Abstract
Third rail systems must be properly maintained to ensure trouble-free reliability. With limited maintenance resources and track maintenance windows, much of third rail maintenance is reactive. Most would agree that fixing problems when they arise is no way to run a railroad. A properly configured and implemented third rail analysis system enables maintainers to adopt a targeted Preventive Maintenance (PM) approach to the third rail. By pinpointing potential problems, maintainers can focus their valuable resources on the most critical conditions and locations before service is affected. The relatively low price point for sensor and processing technology has fostered the development of cost-effective tools for the analysis of third rail systems. Multi-channel data acquisition devices allow for simultaneous capture of a dozen or more variables with total sampling rates in the GHz range. Superimposing this data on train position creates a detailed and precise system condition map. In addition to mapping third rail condition for PM activity, this technology can also be used to verify and correct system condition at commissioning, thereby establishing a baseline of system condition for future analysis. Data such as collector shoe impact, voltage variation, and current level is captured and can be compared with periodic analyses to identify trends in third rail condition.
This paper examines the configuration and use of a third rail analysis system for both legacy and greenfield applications. The author steps through system architecture, data analysis, and several case studies of how the data was used to identify and locate problems that compromised system reliability and efficiency. Modern power rail analysis technology offers significant benefits to installers and maintainers.
