Application of phased array technique for railroad wheel set inspection
Anton Erhard, Thomas Heckel, Gottfried Schenk, Berlin, Hartmut Hintze, Kirchmöser
ABSTRACT In order to guarantee the safe operation of trains (rolling stock) the integrity of the wheel sets has to be checked at regular service intervals. Application of non destructive testing of the wheels as well as the axles using ultrasound techniques at present fulfill the technical requirements. However, due to the complexity of inspection on wheel discs using disc-braking systems a comprehensive inspection requires a large number of conventional ultrasound transducers. Furthermore different angle beam transducers are needed for the examination of the full metal axle due to the limited accessibility. This presents a challenge. The aim of the research work presented in this paper is a marked reduction of the number of transducers required. The phased array technique is a promising method, which has the potential to fulfill our expectations. The application of phased array transducers for both inspection problems will be described.
Publication Source: Materialprüfung, ISSN: 0025-5300
Issue: 2004-1/2, pp -
Publisher: Carl Hanser Verlag München
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