Optics: measuring and testing – By polarized light examination – With light attenuation
Patent
1988-06-10
1990-06-12
Rosenberger, Richard A.
Optics: measuring and testing
By polarized light examination
With light attenuation
250560, B61K 912, G01B 1124
Patent
active
049327844
DESCRIPTION:
BRIEF SUMMARY
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
The invention relates to an apparatus for track-based detection of the wheel profile of passing railway wheels when the wheels are passing a measuring area by the track.
Wear of flanges of railway wheels is a well-known phenomenon. The wear causes increased operating costs and reduced safety if the presence of the defect is not quickly established so that the carriage in question can be taken out of service and be repaired at a time appropriate to railway operations.
Usually, the presence of correct wheel profile or of wear of the tread or the flange is established by manual examination and inspection of the wheel treads. This is a diffcult examination procedure to control and there are also purely practical difficulties in mechanically measuring and checking the wheel profile.
Today maintenance of the wheels is generally not done on the basis of a conditional supervision but on statistical empiric data, the consequences being that some wheels with defects are not discovered and repaired once the defect occurs, whereas, many faultless wheels are subjected to unnecessary inspection. It is a fact, however, that wear of tread and flange may occur much faster than expected, for example, on account of deficient rail lubrication or following track repair work. It is very important that wheels with a worn tread and/or flange are quickly repaired when the defect occurs since such wheel defects may cause highly increased wear and perhaps destruction of switches etc. and the possibility of derailment by running in curves and switches is greatly increased.
German published specification No. 1,293,810 describes an apparatus for measuring the wheel profile of railway wheels. This apparatus, however, is intended for workshop use and requires dismantling of the wheel pairs which is cumbersome and costly and which is therefore only done in connection with repair and maintenance work. The apparatus cannot be used for measuring a profile on passing carriages since the apparatus requires the wheel pairs to be fixed in the measuring apparatus itself and it can therefore not at all be used for conditional supervision of the wheel profile of passing railway wheels.
U.S. Pat. No. 4,155,526 describes an apparatus for measuring on railway wheels which includes measuring of the flange height when the railway carriages pass a measuring area. The measurement is made by having a number of sensors detect the wheel when the same passes the measuring area and the obtained data are applied for computing the wheel diameter, the tread thickness and the flange height. By this known measuring method there are obtained fairly rough measurements and from these measuring results it is difficult to establish the degree of wear of a wheel since there are only obtained quite few measuring results from the wheel.
It is particularly difficult from the measuring results to say anything about the wheel flange thickness.
It is the object of the invention to provide an apparatus for track-based measuring of the wheel profile, including the flange thickness, of railway wheels of passing carriages whereby there is obtained a precise and accurate detection of the cross-sectional profile of the wheel tread as well as of its flange. The apparatus must therefore be capable of measuring or detecting the geometry precisely and automatically without in any way influencing on railway services.
The above object is achieved by providing an apparatus for track-based detection of a wheel profile of passing railway wheels when the wheels are passing a measuring area by the track, with the apparatus including at least one means for measuring a distance from at least one fixed point by electromagnetic waves to a number of reflection points on the wheel, with the measurement being carried out along at least one baseline. Means are provided for measuring an intermediate position of the passing wheels on the rail in a sidewise or transverse direction during an entire measuring operation over the measuring area, and data processing means, collect
REFERENCES:
patent: 4155526 (1979-05-01), Noble
patent: 4749870 (1988-06-01), Schmalfuss et al.
patent: 4798963 (1989-01-01), Wittkopp et al.
patent: 4798964 (1989-01-01), Schmalfuss et al.
Caltronic A/S
Rosenberger Richard A.
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