2725results about "Railway profile gauges" patented technology

The present application involves a railroad track asset surveying system comprising an image capture sensor, a location determining system, and an image processor. The image capture sensor is mounted to a railroad vehicle. The location determining system holds images captured by the image capture sensor. The image processor includes an asset classifier and an asset status analyser. The asset classifier detects an asset in one or more captured images and classifies the detected asset by assigning an asset type to the detected asset from a predetermined list of asset types according to one or more features in the captured image. The asset status analyser identifies an asset status characteristic and compares the identified status characteristic to a predetermined asset characteristic so as to evaluate a deviation therefrom.

A method and system for detecting an object or abnormality on or near a rail track. The system comprises scanning means for scanning on and near a portion of the rail track; and detection means for determining the presence and location of the object or abnormality on or near the portion of the rail track based on information from the scanning means.

A system and method for inspecting railroad track is disclosed. The disclosed system includes lasers, cameras, and a processor. The lasers are positioned adjacent the track. The laser emits a beam of light across the railroad track, and the camera captures images of the railroad track having the beam of light emitted thereon. The processor formats the images so that they can be analyzed to determine various measurable aspects of the railroad track. The disclosed system can include a GPS receiver or a distance device for determining location data. The measurable aspects that can be determined by the disclosed system include but are not limited to the spacing between crossties, the angle of ties with respect to rail, cracks and defects in surface of ties, missing fastener components, misaligned fastener components, sunken tie plates, raised spikes, rail wear, gage of rail, ballast height relative to ties, size of ballast stones, and break or separation in the rail. The system includes one or more algorithms for determining these measurable aspects of the railroad track.

Railcar monitoring utilizes instrumented, flexible pads supported within the truck pedestal jaws on the bearing adapters. The pads contain sensors for monitoring temperature pressure, shifting loads, truck hunting and the like and have circuitry for processing information received from the sensors and for processing and reporting departures of performance variables to a remote source. The system cyclically activates polling each pad on a car and communicates signals of critical departures and car identity to a remote source.

An abnormality-diagnosing device is used to diagnose if a bearing device used on the axle of a railway vehicle is normal. The abnormality-diagnosing device comprises a detection processing part, an operation processing part, a result output part and a control processing part, wherein, the detection processing part outputs the signal generated by the bearing device, which is regarded as an electric signal, the operation processing part conducts an abnormality diagnosis on the bearing device according to the output of the detection processing part, the result output part outputs the judgement result of the operation processing part, and according to the judgement result, the control processing part returns a control signal to the control system of the railway vehicle.

A Railroad Surveying and Monitoring System configured on a mobile platform for surveying, monitoring, and analyzing rail position and superstructure and terrain substructure of railroad tracks (20a,b) or other structures. The system employs two or more High Accuracy Differential Global Positioning System devices (110,112), ground penetrating radar devices (116), terrain conductivity instruments (118), optical cameras (124), and data receivers and processors (126), which in turn process, display, and store the data in a usable database. Precise coordinate data generated from a High Accuracy Global Positioning System provides both location data for subsurface sensors and surface sensors and rail position coordinates to monitor track displacements during track inspection in real time.

A vision inspection system and method for use with a railcar includes a vision device adapted to provide an image of each rail component. An image recognition component analyzes the images taken by the vision device to determine the type and condition of each rail component as the vehicle is traveling on the railroad track. A control system communicates with the vision device and the image recognition component. The control system causes workheads of the vehicle to engage respective rail components based on the input received from the vision inspection system. A method for determining the relative distance between the rail components includes comparing the position of the respective rail components of a first image to the position of the respective rail components of a second image to determine the distance between the respective components and distance the railcar has moved.

A video inspection system and method for facilitating inspection of a rail component while traveling on the railroad track. The system includes a light source that provides illumination to a rail of the railroad track, a triggering device for automatically providing a trigger signal, a camera adapted to provide an image of the illuminated rail component, and a computing device adapted to capture the image provided by the camera based on the trigger signal. A method for inspecting rail components is also provided, the method including the steps of illuminating a rail of the railroad track, automatically providing a trigger signal, providing a camera adapted to provide an image of the rail component, and capturing the image of the rail component that is provided by the camera based on the trigger signal.

