Suvi Santa-aho, Antti Nurmikolu, and Minnamari Vippola
International Journal of Railway, vol. 10, no. 2, pp.21-29, 2017

Abstract : The main aim of the report is to review recent progress in the utilisation of ultrasound-based automated inspection systems for rails of railway tracks and to provide a basis for further research in the field of railway track inspection. This paper reviews the ultrasound technologies currently employed in the automated inspection of railway tracks, along with examples of recent field applications. The main research areas that this review focuses on are firstly, the utilisation of ultrasound inspection for rail tracks; secondly, the different automated ultrasound techniques, and, finally, the special features of the ultrasound inspection of railway tracks. In addition, there is a review of the most recent ultrasound-based systems, and future techniques that have not yet been automated or used in routine inspection.

Keyword : Automated inspection, Ultrasound, Track inspection, Nondestructive testing