Beruflich Dokumente
Kultur Dokumente
This product of documentation is protected by copyright and distributed with restricted use, copying, distribution and decompilation. No part of this product or documentation may be reproduced in any form by any means without prior written authorization of Fairclough Corporation Pty. Ltd. and its licensors, if any. Third-party software is also copyrighted and licensed from the respective companies.
Commercial-in-Confidence
Page 1 of 27
CATER
Contents
Section Heading Page
1Introduction...........................................................................................................................3 2Overview...............................................................................................................................4 2.1CATER Dual HANDWave U/T System...............................................................................5 2.2Hardware ...........................................................................................................................5 2.2.1Wheel Probe...................................................................................................................5 2.2.2ULTRAWave Module.......................................................................................................7 2.2.3ULTRAWave Module Power Supply................................................................................7 2.2.4Couplant Supply..............................................................................................................7 2.2.5Frame (Single HANDWave Tester).................................................................................8 2.2.6Notebook or Tablet PC....................................................................................................8 2.3Software ............................................................................................................................9 2.3.1ULTRAWave...................................................................................................................9 2.3.2Operating System..........................................................................................................10 2.3.3Startup and Shutdown...................................................................................................10 2.3.4SETUP Screen..............................................................................................................10 2.3.5A-Scan Viewer..............................................................................................................11 2.3.6C-Scan Viewer..............................................................................................................13 2.3.7C-Scan Functions..........................................................................................................14 2.4Hand Verification..............................................................................................................16 2.4.1Operation Control..........................................................................................................16 2.4.2Channel Control............................................................................................................18 2.4.3Gate Editor....................................................................................................................19 2.4.4Ultrasonic Test Data......................................................................................................20 3Dual HANDWave U/T System Specifications (typical).........................................................23 4Notice..................................................................................................................................27
Commercial-in-Confidence
Page 2 of 27
CATER
1 Introduction
This document includes a technical description of the Dual HANDWave U/T System, manufactured by CATER The highlights of the Dual HANDWave U/T Tester are many; requires only ONE pass to assess the rail using 5 channels/rail simultaneously. There is no need to change transducers and redo the same rail section. runs on standard Windows OS Notebooks or Tablet PCs; has been designed by experienced engineers that have contributed to the design of the ULTRAWave U/T system currently in use. The particularly successful graphics screens and wheel probes have been refined and incorporated from the larger ULTRAWave Systems. The resulting system is so intuitive to use that almost no operator training is required. During recent demonstrations we have noticed that the operators were able to operate and configure ULTRAWave after 30 minutes of training. has been designed for use in a modern computer environment in which data-sharing is essential. U/T data can easily be: exported to Microsoft Office tools emailed (small file sizes); copied to (and restored from) backup media, USB thumb-drives, CDs; has been future-proofed. The software running on the PCs and the firmware can be upgraded (flashed) on-site if required; has been designed in a modular way. Exchange of PC or ultrasonic hardware can be completed in a few minutes; allows full interface with the ULTRAWave Systems and any office-based computer system. is configured purely through software. Dual HANDWave does not include any physical configuration switches, links, etc.; is completely self-sufficient and does not rely/depend on any 3rd party software. The system can incorporate CATERs perway analysis application, RIPWave at additional cost. This application is used for post run analysis and is capable of importing historical and legacy test data.
Commercial-in-Confidence
Page 3 of 27
CATER
2 Overview
The CATER Dual HANDWave U/T System is of modular design and consists of the following components:
Ruggedised Notebook PC, the ultrasonic hardware module specifically designed for HANDWave, power supply (battery), couplant supply bottle, the ULTRAWave software and the adjustable and collapsible frame. Wheel Probe with an excellent signal-to-noise ratio and requiring no angle calibration. The specially designed wheel and axle has 5 transducers housed in the one axle. Framework with CANT and LATERAL and gauge adjustments The lightweight and collapsible frame is able to be easily carried on and off the rail. Comprehensive system documentation, including Operator, Maintenance and Spare Parts Manuals, in printed and electronic formats.
Industrial Notebook PC
Couplant Bottle
Wheel Probe
Battery
Gauge adjustments
Collapsible frame
Commercial-in-Confidence
Page 4 of 27
CATER
2.2 Hardware
2.2.1 Wheel Probe
The Dual HANDWave Wheel Probe is designed to house 5 transducers. The typical configuration is for a 0, 2 x 40, facing forward and rearward and 2 x 70, facing forward and rearward. Other configurations are possible . The 70 is a wide transducer which replaces the traditional smaller and more numerous transducers seen in competitiors' probe arrangements. Our preference is for greater sensitivity (up to 17 times) provided by the larger transducer. A hand verification channel is also available to connect various hand probes for closer inspection.
