design and fabrication of a non-destructive system to detect rail corrugation

The present paper proposes a technique that is capable of inspecting the rail head for corrugation before and after the grinding process with high accuracy and repeatability. the heads of the rails, at certain places, are found not straight but corrugated i.e., with a wavy surface. this phenomenon is called corrugation. it is one of the common defects of railway lines that if it is not eliminated in time by grinding operations, could cause a lot of damage. considering the importance of inspecting the issue of the railways, the application of nondestructive methods can be an effective step to detect the defects and, consequently, prevent irreparable damage to the railway industry. in this research, a device equipped with an accelerometer has been designed and fabricated to detect and measure corrugation. the proposed system generates an immediate qualitative and numerical report to predict a proper maintenance action or check the quality of the grinding. the implemented system is part of the rdd-s11 rail defect detector equipment and is currently in use in mashhad urban railway company.