Maintenance of Way Safety

Work zones often include multiple MoW vehicles operating in close proximity to each other with bi-directional movements.

It’s imperative to monitor the front and rear of each of these vehicles to prevent collisions and damage. For this function Piper deploys its field-tested UWB solution. The Helix CPU uses its knowledge of which track the vehicle is localized to and communicates with other Helix-equipped vehicles on the same track using UWB in a localized fashion. The ranging data collected from the UWB sensors allows the Helix CPU to accurately track the distance between the two vehicles and warn both operators if they begin to encroach on their safety envelopes. Operators are able to view this proximity information through the in-cab display alerts that follow the rules for safe separation of vehicles in both work and travel modes.

Piper’s UWB technology became the world’s first SIL 4 safety certified UWB positioning system.

Operators are also alerted to the presence of workers that inadvertently cross the track fouling area as well as objects that may be left in the path of the vehicles.

Piper’s TrackSight™ LiDAR system is calibrated to focus its field of view towards the direction of the track for the purpose of detecting any obstacles which could result in a collision with the operating vehicle. The sensor is configured to ignore any observed objects which don’t meet the minimum threshold for size as to avoid false positives caused by common debris. Additionally, TrackSight™ can determine its distance to observed objects and notify the equipment operator of when they should prepare to stop based on their current speed. The system also takes into account the database residing on the local CPU to dynamically focus its field of view when the vehicle is approaching a curve or the track is changing elevations.

According to the FRA, there were over 3,200 train-related injuries for on-duty railway workers in 2021.

Inertial Measurement Units (IMU) detect collisions in real-time and HD Cameras store outward and inward recordings for forensic review following hazardous events.

The Helix IMU includes a digital signal processor called Motion Processor which fuses acceleration and gyroscope data. The Accelerometer measures physical acceleration while the gyroscope measures angular/rotational velocity. Piper’s IMU accelerometer measures acceleration in meters per second squared which Piper then converts each acceleration into a g-force measurement to give the LCCAS system an understanding of any collisions which have occurred on the local asset. While the TrackSight and UWB sensors will enable the Helix system to alert the vehicle operator, EIC, and Dispatcher when a collision is imminent, the IMU will enable Helix to immediately alert the EIC and dispatcher when a collision occurs.

Additionally, the IMU gives the Piper LCCAS system the added function of dead reckoning for enhanced availability.

In order to reduce alert fatigue, Piper uses advanced algorithms that create Virtual Tunnels.

Using the database created from the Virtual Tunnels, Piper distinguishes between objects that are breaching the fouling area or creating a hazard, from necessary and existing wayside infrastructure such as signal heads or gantrys.

To eliminate false positives, the TrackSight sensor takes into account the database residing on the local CPU to then dynamically focus its field of view when the vehicle is approaching a curve or the track is changing elevations.

Piper has developed innovative algorithms to prevent false positive obstacle alerts when vehicles approach curves and hills.