Wayside monitoring

Wayside monitoring can measure the following values:

• Lateral and vertical load on wheel / rail contact and the relationship between them (L/V)
• Rails, sleepers and slab with spring-mass system displacements
• Rails, tunnels, spring-mass system accelerations
• Maximum bending moments on sleepers / ties

In addition to instrumentation, LAEDE has a team of engineers of IEME Brasil to treatment and analysis of data for conclusive reports of track condition.

Sleepers / Ties

Sleepers / Ties are components in which the rails are supported and fixed and that transmit to the ballast part of the efforts and vibrations produced by the trains on track. With last generation equipment, we test the resistance of ties against the stresses of the track, which ensures stability.

Main tests:

• Positive and negative bending moment on rail seat test (*)
• Center positive and negative bending moment test (*)
• Center positive bending (*)
• Rail seat Repeated Load test (3 million cycles) (*)
• Bond Development, Tendon Anchorage, and Ultimate Load Test (*)
• Fastening Insert Test (*)
• Customer specified tests.

(*) Accredited tests by Cgcre according to ABNT NBR ISO/IEC 17025, under the number CRL 1344. Cgcre is Signatory of the ILAC Mutual Recognition Arrangement. Check our scope of accreditation: http://www.inmetro.gov.br/laboratorios/rble/docs/CRL1344.pdf

 

 

Fastening system

The function of a fastening system is to fix the rail to sleepers / ties or slab tracks. Generally, a rail fastening system is consisted of rail anchors, rail tie plates, chairs, fasteners, spikes, screws, bolts, etc.. Fastening systems tests aim to prove the durability and efficiency of the components. Some fasteners commonly used in sleepers / ties and slabs are direct/indirect elastic and/or Landis type.

Main tests:

• Dynamic low frequency test
• Determination of clamping force
• Determination of longitudinal rail restraint
• Static test
• Effect of repeated loding test (3 million cycles)
• Determination of electrical resistance
• Lateral load restraint
• And others

 

 

Rail Welding

Rail welding is an operation that consists of joining one end of the rail to another end.

Main tests:

• Aluminothermic welding of rails
  • Bend test (*)
  • Fatigue test (*)

• Flash butt welding of rails
  • Bend test (*)
  • Fatigue test (*)
  • Residual stress

(*) Accredited tests by Cgcre according to ABNT NBR ISO/IEC 17025, under the number CRL 1344. Cgcre is Signatory of the ILAC Mutual Recognition Arrangement. Check our scope of accreditation:
http://www.inmetro.gov.br/laboratorios/rble/docs/CRL1344.pdf

Spring-mass system

Spring-mass systems are responsible for the attenuation of vibration during the train passage. The systems are mainly used in urban rail transport, such as Subway and Tram.

Spring-mass systems are composed of elastomeric or spring metallic materials.

Rolling stock

Static and dynamic tests on primary suspensions of bogies, such as Chevron springs, conical springs, Clouth springs, resilient coupling, among other components of the rolling stock.

LAEDE also performs wheelsets instrumentation to record accelerations during their passages on the track.

Main projects

• Sao Paulo Metro
  • Line 5-Lilac (Lot 3): execution of approval tests for the permanent track superstructure with the operation of trains and tests of prototypes of the permanent track mass-spring systems.
  • Line 4-Yellow: planning, follow-up and analysis of laboratory approval tests for rail fixing sets, efficiency analysis of PV electrical insulation.
• Ferrovia Centro Atlântica: Obtaining bending moments on concrete sleepers and vertical forces of wheel/rail contact using instrumentation on the VLi permanent track. Mechanical tests in the laboratory of concrete and wood sleepers to verify their resistance.
• Vale: Dynamic fatigue tests for the analysis of cracks on the sides of a railway truck according to the AAR M-203 standard.
• VLT Carioca: Approval tests in the laboratory of the superstructure components of the permanent way, such as rail fastening, rail welds, concrete sleepers, mass-spring systems, etc.