Corus awarded DTI contract to develop ‘Intelligent Image Analysis of the Wheel/Rail Contact Interface’

Corus has been awarded a £475k contract by the DTI to lead a two year project to develop high speed image analysis of rail-head surface defects.  The project will involve other major parties including; Oxford Lasers Ltd who will develop an image acquisition system to capture high resolution images at high speeds and the University of Loughborough who will use intelligent image analysis to classify the defect images in real time.  Network operators Network Rail, Heathrow Express and London Underground Limited, will assist in this project by providing detailed information on the types of rail defects that need to be detected by the new technology.  In addition to the DTI grant, the project parties are investing a further £495k over two years, bringing the total project value to £970k. 

Currently inspection of the majority of rail surface defects can only be carried out by manual visual inspection, which is costly, time consuming and carries safety risks.  The development of vehicle-mounted high speed image analysis will mean that network operators will be able to quickly and safely identify surface defects and take remedial action.

Speaking about the project, David Marsden, Railway Infrastructure Services Director, Corus said, “Image acquisition at up to 125mph is a considerable challenge requiring significant engineering expertise. This project will provide that expertise, combined with Corus’ unparalleled understanding of track degradation and the subsequent impact on inspection and maintenance requirements.”

The project began with the initial assessment of rail breaks by Corus in June, this information will be passed to Oxford Lasers in September for the next phase of the project, with completion scheduled for March 2007.