Commercial-in-Confidence
Page 5 of 27
CATER
Commercial-in-Confidence
Page 6 of 27
CATER
A hand verification mode is used for spot assessment using hand held probes
Commercial-in-Confidence
Page 7 of 27
CATER
Please Note: Electric CANT and LATERAL alignment is optional on Dual HANDWave It is collapsible for ease of transport in a regular vehicle.
Commercial-in-Confidence
Page 8 of 27
CATER
2.3 Software
The Dual HANDWave U/T System is configured using ULTRAWave for ultrasonic assessment. The PCs selected by CATER include the most up-to-date components and are able to run the latest version of Windows. We choose PCs from a respected manufacturer that is able to offer an international on-site support, so that problems arising from PC malfunctions can be addressed swiftly. Communication with the ultrasonic hardware is via USB2.0. The benefit to operators is that they can conveniently backup testing results on USB storage medium.
2.3.1 ULTRAWave
The ULTRAWave software preloaded on Dual HANDWave U/T System has been designed in a modular way to increase its stability and reliability. The main ULTRAWave modules for HANDWave are: Operation Control: Channel Control: A-Scan Viewer: The Operator Control window allows the operator to control the ultrasonic testing operation. The Channel Control window allows the operator to set channel-specific parameters. The A-Scan Viewer displays the current A-Scan (ultrasonic signal) and replaces the oscilloscopes that are used in older-style U/T systems. The C-Scan Viewer displays echo groups (artefacts) and other information recorded by the system. The spot verification of identified artefacts allows the operator to immediately assess for potential problems by using hand-held probes.
Operational Control
Channel Control
Commercial-in-Confidence
Page 9 of 27
CATER
The SETUP screen allows the operator to set the testing configurations. Parameters that can be set are the location, rail type, direction, resolution of testing and number of user defined preferences. All these are similar to the ULTRAWave system found on the larger RFD carriers. Show trip statistics: trip duration, distance travelled and average speed;
Commercial-in-Confidence
Page 10 of 27
CATER
Start/Stop and Pause a testing run; Enter calibration mode. In calibration mode, only A-Scans are displayed which are used by the operators to align the Wheel Probes, or to fine-tune the gain; Select district, line and track. CATER will pre-configure ULTRAWave to reflect the clients track network; Select the sampling resolution (nominally 4mm, but selectable between 1mm to 6mm); Select the rail type. CATER will pre-configure ULTRAWave to include the local rail type. Select counting direction (i.e. travelling forward count up OR travelling forward counts down); Select unit orientation (i.e. Wheel Probe side over left rail OR Wheel Probe side over right rail).
Gate (editable)
Individual Gain adjustment for 4 Ultrasonic channels and Hand Verification channel
Commercial-in-Confidence
Page 11 of 27
CATER
The A-Scan Viewer displays the current A-Scan (ultrasonic signal). It replaces the oscilloscopes that are found in older-style U/T systems. Compared to old-style oscilloscope technology, the use of a fully digital A-Scan monitor offers many advantages: A-Scans can be saved to disk for later reference, in .csv (Excel) or .bmp/.jpg (image) format; The A-Scan display can be scaled to suit the operators; A-Scans can be frozen for close investigation Fully digitised A-Scans can be used for automatic lateral/cant Wheel Probe Alignment (in the future); Provides a precise visual comparison with the ultrasonic scan and the gates. The A-Scan display includes a peak memory, it displays the peak amplitude of all previously collected A-Scans. This peak memory function is very useful for echo detail analysis.
The A-Scan Viewer includes the necessary functionality: Switch between the 5 simultaneous A-Scans (1 for each transducer) Each A-Scan; Entry Echo, Backwall Echo (if applicable), gate and maximum signal level is shown. The operators will find the maximum signal level useful for Wheel Probe Alignment, Gain Control and during maintenance; Freeze/Unfreeze display; Print the A-Scans on paper for post processing and recording; Save A-Scans so that they can be displayed at a later stage; Automatically save A-Scans at a pre-determined rate (1Hz 10Hz) for later processing; In the case that an A-Scan should be examined more closely, the A-Scan Viewer includes a window that allows measuring, zooming and printing.
