New methods and functionalities for railway maintenance through a draisine prototype based on RADAR sensors

Inspection of the railway tracks requires relying on a precise positioning system that accurately determines the location of potential failures and deficiencies. Therefore, measuring the speed and precise location of rail vehicles is essential. Many methods and approaches have been proposed, but most of them lack several conditions that do not allow them to be optimal for this task. In this paper, the authors present a novel method for measuring the speed of a train by means of the time correlation approach, by using 2-mm wave radar sensors. Additionally, it is also an accurate positioning system because the authors prove that the track has a unique profile, sufficiently characteristic and stable over time, that serves as a distinctive signature, which can be used to locate the vehicle at any point on that track. As a result, this new methodology, combined with a laser profilometer device, can be used as an effective inspection system for cracks or deficiencies in the rails, sleepers, fastenings, bolts etc., locating them precisely on the railway track.