System and method for detecting axle body and filet cracks in rail vehicles
AssigneeBNSF Railway Company
InventorHark Braren
Life of this patent
Estimating the term…
Abstract
Methods and systems for in-service inspection of freight car axles are provided. A camber angle of a wheel attached to a target axle is measured at one or more points in a revolution of the wheel. A determination of whether a defect is present in the target axle is made based on the measured camber angle at the one or more points in the revolution of the wheel. A determination that a defect is present in the target axle is made when a camber angle of the wheel at one or more points in the revolution of the wheel exceeds a threshold, and/or a determination that a defect is not present is made when no camber angle of the wheel at any point in the revolution of the wheel exceeds the predetermined threshold. An alert is generated in response to determining that a defect is present.
Claims20
A method of detecting a presence of a defect in a target axle of a freight car wheelset in-service, comprising:
- transmitting, from a projector, a plurality of range finding beams onto a surface of a wheel attached to the target axle at at least one point in a revolution of the wheel, each of the plurality of range finding beams being projected onto a different point on the surface of the wheel;
- measuring a distance between the projector and each of the different points on the surface of the wheel onto which each of the plurality of range finding beams is projected;
- determining a camber angle of the wheel at the at least one point in a revolution of the wheel based, at least in part, on the measured distance between the projector and each of the different points on the surface of the wheel onto which each of the plurality of range finding beams is projected;
- determining whether a defect is present in the target axle based on the camber angle of the wheel at a first of at least one point in a revolution of the wheel is larger than a predetermined threshold angle;
- and
- transmitting an alert in response to a determination that the defect is present in the target axle.
A method of detecting a presence of a defect in a target axle of a freight car wheelset in-service, comprising:
- projecting a plurality of lines onto a surface of a wheel attached to the target axle at at least one point in a revolution of the wheel;
- measuring a distance between a first line of the plurality of lines and a second line of the plurality of lines;
- determining a camber angle of the wheel at the at least one point in a revolution of the wheel based, at least in part, on the measured distance between the first line of the plurality of lines and the second line of the plurality of lines;
- determining whether a defect is present in the target axle based on the camber angle of the wheel at a first of at least one point in a revolution of the wheel is larger than a predetermined threshold angle;
- and
- transmitting an alert in response to a determination that the defect is present in the target axle.
A method of detecting a presence of a defect in a target axle of a freight car wheelset in-service, comprising:
- measuring a camber angle of a wheel attached to the target axle at each point of a plurality of points in a revolution of the wheel around the target axle;
- determining whether a defect is present in the target axle based on the camber angle of the wheel at one or more points of the plurality of points in a revolution of the wheel is larger than a predetermined threshold angle;
- and
- transmitting an alert in response to a determination that the defect is present in the target axle.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.