Laser system promises to help keep trains on the tracks

The US Federal Railroad Administration is turning to lasers to help keep the country's railways in tip top shape. The system, developed by researchers at the University of California, San Diego, effectively "taps" the railroad tracks with a laser pulse while it flies along the rails at speeds up to 70 miles per hour, checking for both surface cuts and internal cracks with, well, laser-like accuracy. Current track-inspection systems top out at just 30 miles per hour and, according to the researchers, can often miss the more dangerous internal cracks in the track that can lead to derailings. The first tests of the system done back in March were apparently promising, although there are still more tests planned before the admin makes a final decision. But you already know our position: everything's better with lasers.

[Via Futurismic]

[(Unverified) Posted Aug 23rd 2006 4:38PM]

Oh yeah theres like a derailment like every 2 weeks.

[(Unverified) Posted Aug 23rd 2006 5:15PM]

Yeah, this has already been invented...

http://www.georgetownrail.com/au.htm

[raitchison Posted Aug 23rd 2006 5:16PM]

Everything's better with lasers? I thought everything was better if it were USB powered?

Now if they can power this bad boy with USB that will be the ticket.

;)

[rkolsen Posted Aug 23rd 2006 5:24PM]

Does anyone have nightmares about being on a HiRail truck, and have a train coming in your direction at 100 MPH?

[DTJ Posted Aug 23rd 2006 5:30PM]

Yes, but they abviously have not yet figured out how to keep SUVs off the tracks!

[RichardToronto Posted Aug 23rd 2006 5:31PM]

Mack_Daddy's right:

This is in use all over the place.

CN's been using a specially converted caboose that they stick on the front of a train to measure the tracks with lasers at full speed for years.

[(Unverified) Posted Aug 23rd 2006 5:38PM]

The Georgetown Rail inspection system doesn't appear to be the same type of system because it isn't able to inspect the rails for cracks. It looks like a image-recognition system that throws a red flag if it looks like a tie/spike/etc. is not where it should be.

It sounds like UCSD system is a "laser sonar", effectively pinging the metal rails with photons and "listening" the echo photons. If this is true, it works because the operating wavelength of lasers is massively smaller than that of sound or physical vibrations and can be discrimiated.

[(Unverified) Posted Aug 23rd 2006 5:46PM]

Friggin Lasers

[(Unverified) Posted Aug 23rd 2006 11:29PM]

they've been using this in australia for aaaaaaaaages.

[(Unverified) Posted Aug 24th 2006 9:02AM]

Actually Stephen, the system induces ultrasonic sound waves in the rail by vaporising a small amount of the surface material. Then a regular microphone is used to pick up the sound. Computer processing removes the unwanted noise and the final result is processed to detect the cracks. Photon detection isn't involved.

[(Unverified) Posted Aug 28th 2006 1:32PM]

My company, Nagle Research, developed the Aurora system for Georgetown Rail Equipment Company. The UC system employs slightly different technology than we developed. We're imaging the entire width of the track (9'), whereas these people seem to be interested in only the rail. There are many factors that can cause a failure, and many of them have nothing at all to do with the rail surface.

I'm not sure what frequency of light they're using to image the subsurface defects, or for that matter what difference they make to structural integrity, but it sounds interesting.

-John