Zoomable AScan display. Can be copied to Clipboard in numerical and graphical form and pasted in MS Word/Excel
Commercial-in-Confidence
Page 12 of 27
CATER
Coloured dots show artefacts identifed by Wheel Probe ultrasonics related to channels below
The C-Scan Viewer displays the echo groups recorded by the system. The CATER C-Scan Viewer is configured to use the same colour coding as other existing CATER RFD viewers and for this reason the operators will find it so easy to use that hardly any training is required. Each artefact is annotated with track location (kilometry), ID number and with the option of classification (menu setting).
Commercial-in-Confidence
Page 13 of 27
CATER
Track kilometry details General artefact details, automatically assigned by ULTRAWave Classification
Tag
Operator Comments
Zoom and echo rendering control. Used to distinguish between strong and weak echo amplitude
Search criteria
Search parameter
Search direction
Commercial-in-Confidence
Page 14 of 27
CATER
Point A Point B
In post processing an operator can Print screen dump Print all/selected parts of the C-Scan data in summary or detail format
1
4 5
Summary Report
Detail Report
Commercial-in-Confidence
Page 15 of 27
CATER
Adjustable Gate
Commercial-in-Confidence
Page 16 of 27
CATER
The Operation Control Window allows the operator to control the ultrasonic testing operation The window includes the necessary functionality to: Set and adjust the current track location (kilometry) :
Monitor the current speed. Together with the current vehicle speed, the speed limit applicable to the selected rail type is shown. The speed limit for a heavier rail (e.g. UIC60) is lower than the speed limit for a lighter rail (e.g. 41kg). The ultrasonic signal path for a heavier rail is longer than for a lighter rail, and for that reason it takes the signal longer to traverse the rail, slowing down the maximum testing speed. Enter operators comments during ultrasonic testing operation. Comments entered by the operators appear on the C-Scan Viewer
Operator Comment shown in C-Scan Viewer (real time, replay, fault history)
Commercial-in-Confidence
Page 17 of 27
CATER
General Settings
Maintenance Settings
The Channel Control window allows the operator to set channel-specific parameters The window includes the necessary functionality to: Adjust the gain for each channel (ultrasonic transducer); Disable or enable a channel. In the case that a channel develops a fault, the channel in question can be disabled and rail testing can be completed without this channel. Monitor the health and activity of each ultrasonic channel; Set Entry Echo parameters.
Commercial-in-Confidence
Page 18 of 27
CATER
The main window shows the timing sequence of all gates used for a particular rail (in the above example 60K rail, Class 1). By selecting one particular gate, the operator can inspect its properties See Figure 19 below
Commercial-in-Confidence
Page 19 of 27
CATER
This window includes the necessary functionality to: Modify the shape of the gate (mouse click & drag); Modify whether the gate is used to detect the loss of signal (in the case of Loss-of54), if the transducer operates in pitch-catch or pulse-echo mode, and whether Backwall Echo (BWE) should be detected; [ 54 not used in HANDWave ] Modify the BWE parameters. BWE parameters are indicated by dotted red lines). The max. expected rail wear (Rail Height Tolerance, displayed as RH Tol. in the figure above) is computed automatically from the BWE Start and BWE End parameters (RH Tol = BWE End BWE Start); Modify transducer transmit characteristics. These settings are for advanced applications and do not need to changed normally.
Commercial-in-Confidence
Page 20 of 27
CATER
Year
Month
Day
District
Line
Track
Kilometry
Operator Comment
The grouping/naming of files enables the operator to quickly find test results, either by date (browse directory tree) or by file name (e.g. search all *-211d-* files). A file is automatically created each time the operator starts a testing run (i.e. each time the operator presses the Start Button). During a test run, test data is continuously generated and saved to disk so that any interruption (power failure, software crash) greatly minimises the loss of data. The maximum loss possible is one artefact each for left and right side.
Commercial-in-Confidence
Page 21 of 27
CATER
Each typical ultrasonic test data file includes the information shown in the table below. When using the .csv export function, all of the information shown below is written to the .csv file. Artefact:
Shaft encoder location DGPS location Date and time Rail side Severity ID Number Classification Rail type Rail class Status (tag) Rail height Horizontal size Vertical size Sampling Resolution Speed Echoes Comments Action type ID Number
Event:
Shaft encoder location DGPS location Shaft encoder location DGPS location Shaft encoder location Date and time Rail side
Operator Action:
Date and time Rail side Action type ID Number
Operator Comment:
DGPS location Rail side Date and time Operator comment
Header:
Operator name Description of test run Start date & time Company name District ID Line ID Track ID Start location Travel direction Count direction Orientation
Footer:
Vehicle name
End location
The size of ultrasonic test data files is difficult to estimate but is in the range of approximately 100kB per km. Files are easily copied/backed up using functions offered by the Microsoft Operating system (for example copy files to USB thumb drive, CD, etc).
