NEXTSENSE GmbH
Highly Precise Profile Measurement for Predictive Maintenance
This article first appeared in the Railway-News magazine, Issue 1 2023.
With its unique CALIPRI® technology from NEXTSENSE, Hexagon is one of the world leaders in mobile profile measurement systems for wear measurement of wheels, rails and tracks.
With its latest product developments Hexagon allows rail operators to safely run their trains with longer, more predictable maintenance intervals, less downtime and reduced life-cycle costs.
The multifunctional and market-proven CALIPRI C4X series enables the combination of several inspection tasks in one measurement device. For example, if you combine the modules for wheel profile, brake disk, wheel diameter and wheel clearance, you have a measurement device for evaluating a complete wheelset. The non-contact measurement devices are based on laser light section technology, thus ensuring highly accurate and reproducible measured data. In a matter of seconds, the most important measured variables appear on the sensor and are automatically compared to individual limit values. Due to the various export and report functions it guarantees an improvement and simplification of the whole workflow.
The latest development from NEXTSENSE, part of Hexagon’s Manufacturing Intelligence division, CALIPRI X is a fully automated on-track wheelset measurement system that delivers significant productivity gains and operational cost savings to the rail sector. With CALIPRI X, the measurement process couldn’t be simpler: a train drives slowly over a sensor unit where laser and camera modules automatically measure and record the profile of the wheels. The system measures all wheelset parameters according to the European standard EN 15313 – including wheel profile, diameter, back-toback distance, equivalent conicity, camber and wheel toe. The most important parameters and variables are known in seconds, and out-of-tolerance areas immediately identified.
CALIPRI X is easily installed on existing tracks and is designed for 24/7 all-season operation. A rugged sensor unit with no moving parts ensures the system withstands the harsh railroad environment and requires minimal maintenance. Temperature compensation allows operation in any weather to ensure reliable results year-round. For the best productivity, the system is designed for installation on tracks where trains frequently run – in front of depots, workshops, washing facilities or in sidings. This allows frequent measurements to be made without extra effort or costs. With no start-up delay, it is always ready to go. The solution ensures full traceability and allows secure 24/7 access to results and analytics for fleet technicians, workshop owners, maintenance workers and other company personnel, wherever they are located worldwide.
