calibration time period in seconds.
In accordance with the provisions of the patent statutes, the principle and mode of operation of this invention have been explained and illustrated in its preferred embodiment. However, it must be understood that this invention may be practiced otherwise than as specifically explained and illustrated without departing from its spirit or scope.
Number | Name | Date | Kind |
---|---|---|---|
2338894 | Beebe | Jan 1944 | A |
3188927 | Woods | Jun 1965 | A |
3626413 | Zachmann | Dec 1971 | A |
3750099 | Proctor | Jul 1973 | A |
4030958 | Stenemann | Jun 1977 | A |
4227772 | Heenan | Oct 1980 | A |
4600913 | Caine | Jul 1986 | A |
5059061 | Stenemann et al. | Oct 1991 | A |
5235316 | Qualizza | Aug 1993 | A |
5249027 | Mathur et al. | Sep 1993 | A |
5293162 | Bachalo | Mar 1994 | A |
5516227 | Kozak et al. | May 1996 | A |
5572449 | Tang et al. | Nov 1996 | A |
5673039 | Pietzsch et al. | Sep 1997 | A |
6014601 | Gustafson | Jan 2000 | A |
6247872 | Marcato | Jun 2001 | B1 |
6413012 | Jones | Jul 2002 | B1 |
6679650 | Britt et al. | Jan 2004 | B2 |
6679702 | Rau | Jan 2004 | B1 |
7021857 | Van Der Poel | Apr 2006 | B2 |
7025525 | Van Der Poel | Apr 2006 | B2 |
7077600 | Whinery | Jul 2006 | B1 |
7147400 | Van Der Poel | Dec 2006 | B2 |
20020128881 | Wahlbin et al. | Sep 2002 | A1 |
20020140551 | Gutta et al. | Oct 2002 | A1 |
20030149521 | Minowa et al. | Aug 2003 | A1 |
20040003572 | Flowers | Jan 2004 | A1 |
20060177265 | Cummings et al. | Aug 2006 | A1 |
20070106475 | Kondoh | May 2007 | A1 |