Apparatus and method for gathering data from sensors oriented at an oblique angle relative to a railway track

A method for analyzing the side of a rail of a railway track comprising:

• i. scanning the first side of a first rail of a railway track with an optical scanning system using a first sensor that is attached adjacent to a rail vehicle and oriented at an oblique angle relative to a railway track bed surface supporting rails on which the rail vehicle is moving wherein the first sensor obtains data regarding the first side of the first rail;
• ii. generating a first 3D profile of the first side of the first rail based on the data gathered by the first sensor using a system controller;
• iii. analyzing the first 3D profile using a processor, such processor operating using a machine vision algorithm;
• iv. generating a 3D elevation map of the first side of the first rail by combining a plurality of 3D profiles including the first 3D profile using a processor;
• v. analyzing alpha-numeric markings on the first side of the first rail shown in the 3D elevation map using the processor operating an optical character recognition algorithm;
• vi. referencing the 3D elevation map to geo-spatial coordinates using the processor by synchronizing the plurality of 3D profiles forming the 3D elevation map with the location of the rail vehicle when those 3D profiles were generated using a GNSS receiver;
• vii. storing the referenced 3D elevation map to a data storage device using a processor;
• viii. accessing a database stored on a computer readable using a processor wherein the first database includes manufacturing data regarding the physical characteristics of specified rails cross-referenced with alpha-numeric rail markings located on the sides of the specified rails;
• ix. cross-referencing the alpha-numeric markings in the elevation map with manufacturing data in the database using the processor;
• and
• x. measuring a physical characteristic of the first side of the first rail using the processor to analyze the first 3D profile;
• xi. comparing the physical characteristic of the first side of the first rail shown in the first 3D profile with a same type of physical characteristic of a rail found in the database matching the alpha-numeric markings that were detected by the processor;
• and
• xii. determining the condition of the first physical characteristic of the first side of the first rail being scanned based on the comparison between the first physical characteristic of the first side of the first rail being scanned and the same type of physical characteristic of the specified rails found in the database.