Safety related parts of rail-wheel systems are the main focus of non-destructive testing. Of particular interest are the wheelset and the rail itself. In this area there is a distinct need for the development of high performance and speed, automatic ultrasonic inspection systems.
Division 8.4 has a long term co-operation with the railway industry on the development of complex inspection techniques. The main objectives relate to probe design, positioning and ergonomically designed concepts for optimising inspection results.
Phased array techniques are used for the non-destructive testing of shafts and shafts with drilled holes. The shafts surface and its inner volume are in the amount of inspection.
Inspection results are normally presented using customised software e.g. reconstructions using time displacement (TD) scans on the shaft's uncoiled surface.
Image reconstructions using TD scans (enlarged picture)
Locomotives' wheel discs are inspected with a transmitter receiver combination in a special V-arrangement consisting of two phased array probes. The wheel rim is tested with a phased array pulse echo probe.
Probe arrangement for wheel testing (enlarged picture)
The inspection results of each discs surface are displayed and computed using echotomography algorithms:
Echotomography, inspection results (enlarged picture)
The analysis of defects found in rails with an inspection train can be performed using phased array techniques:
Probe arrangement for rail testing
The results of non-destructive testing data are displayed as TD-scans:
TD scan, inspection results (enlarged picture)
Division 8.4 | Physics of Ultrasonic Testing Techniques
