Systems and methods for obtaining improved accuracy measurements of moving rolling stock components

• US 20070211145A1
• Filed: 03/07/2006
• Published: 09/13/2007
• Est. Priority Date: 03/07/2006
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Wabtec Control Systems Pty. Ltd. (Westinghouse Air Brake Technologies Corporation)
• Original Assignee: Lynxrail Corporation (Lynx Engineering Consultants Pty Ltd.)
• Inventors: Kilian, Krzysztof, Mazur, Vladimir
• Granted Patent: US 7,714,886 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 348/148
• CPC Class Codes: B61K 9/04 Detectors for indicating the overheating of axle bearings and the like, e.g. associated with the brake system for applying the brakes in case of a fault
• CPC Class Codes: B61K 9/08 Measuring installations for surveying permanent way applications of measuring apparatus or devices for track building purposes E01B35/00; measuring techniques G01
• CPC Class Codes: B61K 9/12 Measuring or surveying wheel-rims measuring techniques G01
• CPC Class Codes: B61L 23/047 Track or rail movements
• CPC Class Codes: B61L 27/57 for vehicles or trains, e.g. trackside supervision of train conditions
• CPC Class Codes: G01N 21/8851 Scan or image signal processing specially adapted therefor, e.g. for scan signal adjustment, for detecting different kinds of defects, for compensating for structures, markings, edges G01N21/8806 and G01N21/93 - G01N21/95692 take precedence; optical measurement of dimensions G01B11/00; optical scanning G02B26/10; image transformation G06T3/00; computerised image enhancement G06T5/00; image processing per se for flaw detection G06T7/0002

Abstract

Reference markers are attached to rails and/or other dynamically moving components of railroad tracks, and/or located at fixed and stationary positions adjacent to the track. When images of railway rolling stock are obtained, the reference marker(s) appear in the image. Accordingly, measurements of various aspects and parameters of various components of the railway rolling stock can be obtained at high precision and/or accuracy relative to the railroad track component to which the reference marker is attached and/or relative to the stationary position. The reference markers allow one or more images, obtained at some intervening time interval, to be accurately and precisely aligned relative to the reference marker(s) regardless of the dynamic motion of the railroad track component(s) and/or of the rolling stock that occurred as the images were captured. The reference markers can include optical, thermal or other indicia. The indicia have known dimensions and/or known distances from an image capture device.

Claims

1. An image capture system associated with a railway comprising:

a first image capture device; and

a first reference marker located adjacent a first rail of said railway;

wherein the first image capture device is located and/or oriented such that the first reference marker appears in a field of view of the first image capture device.

2. The image capture system of claim 1, further comprising a second reference marker located adjacent to the first reference marker and in the field of view of the first image capture device.

3. The image capture system of claim 1, wherein the first reference marker is adapted to be interconnected to said first rail and/or at least one other component of said railway.

4. The image capture system of claim 1, wherein the first reference marker is located at a substantially fixed position near said first rail.

5. The image capture system of claim 2, wherein the first reference marker is adapted to be interconnected to said first rail and/or at least one other component of said railway and the second reference marker is located at a substantially fixed position.

6. The image capture system of claim 1, further comprising a second image capture device located and oriented such that a portion or component of a passing rail vehicle appears in a field of view of the second image capture device.

7. The image capture system of claim 1, further comprising:

a second image capture device;

a second reference marker located adjacent a second rail of said railway; and

wherein the second image capture device is located and/or oriented such that the second reference marker appears in a field of view of the second image capture device.

8. The image capture system of claim 1, further comprising a central processing unit in communication with the first image capture device.

9. The image capture system of claim 1, wherein at least one image is captured and utilized to determine at least one of a wheel hollowing condition, wheel flange height, wheel flange width, wheel rim thickness, wheel flange angle, the back-to-back distance between a pair of wheels connected by an axle, the lateral position of a wheel along the first rail, axel straightness, end cap center-ness, coupler height, a leaning vehicle, the condition of a vehicle'"'"'s suspension, and an out-of-gage condition.

10. An image capture system associated with a railway comprising:

an image capture means; and

a reference means located in proximity to a rail of said railway;

wherein the image capture means is oriented such that the reference means appears in a field of view of the image capture means.

11. The image capture system of claim 10, wherein at least one image is captured and utilized to determine at least one of a wheel hollowing condition, wheel flange height, wheel flange width, wheel rim thickness, wheel flange angle, the back-to-back distance between a pair of wheels connected by an axle, the lateral position of a wheel along the rail, axel straightness, end cap center-ness, coupler height, a leaning vehicle, the condition of a vehicle'"'"'s suspension, and an out-of-gage condition.

12. A method for obtaining information about a rail vehicle and/or at least one of its components comprising:

passing said rail vehicle along a railroad track through an image capture region, the image capture region having at least one reference marker positioned about at least one rail of the railroad track in a field of view of at least one image capture device; and

utilizing the image capture device to capture a first image containing at least a portion of the reference marker and at least a first portion or component of said rail vehicle.

13. The method of claim 12, further comprising analyzing the first image to determine information about at least one of said first portion or component of said rail vehicle and said rail vehicle.

14. The method of claim 12, further comprising utilizing the image capture device to capture a second image containing at least a portion of the reference marker and at least a second portion or component of said rail vehicle.

15. The method of claim 14, further comprising comparing the first image and the second image to determine information about at least one of said rail, said first portion or component of said rail vehicle, said second portion or component of said rail vehicle and said rail vehicle.

16. The method of claim 14, further comprising:

analyzing the first image to obtain information about at least one of said rail, said first portion or component of said rail vehicle, and said rail vehicle;

analyzing the second image to obtain information about at least one of said rail, said second portion or component of said rail vehicle, and said rail vehicle; and

comparing the information obtained from the analysis of the first image to the information obtained from the analysis of the second image to determine the condition of at least one of said rail, said first portion or component of said rail vehicle, said second portion or component of said rail vehicle, and said rail vehicle.

17. The method of claim 14, further comprising:

analyzing the first image to obtain information about at least one of said rail, said first portion or component of said rail vehicle, and said rail vehicle;

analyzing the second image to obtain information about at least one of said rail, said second portion or component of said rail vehicle, and said rail vehicle; and

combining the information obtained from the analysis of the first image to the information obtained from the analysis of the second image to determine the condition of at least one of said rail, said first portion or component of said rail vehicle, said second portion or component of said rail vehicle, and said rail vehicle.