Wireless technology to monitor vehicles used on railways
The EU plans to expand the passenger and freight capacity of its rail system by 43 % and 70 %, respectively, by 2020. Remote condition monitoring of assets is currently not employed on freight trains. This is a financial and technical barrier. The EU-funded WIRAILCOM (Wireless railway condition monitoring) project set out to integrate condition monitoring in a wireless network with state-of-the-art concepts for signal transmission. Overall, the aim was to ensure that interference does not impose on safety. Work began with an analysis of wireless monitoring requirements and a review of existing energy harvesting technology capabilities and likely sources of energy for the proposed solution. The specifications for testing the wireless network were also considered. Project partners assessed the amount of energy that could be generated from conventional engine and wagon arrangements. This led to the building of the energy harvesting and power management system prototypes. They created a hardware prototype to determine vibration and acoustic signals from bearings and gearboxes. The WIRAILCOM team then focused on developing the necessary components, including a wireless network, sensors and an energy harvesting system. The components were integrated into the system and tested on a locomotive. The field tests resulted in additional lab trials to further improve performance. WIRAILCOM's flexible, short-range, autonomous wireless monitoring network developed by will have a major impact on the safety of freight transport throughout Europe. In addition, SMEs enhance their competitive edge by being able to provide condition monitoring and inspection technology that private and government owners seek. Finally, operators will see a significant reduction in expensive retrieval and repair of failed trains and tracks.
Keywords
Railways, rail transport, WIRAILCOM, railway condition monitoring
