{"id":2434,"date":"2019-12-12T08:49:04","date_gmt":"2019-12-12T13:49:04","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/robodk.com\/blog\/?p=2434"},"modified":"2020-02-25T09:24:15","modified_gmt":"2020-02-25T14:24:15","slug":"railway-coupling-inspection-robodk-matlab","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/robodk.com\/blog\/railway-coupling-inspection-robodk-matlab\/","title":{"rendered":"Railway Coupling Inspection with RoboDK and Matlab"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

Inspection is a monotonous and thankless task \u2014 a perfect candidate for robotics! On the railway it’s not so easy\u2026 unless you use RoboDK.<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n

Have you ever looked at the linkage between two railway carriages?<\/p>\n\n\n\n

If you have, you will have noticed a coupling holding the two carriages together. This coupling is not just mechanical, it also contains important electrical cabling which carries signals between the different parts of the train. When the carriages are coupled together, these electrical points must be securely connected with good conductivity, otherwise, the security of the train may be compromised.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Creating a secure electrical connection is not always easy. We have all experienced the infuriating situation when we plug in an electronic cable (e.g. the charger of our phone) and it doesn’t work. We unplug and replug the cable\u2026 and eventually, the connection works. Obviously, such a situation would be unacceptable on a railway. The coupling needs to be functional every single time it is plugged in. To achieve this requires regular inspection.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Meet\u2026 The Team at Glasgow Caledonian<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

This case study comes from research from a team at the <\/a>Glasgow Caledonian University<\/a> in the United Kingdom (UK).<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The team were contacted by a train operating company which was looking to automate the inspection of its rolling stock couplings (<\/a>“rolling stock”<\/a> is a term to refer to railway vehicles such as carriages, wagons, coaches, etc.)<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"\"<\/figure>\n\n\n\n

The team consisted of senior researchers from the university’s School of Engineering and Built Environment, who are experts in automation for the railways, manufacturing, and mechanical systems.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

<\/a>The research results were published in October 2019<\/a> in the journal Robotics and Computer Integrated Manufacturing.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The Task: Electric Coupling Inspection<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

The task set by the railway company was to find a way to automate the inspection of the electric head of their couplings.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

This is a task that is currently carried out manually by inspection technicians.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The manual task involves:<\/p>\n\n\n\n