Track and track / vehicle analyzers for determining geometric parameters of tracks, determining the relation of tracks to vehicles and trains, analyzing the parameters in real-time, and communicating corrective measures to various control mechanisms are provided. In one embodiment, the track analyzer includes a track detector and a computing device. In another embodiment, the track / vehicle analyzer includes a track detector, a vehicle detector, and a computing device. In other embodiments, the track / vehicle detector also includes a communications device for communicating with locomotive control computers in lead units, locomotive control computers in helper units, and a centralized control office. Additionally, methods for determining and communicating optimized control, lubrication, and steering strategies are provided. The analyzers improve operational safety and overall efficiency, including fuel efficiency, vehicle wheel wear, and track wear, in railroad systems.

A low power self-organizing network is made up of a plurality of wireless communication nodes communicating wirelessly with each other. The nodes each have a sensor providing a respective sensor data value indicative of a physical parameter in the environment of that node. The wireless network discontinues communication with any nodes in which the sensor data value is outside a range of network sensor data values. The network is preferably a group of vehicles moving together, especially a train in which each node is associated with a respective wheel of a railroad car. The nodes are low-power devices that communicate using wireless communications according to a Zigbee protocol. The nodes each have an additional sensor sensing a physical parameter the respective wheel thereof and determines from said electrical signal a degree of degradation of a bearing of the wheel, and transmits data of the degree of degradation to the main node. The main node communicates with another computer system using a higher power communication system and transmits thereto data indicative of degradation of said bearings.

A train integrity network system comprises bogie units which monitor critical parameters relating to the condition of bogie components and the rail track they are travelling on, an onboard server which controls the bogie units and a wireless network which enables communication between the server and the bogie units. Each bogie unit is powered by an electrical generator which utilises the rotation of the bogie wheels and has a processor which compares the critical parameters against defined standards in order to issue alerts to the train driver. The wireless network utilises master / slave base band role switching, has store-and-forward nodes which convey quasi real time data to the server and utilises frequency hopping modes.

An abnormality diagnosis system for diagnosing a presence or absence of an abnormality of a bearing unit for a railway vehicle axle, comprises a sensing / processing portion for outputting a signal generated from the bearing unit as an electric signal, a calculating / processing portion for making an abnormality diagnosis of the bearing unit based on an output of the sensing / processing portion, a result outputting portion for outputting a decision result of the calculating / processing portion, and a controlling / processing portion for feeding back a control signal to a control system of the railway vehicle based on the decision result.

A railroad track inspection system has multiple track scanning sensors, a data store, and a scan data processor. The scan data processor provides automatic analysis of the track scan data to detect track components within the scan data from a predetermined list of component types according to features identified in said scan data. The track scanning sensors, data store and scan data processor are attached to a common support structure for mounting the system to a railway vehicle in use. An inertia sensor and common master clock are used to make corrections to the output of the track scanning sensors to accommodate dynamic forces in use. The inspection system may be provided in a single housing for mounting to a conventional passenger / freight rail vehicles and may operate automatically in an unattended mode. The location of track components and / or defects may be logged.

The invention discloses a railway line inspection system. The railway line inspection system comprises a coming and going train information acquisition subsystem, a data and fault processing subsystem, a flight control subsystem and a data acquisition subsystem. The coming and going train information acquisition subsystem determines coming and going train information of a railway line and sends the coming and going train information to the data and fault processing subsystem. The flight control subsystem controls the flight track and attitude of an unmanned aerial vehicle and the action of avoiding coming and going trains. The data acquisition subsystem is arranged on the unmanned aerial vehicle, acquires field data of the railway line and sends the field data to the data and fault processing subsystem to be processed, wherein the field data comprises radar scanning data and field image data of the railway line. The data and fault processing subsystem receives and analyzes the field data of the railway line and determines the fault type and generation position. The technical problems that an existing railway line inspection mode is single in means and low in reliability, affects normal train driving and cannot meet the requirements for high-speed railway operation safety can be solved.

A system for monitoring operation of a railcar having one or more sensing units, mounted on the railcar, for monitoring operating parameters and or conditions of the railcar, and a communication management unit, in wireless communication with the sensing units, wherein the system can make a determination of an alarm condition based on data collected the sensing units. A temperature sensor device for use in such a system is also provided.

Railcar monitoring utilizes instrumented, flexible pads supported within the truck pedestal jaws on the bearing adapters. The pads contain sensors for monitoring temperature pressure, shifting loads, truck hunting and the like and have circuitry for processing information received from the sensors and for processing and reporting departures of performance variables to a remote source. The system cyclically activates polling each pad on a car and communicates signals of critical departures and car identity to a remote source.

