Magnetoelectric Wireless Condition Monitor for Trackside Monitoring of Train Traction Systems

A magnetoelectric (ME) wireless condition monitor comprising a maximum of four ME passive sensors and a 4-channel, 2.4-GHz wireless communication unit is developed for trackside monitoring of train traction systems. In a field study on the East Rail Line in Hong Kong, an ME passive sensor is installed at a central point of the rail track and connected to a single-channel wireless transmitter mounted outside the rail track. The 4-channel wireless receiver is housed at Fo Tan station with a distance of 200 m from the sensor/transmitter pair to monitor magnetic field signatures governed by four sets of electric traction motors and motor drives located underneath the 2nd, 5th, 8th, and 11th cars of 12-car mainline trains when the trains pass through the monitoring site. The monitored time-domain magnetic field signatures due to different train types, train numbers, and passing times are analyzed using fast Fourier transform (FFT) and short-time Fourier transform (STFT). Practical implications of the proposed trackside-type monitor for in-situ inspection of train traction systems are obtained, together with online verification of train identity and tracking of train position. doi: 10.12783/SHM2015/259