An apparatus for monitoring rail vehicle wheel-rail track interaction (VTI) at a sensing region of a rail vehicle wheel VW. The apparatus comprises an ultrasonic sensor S mountable on a rail vehicle wheel to form the sensing region R of the rail vehicle wheel. The sensing region of the wheel comprises an interface surface at which a wheel-rail interface forms when a rail vehicle wheel contacts the interface surface. The ultrasonic sensor comprises at least one ultrasonic longitudinal bulk wave transducer configured to detect a VTI ultrasonic longitudinal bulk wave signal reflected from the wheel-rail track interface. The ultrasonic sensor further comprises an ultrasonic shear bulk wave transducer configured to detect a VTI ultrasonic shear bulk wave signal reflected from the wheel-rail track interface. The apparatus may further comprise a processor configured to determine a characteristic of the detected VTI longitudinal bulk wave signal, wherein the characteristic comprises the time of flight and/or amplitude and determine a VTI parameter based on the characteristic of the detected VTI longitudinal bulk wave signal wherein the characteristic of the detected VTI longitudinal bulk wave signal is indicative of a VTI parameter. There is further discloses a method of using such a system.
Rail track apparatus and method
2024-10-30
Patent
Electronic Resource
English