The development of non-destructive techniques (NDT) techniques for the in-service inspection of railroad wheels and gauge corners was
the main activity of the NDT division VIII. 4 at BAM over the last 2 years. For such different components, two different inspection techniques
were fundamentally chosen in order to fulfil the end-user requirements. Firstly the inspection of the wheels—rim and disk—should be carried
out without dismantling the wheels and using ultrasonic techniques. On the other hand, the inspection of the railroad track surface at a train
speed of about 70 km/h should be guaranteed using eddy current techniques. The above-mentioned tasks were a challenge for the lab staff.
The accessibility for the wheel inspection was limited due to several impassable barriers such as sand tubes, etc. Eddy current application
focused mainly on the detection of head check defects occurring at the gauge corner of the rail. Investigations carried out also showed, that
other types of surface defects (e.g. Belgrospis, wheel burns, short-pitch corrugations, etc.) could easily be detected. Some aspects of the
inspection system as well as an overview of test results are presented in the current contribution.
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