Track Analyst
Download PDF

What it is...

Rangecam Track Analyst is a full-featured analysis and reporting software package for rail and track measurement data. Geometry, GRMS, rail wear, profile, and rail defect data, presented together, provide a complete picture of track conditions. Trending analysis shows rate of change over time, supporting rail and tie replacement planning.

Who uses it...

Track engineers with responsibility for planning and maintenance decision-making.

Benefits...

• comparisons over time highlight problem areas in track
• query and charting features quickly identify areas requiring maintenance
• analysis tools help identify causes of high and low degradation rates
• automated rail replacement forecasting
• automated tie planning and budgeting
• 'open' database; easy data access and export

Track Analyst Selected Features...

STANDARD DATABASE

Track Analyst ‘on the desktop’ stores all track data is stored in a Microsoft Access database. Track Analyst Enterprise connects to an Oracle or SQL Server database capable of storing all track test data for a large Class 1 railroad.

• well-supported industry-standard DBMS
• fast data access for queries and reports
• 'open' database. Data can be exported to spreadsheets and other applications for further analysis.

INDIVIDUAL RAIL PROFILE VIEW

This view shows the greatest detail about rail wear at a specific location.

Rail Profile View showing multiple comparison runs

• wear measurements, percent head loss, cant, gauge face angle, track gauge, rail type, wear classification

• optional comparison to one or more earlier runs

• optional unworn overlay

• choice of units: metric, English, or mixed

• user-defined layout and measurement labels

• one-click toolbar for navigation and printing

• zoom

TRACK CONDITION CHARTS

Charts showing geometry, GRMS, rail wear and other measurements are generated on demand. Drill down by clicking on a chart to see individual profiles.

Track condition chart combining  GRMS, gauge wear, cant, curvature, and obstacles. Three runs are compared.  A weak tie condition on the 4.1 degree R curve shows projected loaded gauge (PLG24) past the condemning limit, and negative cant.

• choose up to eight measurements for both sides of the track (16 channels total)

• over 45 available channels include rail wear, track geometry, GRMS, and labelled exceptions

• rail grinding QA measurements and crown radius may also be charted if used with the RPR Grinding System

• optional comparison to one or more earlier runs

• mini-profile shows track curvature degree and direction

• crossings, lubricators and other track points are displayed as icons

• dynamic horizontal and vertical re-scaling

• zoom

• template with all option settings can be saved and reused

THRESHOLD TABLE

Track Analyst supports user-defined exception thresholds for geometry and GRMS measurements. Example...

• up to 20 track classes and 20 exception levels are supported

• thresholds are used in strip chart colour coding, in calculating GRMS exceptions, and in the Threshold Report

EXCEPTIONS

Exceptions can be found by database queries, or can be imported from external files. Track Analyst reports exceptions in several ways, including colour-coded strip charts, labelled exceptions, defect index, and tabular reports.

• rail defects, geometry and GRMS exceptions can be charted

• add exception threshold lines and/or colour codes

• a cumulative Defect Index value, covering several included years of data, may be calculated and charted for each track segment

• double-click on a labelled defect to bring up detailed information on its size, detection date, and repair history

RAIL WEAR QUERIES AND EXCEPTION REPORTS

Run queries allow you to search for exceptional or dangerous conditions.

• supports combination queries: e.g. all profiles with negative cant and wide gauge

• supports mixed ‘and/or’logic: e.g. find all 115 RE profiles worn to 10 mm laterally or 14 mm vertically 

• 'spike' queries: localized exceptions

• 'transition' queries: e.g. find locations where rail weight changes

• queries can be based on track gauge, head area, head loss, wear measurements, cant angle, gauge face angle, rail weight and rail wear classification

• query and reporting options can be saved as a named template

• results are viewed on screen or saved to file as a Wear Report. Detail and summary options are available

• reports are generated as text files or in CSV format for direct import to spreadsheets
  

GEOMETRY AND GRMS QUERIES AND EXCEPTION REPORTS

• supports combination queries, such as surface or alignment or warp exceptions

• user-specified number of different measurements and exception levels (up to 10)

• query and reporting options can be saved as a named template

• several reports are available, including tie planning reports

• text or CSV (spreadsheet) format for all reports
  

TIE PLANNING BUDGET REPORT EXAMPLE

VISUAL TIE PLAN

The Visual Tie Plan shows the Tie Planning Budget Report in chart form.

