3D Laser Scanning for Tunnel Inspection

January 22, 2019

Don’t Stop the 3D laser scanning train

Most of us as kids saw what happened when we put a penny on the railroad tracks. The train whizzed by and we ran out to see what happened to our penny.  We were also told not to put things like coins on the track. They told us that a penny could send that train flying into the air. It was a cool thought, but a lie none the less. There is a little truth in every lie. Obstructions on the track can cause major problems for trains. There is a need therefore to keep thinks clear. In the past, I suppose they had to have someone walk along the track, or the train operator had to keep eyes on the track at all times. Today, though, things are moving a lot faster, and so the eye-ball method may need to be replaced with a better method, namely 3D laser scanning services.

Things aren’t slowing down, so we need 3D laser scanning services

3D scanning services is proposed to help train operation safety keep pace with the quantity and speed of trains. Traditional inspection methods are not keeping up with the pace of train operation and so there is a need to utilize new technologies for this area. A good suggestion would be to use 3D laser scanning services. 3D scanning technologies can do the inspection job with ease, efficiency, and accuracy. Such technology can help monitor a designated range that must be clear for the train to pass safely.Traditional methods for reporting rail clearance involved things like flatcars that would use physical contact to inspect clearance. That method is slow and interrupts the normal flow of trains. Faster method were needed. Later came non-contact methods using GCM-10 which applied photo and laser technology. That method was still slow. Is there something that can so it fast an accurate?

3D Laser Scanning Keeping us on track

Today, 3D scanning technology is looking to be a good solution to speed up the inspection process. Instead of running at 20km/h, the 3D scanning method can add an extra 100km/h to the timing. Not only that, but there is less need for human decision making with the increasing power of robotic technology and computer processing. This surely will lead to less error in the inspection process. 3D scanning services can do the job with high accuracy and precision to the degree that old methods could not. 3D laser scanning services is also combined with global navigation systems to give the both position and clearance data at the same time.

I feel better now because of 3D laser scanning

There is no doubt that trains will be safer by utilizing new technologies as we apply them. That will make me feel safer the next time I get on a subway or bullet train. I know that kids will be kids and that they are still curious about what happens when you put something on the track. In the past, a penny could not derail a train, but today, the trains are speeding down the track. I almost feel like a penny might turn a train into an airplane. It’s good we have 3D laser scanning services on the look out.