Commercial-in-Confidence
Page 22 of 27
CATER
DP2
Coverage
DP3 DP4
DP5
Resolution: - Longitudinal (location) - Depth - Rail Height Accuracy: - Longitudinal (location) - Depth - Rail Height Minimum Detectable Defect Size (at 4mm resolution)
DP6
DP7
Commercial-in-Confidence
Page 23 of 27
CATER
UM4
Gate / Threshold
UM5 UM6
Rail Max. Echoes per scan (how many echoes can be recorded simultaneously, per scan) C-Scan Display A-Scan Display Configuration
Configurable, in steps of:- 0.1% (amplitude) - 0.5s (time of flight) Separate for each rail type/class 22kg/m 68kg/m, 8 per channel
Fully digital Fully digital Fully automatic, no calibration required Downloaded from ULTRAWave System Controller USB 2.0 high speed communication Natural convection, no fans required Not applicable 10W (max.), 5W (typically), per module Fit inframe holder
CC2
Frequency
Commercial-in-Confidence
Page 24 of 27
CATER
SC6
Colour Coding
PC based Left rail, right rail, status Per ultrasonic channel. Online (during testing operation) and replay (office) Scrollable to view complete test run, both in online and replay mode 2 modes, synchronise to current vehicle location, or synchronise with other window Property Inspector, measuring, search, selections, printing, data export, annotation of artefacts, etc. PC based 10 Hz, user configurable 4 (single rail tester) Amplitude in %, depth in mm, time of flight (TOF) in s Manual and automatic, in CSV format Display of Entry Echo (EE), Backwall Echo (BWE), gate, maximum A-Scan amplitude, rail outline
A-Scan Viewer - Technology - Refresh Rate - A-Scan Display - Scaling Save of A-Scans Extras
SC8
Operation Control
Run start and stop Calibration start and stop Display of current track location and speed Change track location Change rail type/class Display of overall system status Adjust gain (per channel) Manually disable individual channels Bolthole (BH), Bondhole (bh), Rail End (RE) and Weld (W), Misalignment (MA) One file per test run Grouped by date of test run Native or CSV (Microsoft Excel) Approx. 100kB per kilometre (main line, bolted rail) Approx. 500kB per kilometre (local line, bolted rail) Graphical (summary and detail) Responsibility of the operators Use of Windows XP backup software We suggest the use of DVDs or USB Flash Drive.
Channel Control Classification Output Output file format Output file size
SC14 SC15
Reports Backup
Commercial-in-Confidence
Page 25 of 27
CATER
Wheel Probes
WP1 WP2 WP3 WP4 WP5 Diameter Tyre Fluid (Type) Fluid (Pressure) Calibration - Rotational - Transverse - Longitudinal Weight Wearable Parts 165mm (nominal) Polyurethane, flexible, with excellent wear characteristics Glycol / Water mix 30kPa (typical) Fixed, no calibration required Fixed Fixed
WP6 WP7
Location Tracking
LT1 LT2 LT3 Resolution Accuracy Track Measuring Range 1mm +/-1m per 1000m -2000km +2000km
Environmental Conditions
ENV1 NV2 ENV3 Operating Temperature Storage Temperature Humidity Operator Area (external) 5C 40C -10C 65C Up to 99% relative humidity (in storage)
Commercial-in-Confidence
Page 26 of 27
CATER
4 Notice
The CATER Dual HANDWave U/T System has been developed specifically to increase the usefulness and functionality of the ULTRAWave Rail Flaw Detection System. For customer issues, CATER will investigate a reported problem and respond with a suggested workaround or software upgrade. Software upgrades are sent via e-mail and can easily be installed by the rail operators and maintenance personnel. Hardware is available from CATER for all CATER developed components and from other sources. CATER is continuously improving its products from feedback we receive from staff and customers. New software is released to our customers after it has passed rigorous testing with our test facilities on track in Perth. We would be pleased to organise a demonstration of our Dual HANDWave U/T System (as described in this document) to any interested parties. Note: The product described in this document is a typical Dual HANDWave configuration. Exceptions can be configured by the individual client. Please feel free to discuss personalised requirements with CATER. The ULTRAWave and RIPWave software that will actually be installed on a Dual HANDWave U/T System will include all the functions described in this document plus any developed by CATER in the mean time.
Commercial-in-Confidence
Page 27 of 27