Real-Time Detection and Quantification of Rail Surface Cracks Using Surface Acoustic Waves and Piezoelectric Patch Transducers
This paper presents a novel wayside rail monitoring system for real-time detection and quantification of rail surface cracks with sub-millimeter precision. The core innovation lies in mounting piezoelectric transducers on the web of the rail—an unconventional and practical location that avoids inter...
Saved in:
| Main Authors: | , , , , , , , , |
|---|---|
| Format: | Article |
| Language: | English |
| Published: |
MDPI AG
2025-05-01
|
| Series: | Sensors |
| Subjects: | |
| Online Access: | https://www.mdpi.com/1424-8220/25/10/3014 |
| Tags: |
Add Tag
No Tags, Be the first to tag this record!
|
| _version_ | 1850126445033029632 |
|---|---|
| author | Mohsen Rezaei Sven Eck Sebastian Fichtenbauer Jürgen Maierhofer Reinhard Klambauer Alexander Bergmann David Künstner Dino Velic Hans-Peter Gänser |
| author_facet | Mohsen Rezaei Sven Eck Sebastian Fichtenbauer Jürgen Maierhofer Reinhard Klambauer Alexander Bergmann David Künstner Dino Velic Hans-Peter Gänser |
| author_sort | Mohsen Rezaei |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | This paper presents a novel wayside rail monitoring system for real-time detection and quantification of rail surface cracks with sub-millimeter precision. The core innovation lies in mounting piezoelectric transducers on the web of the rail—an unconventional and practical location that avoids interference with wheel passages while enabling continuous monitoring in real-world conditions. Moreover, to directly quantify crack depth, a customized signal processing pipeline is developed, employing surface acoustic waves (SAWs) and incorporating a parallel reference transducer pair mounted on an undamaged rail section for calibration. This auxiliary pair provides a real-time calibration baseline, improving measurement robustness and accuracy. The method is experimentally validated on rail samples and verified through metallographic analysis. This approach enables condition-based maintenance by improving detection accuracy and offers the potential to reduce operational costs and enhance railway safety. |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj-art-b2eb2707d2494a32b5f690a39699f839 |
| institution | OA Journals |
| issn | 1424-8220 |
| language | English |
| publishDate | 2025-05-01 |
| publisher | MDPI AG |
| record_format | Article |
| series | Sensors |
| spelling | doaj-art-b2eb2707d2494a32b5f690a39699f8392025-08-20T02:33:55ZengMDPI AGSensors1424-82202025-05-012510301410.3390/s25103014Real-Time Detection and Quantification of Rail Surface Cracks Using Surface Acoustic Waves and Piezoelectric Patch TransducersMohsen Rezaei0Sven Eck1Sebastian Fichtenbauer2Jürgen Maierhofer3Reinhard Klambauer4Alexander Bergmann5David Künstner6Dino Velic7Hans-Peter Gänser8Materials Center Leoben Forschung GmbH (MCL), 8700 Leoben, AustriaMaterials Center Leoben Forschung GmbH (MCL), 8700 Leoben, AustriaMaterials Center Leoben Forschung GmbH (MCL), 8700 Leoben, AustriaMaterials Center Leoben Forschung GmbH (MCL), 8700 Leoben, AustriaInstitute of Electrical Measurement and Sensor Systems, Graz University of Technology, 8010 Graz, AustriaInstitute of Electrical Measurement and Sensor Systems, Graz University of Technology, 8010 Graz, AustriaVoestalpine Rail Technology GmbH, 8700 Donawitz, AustriaVoestalpine Signaling Austria GmbH, 8740 Zeltweg, AustriaMaterials Center Leoben Forschung GmbH (MCL), 8700 Leoben, AustriaThis paper presents a novel wayside rail monitoring system for real-time detection and quantification of rail surface cracks with sub-millimeter precision. The core innovation lies in mounting piezoelectric transducers on the web of the rail—an unconventional and practical location that avoids interference with wheel passages while enabling continuous monitoring in real-world conditions. Moreover, to directly quantify crack depth, a customized signal processing pipeline is developed, employing surface acoustic waves (SAWs) and incorporating a parallel reference transducer pair mounted on an undamaged rail section for calibration. This auxiliary pair provides a real-time calibration baseline, improving measurement robustness and accuracy. The method is experimentally validated on rail samples and verified through metallographic analysis. This approach enables condition-based maintenance by improving detection accuracy and offers the potential to reduce operational costs and enhance railway safety.https://www.mdpi.com/1424-8220/25/10/3014rail monitoringsurface acoustic wavespiezoelectric transducerssurface defectsrolling contact fatiguecrack quantification |
| spellingShingle | Mohsen Rezaei Sven Eck Sebastian Fichtenbauer Jürgen Maierhofer Reinhard Klambauer Alexander Bergmann David Künstner Dino Velic Hans-Peter Gänser Real-Time Detection and Quantification of Rail Surface Cracks Using Surface Acoustic Waves and Piezoelectric Patch Transducers Sensors rail monitoring surface acoustic waves piezoelectric transducers surface defects rolling contact fatigue crack quantification |
| title | Real-Time Detection and Quantification of Rail Surface Cracks Using Surface Acoustic Waves and Piezoelectric Patch Transducers |
| title_full | Real-Time Detection and Quantification of Rail Surface Cracks Using Surface Acoustic Waves and Piezoelectric Patch Transducers |
| title_fullStr | Real-Time Detection and Quantification of Rail Surface Cracks Using Surface Acoustic Waves and Piezoelectric Patch Transducers |
| title_full_unstemmed | Real-Time Detection and Quantification of Rail Surface Cracks Using Surface Acoustic Waves and Piezoelectric Patch Transducers |
| title_short | Real-Time Detection and Quantification of Rail Surface Cracks Using Surface Acoustic Waves and Piezoelectric Patch Transducers |
| title_sort | real time detection and quantification of rail surface cracks using surface acoustic waves and piezoelectric patch transducers |
| topic | rail monitoring surface acoustic waves piezoelectric transducers surface defects rolling contact fatigue crack quantification |
| url | https://www.mdpi.com/1424-8220/25/10/3014 |
| work_keys_str_mv | AT mohsenrezaei realtimedetectionandquantificationofrailsurfacecracksusingsurfaceacousticwavesandpiezoelectricpatchtransducers AT sveneck realtimedetectionandquantificationofrailsurfacecracksusingsurfaceacousticwavesandpiezoelectricpatchtransducers AT sebastianfichtenbauer realtimedetectionandquantificationofrailsurfacecracksusingsurfaceacousticwavesandpiezoelectricpatchtransducers AT jurgenmaierhofer realtimedetectionandquantificationofrailsurfacecracksusingsurfaceacousticwavesandpiezoelectricpatchtransducers AT reinhardklambauer realtimedetectionandquantificationofrailsurfacecracksusingsurfaceacousticwavesandpiezoelectricpatchtransducers AT alexanderbergmann realtimedetectionandquantificationofrailsurfacecracksusingsurfaceacousticwavesandpiezoelectricpatchtransducers AT davidkunstner realtimedetectionandquantificationofrailsurfacecracksusingsurfaceacousticwavesandpiezoelectricpatchtransducers AT dinovelic realtimedetectionandquantificationofrailsurfacecracksusingsurfaceacousticwavesandpiezoelectricpatchtransducers AT hanspeterganser realtimedetectionandquantificationofrailsurfacecracksusingsurfaceacousticwavesandpiezoelectricpatchtransducers |