A sensing system includes a leading sensor, a trailing sensor, and a route examining unit. The leading sensor is onboard a first vehicle of a vehicle system that is traveling along a route. The leading sensor measures first characteristics of the route as the vehicle system moves along the route. The trailing sensor is disposed onboard a second vehicle of the vehicle system. The trailing sensor measures second characteristics of the route as the vehicle system moves along the route. The route examining unit is disposed onboard the vehicle system and receives the first characteristics of the route and the second characteristics of the route to compare the first characteristics with the second characteristics. The route examining unit also identifies a segment of the route as being damaged based on a comparison of the first characteristics with the second characteristics.

Novel tools and techniques for monitoring railway track geometry. In one aspect, some such tools and techniques can determine a location of a platform along a railway, capture one or more images of the railway, and / or analyze the rail configuration at that point. In another aspect, some solutions might employ photogrammetric techniques to analyze the rail configuration and thereafter store data about the rail configuration, perhaps correlated with the location of the images, in a data store.

A system for automatic detection of defects in railroad wheels, a system that is stationary and is installed in extended intervals in the rails uses stationary acoustical / vibration sensors installed at intervals in the rails. Rail segments associated with the detectors are acoustically isolated. The sensors acquire the sounds and vibrations generated by the wheels rolling over the rails. Signal analyzers identify rail defects from intensity vs., frequency distributions of acoustical spectra. Such spectra reflect the condition of the wheels and change their intensity vs. frequency distributions when the wheels pass the sensors installed in the rails. The acquired information on the condition of the wheels is transmitted to a central location. Any defective wheel is identified and marked for repair or replacement.

To emulate the 3D visual acuity of an individual track-walker, matched pairs of cameras (which simulate our human eyes) are mounted on a moving vehicle above the tracks. The cameras are mounted both transversely and longitudinally, to create 3D images in two orthogonal orientations, which helps to eliminate visual voids. The location and orientation of each pair of cameras is determined by its specific task, in the present case: (i) to examine each left or right rail for anomalies (two pairs), and (ii) to examine every tie for damage (at least one pair). The camera pairs enable measurements such as defect depth and track width variations. The images are compressed in real time for local storage or high-speed transmission for remote display. The basic arrangement of cameras can be amplified or modified as necessary to circumstances.

The invention relates to an intelligent vehicle-bone type running state monitoring and early warning device used for rail transporting vehicles. The device comprises at least a group of sensing component units used for obtaining the vehicle operation state, including the operation state of wheels on rails, the state of the deformation of a vehicle chassis component and a railway and abnormal road conditions or the state of vehicle-bone devices; an intelligent sensing information processing unit based on a micro processor and used for processing the sensing signals of the vehicle state, including signal processing, data-collecting processing, image edge detection and extraction, image tracking, the processing and the intelligent analyzing of mechanical vibration / noise information, data identification and extraction, the learning of vehicle states and relevant background information, the forming of monitoring and early warning results and information recording and storing; input / output units used for the output, the operation, the control and the data communication of the monitoring and early warning results; and a power supply unit. The intelligent vehicle-bone type running state monitoring and early warning device has the advantages of multiple functions, high intelligentization and informatization level, high cost performance, high creditability and convenient installation, etc., is easy to be expanded, and can be applied under all weather conditions.

The present application involves a railroad track inspection system comprising a plurality of track scanning sensors, a data store, and a scan data processor. The data store is used for storing track scan data recorded by the track scanning sensors. The scan data processor is used for automatic analysis of the track scan data upon receipt thereof to detect one or more track components within the scan data from a predetermined list of component types according to one or more features identified in said scan data. The system comprises a common support structure to which the track scanning sensors, the data store and scan data processor are attached, the common support structure having a mounting for attachment of the system to a railway vehicle in use.

A system for inspecting railroad ties in a railroad track includes a light generator, an optical receiver and a processor. The light generator is oriented to project a beam of light across the railroad track while moving along the railroad track in a travel direction. The optical receiver is oriented to receive at least a portion of the beam of light reflected from the railroad track and configured to generate image data representative of a profile of at least a portion of the railroad track. The processor is configured to analyze the image data by applying one or more algorithms configured to find boundaries of a railroad tie and determine one or more condition metrics associated with the railroad tie.

An abnormality diagnosis system for diagnosing a presence or absence of an abnormality of a bearing unit for a railway vehicle axle, comprises a sensing / processing portion for outputting a signal generated from the bearing unit as an electric signal, a calculating / processing portion for making an abnormality diagnosis of the bearing unit based on an output of the sensing / processing portion, a result outputting portion for outputting a decision result of the calculating / processing portion, and a controlling / processing portion for feeding back a control signal to a control system of the railway vehicle based on the decision result.

A system is for performing broken rail detection on a railway track. The system includes at least one locomotive and a monitoring entity. Each locomotive includes a receiver for receiving a track signal that is circulating in the railway track and a processing unit that is in communication with the receiver. The processing unit is operative for detecting a characteristic of the track signal and generating a signal indicative of a potential broken rail in response to a change in the characteristic of the track signal. The locomotive further includes a wireless transmitter for transmitting the signal indicative of a potential broken rail over a wireless communication link. The monitoring entity includes a receiver for receiving the signal indicative of a potential broken rail and a processing unit for detecting a broken rail at least in part on the basis of the signal indicative of a potential broken rail from the locomotive.

A method of inspecting a turnout of a track includes the steps of: capturing images of the components of the turnout; converting each image into a set of coordinates that traces the transverse cross-section of a rail profile; analyzing the rail profile to determine if the rail profile is a profile of arunning rail portion or a component. Upon determination that the image represents a component, taking measurements of the rail profile and applying virtual gauges to the rail profile to check for potentially dangerous conditions of the component; and generating a summary of each cross-section of the rail profile of the component indicating problem areas. The method is used for identifying certain classes of switch or turnout rail conditions which can lead to derailments, and for enhancing the turnout inspection approach currently used. The use of this method as an integrated part of the rail profile monitoring program will reduce reliance on field measurements and will also allow more frequent, comprehensive, and convenient analysis of turnout condition.

A system and method for inspecting railroad track is disclosed. The disclosed system includes lasers, cameras, and a processor. The lasers are positioned adjacent the track. The laser emits a beam of light across the railroad track, and the camera captures images of the railroad track having the beam of light emitted thereon. The processor formats the images so that they can be analyzed to determine various measurable aspects of the railroad track. The disclosed system can include a GPS receiver or a distance device for determining location data. The measurable aspects that can be determined by the disclosed system include but are not limited to the spacing between crossties, the angle of ties with respect to rail, cracks and defects in surface of ties, missing fastener components, misaligned fastener components, sunken tie plates, raised spikes, rail wear, gage of rail, ballast height relative to ties, size of ballast stones, and break or separation in the rail. The system includes one or more algorithms for determining these measurable aspects of the railroad track.

A train control system comprising a vital brake interface unit that is disposed between the train control processors and the braking system. The brake interface unit ensures that any failure in the control processors or the interface itself is detectable and, when detected, causes the system to fail safely (i.e., the train's brakes are applied). By virtue of the use of redundant circuitry paths, the vital braking interface unit enables real-time verification of system circuitry without actually applying the train's brakes.

The invention discloses a metro tunnel fracture surface deformation detection system, belonging to the tunnel engineering monitoring technical field. The system comprises a fracture surface scanning device, a mileage positioning device, an electrical equipment control device, a power source, a track detection vehicle and a station data processing system, wherein, the fracture surface scanning device, the mileage positioning device and the electrical equipment control device are arranged on the track detection vehicle; the power source is respectively connected with the fracture surface scanning device, the mileage positioning device and the electrical equipment control device through a power source convertor to supply power for the fracture surface scanning device, the mileage positioning device and the electrical equipment control device; a PLC controller is arranged in the electrical equipment control device; a rotary coder in the mileage positioning device, a sensor in the fracture surface scanning device and a rotary table stepped driver are respectively connected with the PLC controller; the PLC controller is connected with a wireless communicator through a wireless communicator in the station data processing system. The whole detection system of the invention has high portable integration degree, automatic operation process, convenient operation, low specialty technical requirements, rapid operation speed, extremely-time section surface measuring and high measuring precision, and the system precision is less than 3mm.

A system for monitoring the condition of a vehicle has at least one wireless transmitter in on the vehicle, and in communication with the vehicle computer system. Data representative of operating parameters generated during the operation of the vehicle is downloaded to the transmitter, which transmits the data to a wireless receiver positioned proximal to a path of travel of the vehicle. The receiver is linked to a processor for transmission of the data to the processor for storage and processing if necessary. The system may also include at least one sensor, positioned proximal the path of travel, for detecting a physical phenomenon emanating from at least one vehicle component. The sensor generates a signal, which is transmitted to the processor. The processor is capable of analyzing the signal generating data indicative of operating condition of the vehicle component. The sensor, and / or receiver, mounted to a structure positioned proximal the path of travel of the vehicle.