Reconstruction of sleeper displacements from measured accelerations for model-based condition monitoring of railway crossing panels

Railway switches and crossings (S&C, turnouts) connect different track sections and create a railway network by allowing trains to change tracks. This functionality comes at a cost as the load-inducing rail discontinuities in the switch and crossing panels cause much larger degradation rates for S&C compared to regular plain line tracks. The high degradation rates make remote condition monitoring an interesting prospect for infrastructure managers to optimise maintenance and ensure safe operations. To this end, this paper addresses the development of tailored signal processing tools for condition monitoring using embedded accelerometers in crossing panels. Multibody simulations of the dynamic train–track interaction are used to aid the interpretation of the measured signals in a first step towards building a model-based condition monitoring system. An analysis is performed using sleeper acceleration measurement data generated by 100 000 train passages in eight crossing panels. Based on the given data, a novel frequency-domain displacement reconstruction method is developed and the robustness of the method with respect to encountered operational variability of the measured data is demonstrated. The separation of the track response into quasi-static and dynamic domains based on deformation wavelength regions is proposed as a promising strategy to observe the ballast condition and the crossing geometry condition, respectively

Advances in Mechanical Systems Dynamics 2020

The fundamentals of mechanical system dynamics were established before the beginning of the industrial era. The 18th century was a very important time for science and was characterized by the development of classical mechanics. This development progressed in the 19th century, and new, important applications related to industrialization were found and studied. The development of computers in the 20th century revolutionized mechanical system dynamics owing to the development of numerical simulation. We are now in the presence of the fourth industrial revolution. Mechanical systems are increasingly integrated with electrical, fluidic, and electronic systems, and the industrial environment has become characterized by the cyber-physical systems of industry 4.0. Within this framework, the status-of-the-art has become represented by integrated mechanical systems and supported by accurate dynamic models able to predict their dynamic behavior. Therefore, mechanical systems dynamics will play a central role in forthcoming years. This Special Issue aims to disseminate the latest research findings and ideas in the field of mechanical systems dynamics, with particular emphasis on novel trends and applications