1. A method of evaluating a wheel, the method comprising:
illuminating a path along which the wheel is anticipated to move, wherein a length of the path is at least one circumference of the wheel and the wheel will rotate at least one full revolution as it moves along the path when operating properly;
obtaining image data for the wheel as it moves along the path, the image data including data on the wheel as it is located in a plurality of positions along the path, the plurality of positions including two positions on the path that are separated by at least one circumference of the wheel and a plurality of positions between the two positions; and
measuring at least one attribute of the wheel based on the image data.
2. The method of claim 1, further comprising determining whether at least one defect is present in the wheel based on the image data.
3. The method of claim 2, further comprising determining an operational status of the wheel when at least one defect is present.
4. The method of claim 1, wherein the illuminating step includes projecting a plurality of lines of light onto the path.
5. The method of claim 4, wherein each of the plurality of lines of light is substantially vertical.
6. The method of claim 1, further comprising detecting a presence of the wheel, wherein the illuminating and obtaining step are initiated based on the detected presence.
7. The method of claim 1, further comprising determining a speed of the wheel, wherein at least one of the illuminating and obtaining steps are adjusted based on the speed.
8. The method of claim 1, wherein the obtaining image data step includes emphasizing a vertical dimension of the image data.
9. A system for evaluating a wheel, the system comprising:
means for illuminating a path along which the wheel is anticipated to move, wherein a length of the path is at least one circumference of the wheel and the wheel will rotate at least one full revolution as it moves along the path when operating properly;
means for obtaining image data for the wheel as it moves along the path, the image data including data on the wheel as it is located in a plurality of positions along the path, the plurality of positions including two positions on the path that are separated by at least one circumference of the wheel and a plurality of positions between the two positions; and
means for measuring at least one attribute of the wheel based on the image data.
10. The system of claim 9, further comprising means for determining whether at least one defect is present in the wheel based on the image data.
11. The system of claim 10, further comprising means for determining an operational status of the wheel when at least one defect is present.
12. The system of claim 9, further comprising means for detecting a presence of the wheel, wherein the illuminating and obtaining step are initiated based on the detected presence.
13. The system of claim 9, further comprising means for determining a speed of the wheel, wherein at least one of the illuminating and obtaining steps are adjusted based on the speed.
14. The system of claim 9, wherein the means for obtaining includes means for emphasizing a vertical dimension of the image data.
15. A method of evaluating a rail wheel, the method comprising:
illuminating a rail segment, wherein a length of the rail segment is at least one circumference of the wheel and the wheel will rotate at least one full revolution as it moves along the rail segment when operating properly;
obtaining image data for the rail wheel as it moves along the rail segment, the image data including data on the wheel as it is located in a plurality of positions along the rail segment, the plurality of positions including two positions on the rail segment that are separated by at least one circumference of the wheel and a plurality of positions between the two positions; and
measuring at least one attribute of the rail wheel based on the image data.
16. The method of claim 15, further comprising determining whether at least one defect is present in the rail wheel based on the image data.
17. The method of claim 16, further comprising determining an operational status of the rail wheel when at least one defect is present.
18. The method of claim 16, wherein the at least one defect includes an out-of-roundness defect and a flat spot.
19. A system for evaluating a rail wheel, the system comprising:
means for illuminating a rail segment, wherein a length of the rail segment is at least one circumference of the wheel and the wheel will rotate at least one full revolution as it moves along the rail segment when operating properly;
means for obtaining image data for the rail wheel as it moves along the rail segment, the image data including data on the wheel as it is located in a plurality of positions along the rail segment, the plurality of positions including two positions on the rail segment that are separated by at least one circumference of the wheel and a plurality of positions between the two positions; and
means for measuring at least one attribute of the rail wheel based on the image data.
20. The system of claim 19, further comprising means for determining whether at least one defect is present in the rail wheel based on the image data.
21. The system of claim 20, further comprising means for determining an operational status of the rail wheel when at least one defect is present.
22. The system of claim 19, wherein the means for illuminating and the means for obtaining are installed on a measurement platform that includes:
a plurality of ties supporting the rail segment, wherein each tie is separated from an adjacent tie by at most six inches; and
a concrete support slab supporting the plurality of ties, wherein the concrete support slab is at least one foot thick.
23. The system of claim 19, wherein the rail segment includes reflective material.
24. The system of claim 19, wherein the rail segment comprises a pyramid-crown shape.
The claims below are in addition to those above.
All refrences to claim(s) which appear below refer to the numbering after this setence.
1. An e-mail management system comprising:
an e-mail browser having a time variance interface that provides for storage into a storage media of e-mail messages that have been received over time, the time variance interface of the e-mail browser also providing for retrieval, from the storage media, of the e-mail messages corresponding to a user specified date; and
the retrieved e-mail messages each including an indication of the presence of an accompanying attachment(s) in the e-mail message, an affirmative indication providing the user with an option of retrieving content of the attachment(s) from the storage media such that the content of the attachment(s) is retrieved by the e-mail browser only when specifically requested by the user.
2. The e-mail management system of claim 1 wherein the retrieved e-mail messages cause the e-mail browser to appear as it appeared on the user specified date.
3. The e-mail management system of claim 1 wherein the retrieved e-mail messages create a state of the e-mail browser that corresponds to an earlier state of the e-mail browser as the earlier state appeared on the e-mail browser at the user specified date.
4. The e-mail management system of claim 1 wherein the storage media is divided into more than one subset of storage media to provide a separate location for the attachment(s) of the e-mail messages that are stored.
5. The e-mail management system of claim 1 further comprising a retrieval manager module having a master storage and backup map that is used to direct access to the e-mail messages of the storage media such that data in the attachment(s) is retrieved only when specifically requested by the user.
6. A method for an e-mail system to display an e-mail browser with information that corresponds to a state of the e-mail system on a user specified date, the method comprising:
receiving at least one e-mail message in the e-mail system;
storing the at least one e-mail message into a storage media via an organizational scheme that provides a separate storage location for attachment(s), if any, of the at least one email message;
indexing the stored at least one e-mail message according to the date that the at least one e-mail message was originally received and according to the storage location of the at least one e-mail message;
specifying a date on which to view the state of the e-mail system with the e-mail browser; and
retrieving, with the e-mail browser, the stored at least one e-mail messages that correspond to the state of the e-mail system on the specified date, each of the retrieved e-mail messages including an option to retrieve the attachment(s), if any.
7. The method of claim 6 further comprising selecting the option to retrieve the attachment(s) to thereby retrieve the attachment(s) from the separate storage location of the storage media by the e-mail browser.
8. A method for an e-mail system to display an e-mail browser with information that corresponds to a state of the e-mail system on a user specified date, the method comprising:
receiving at least one e-mail message in the e-mail system;
storing the at least one e-mail message into a first storage media and a second storage media, the first storage media excluding attachment(s) and the second storage media being solely for attachment(s), if any, of the at least one e-mail message;
indexing the stored at least one e-mail messages according to the date the at least one e-mail message was originally received;
specifying a date on which to view the state of the e-mail system with the e-mail browser; and
retrieving, from the first storage media, the stored at least one e-mail messages that correspond to the state of the e-mail system on the specified date, each of the retrieved e-mail messages displayed in the e-mail browser and including an option to retrieve the attachment(s), if any, from the second storage media.
9. The method of claim 8 further comprising selecting the option to retrieve the attachment(s) of one of the retrieved e-mail messages to thereby transfer data associated with the attachment(s) from the second storage media to the e-mail browser.