Design and testing of an innovative monitoring system for railway vehicles

In recent years there has been increased interest in developing a safer and more efficient railway system, as the railway has demonstrated the potential to become the most sustainable mode of transport. In Europe, significant investments have been made in order to increase the speed of both passenger and freight vehicles, but a good efficiency of railway transport can be achieved only if it is possible to ensure a high level of safety and reliability. These requirements can be achieved by adopting onboard diagnostic systems in order to increase the vehicle safety and to improve the strategies for a scheduled and corrective maintenance. This study shows the design and testing of an onboard monitoring system, which can be installed on different types of railway vehicles. The system is able to detect anomalies of the running behavior of vehicles and faults at the component level.