• results of the Tie Planning Budget query and report are presented graphically

• tie replacement locations show as bars, solid black if within budget, hollow grey if not

• number of replacement ties is shown above the bar

• number of ties in the cluster is shown below the bar

WEAR TREND CHARTS

This chart calculates average wear values and graphically displays a wear trend for any curve or tangent section.

• measures curve performance in terms of wear rate
• shows trends in rail wear (vertical, gauge or combined wear, or head loss percentage), and other track measurements (track gauge, cant)
• shows 'out-of-balance' wear rates for left and right rails
• optionally shows rail section condemning limits 
• bases projections on time or tonnage
• uses linear or quadratic projections
• instant horizontal and vertical re-scaling on demand
• automatically detects rail changeout
• optionally displays wear rate equations

RAIL REPLACEMENT FORECAST

The Rail Replacement Forecast Report shows projected dates when rail should be replaced.

• wear trends can be based on time or accumulated tonnage

• wear rates are calculated for each side of each curve or tangent section. Long tangents are divided at mileposts.

• user-specified replacement conditions (">= 70% ORANGE" means that 70% of the curve has reached the "ORANGE" wear classification or worse)

• output can be viewed and edited graphically as a Visual Rail Replacement Plan

• text or CSV format
  example:

VISUAL RAIL REPLACEMENT PLAN

The Visual Rail Replacement Plan chart allows you to view the rail replacement forecast graphically, and edit your plan.

• rail replacement locations show as grey bars at the replacement location. The vertical axis is replacement year.

• several years of rail wear data may be plotted on the same screen

• drill down to see wear trend charts for any curve

• change replacement length or year using drag-and-drop editing. Add or delete rail replacements. 

• navigational shortcuts let you move quickly through the plan.

TRACK SEGMENT PERFORMANCE COMPARISON CHART

Showing comparative wear rates of many curves in a single display, the Track Segment Performance Chart allows immediate identification of the worst and best performers. The chart is interactive, allowing users to drill down to details, in order to determine what is causing both high and low wear rates. Used with the Track Segment Query function, a railroad can measure and compare the effects of different metallurgies, lubrication and other maintenance practices using actual wear measurements of their own track.

• single-click on any point to display track segment location

• double-click on any point to drill down to more segment information, including wear charts and trend charts

• used with the Track Segment Query, measure the effects of attributes such as metallurgy, MGT, lubrication and other maintenance practices, averaged over a large territory

• provides a top-level summary that can be used to compare the overall track performance of one territory, or one railroad, with another

RAIL INVENTORY REPORT

The Rail Inventory report summarizes rail assets in a selected territory by weight and wear classification.

• lengths are actual, not scaled to long and short mileboards

• user-selected start and end locations

• text or CSV format
  

AVERAGE WEAR REPORT

The Average Wear report averages wear measurements for each curve and tangent section in a territory. For each section, side, and rail weight, the first line gives average measurements, and the second line gives the variation in each measurement. The reported variation is ± 3 standard deviations of the corresponding average measurement.

• each rail weight within a curve is averaged separately

• linear feet and percentages for selected wear classifications

• long tangents divided at mileposts

• example:

TRACK SEGMENT REPORT

The Track Segment Report shows the curve and tangent sections within a territory, and, within each section, obstacles and other track points.

• actual curve and spiral lengths (not scaled to long and short mileboards)

• all, none, or user-selected track points

• optional min/max for curvature and superelevation

• optional VMax and track class

• optional note fields

• text or CSV format

• example: