Testing and Validation of Special Trackwork for Automated Cracked Wheel Detector

In 2013, Transportation Technology Center, Inc. (TTCI) performed testing on the gage widened special trackwork segment designed for the ultrasonic automated cracked wheel detector system; and continues to perform well in 2020. The trackwork is assessed for the risk of wheel drop and back of...

Investigation of the Relationship between Crashworthiness Performance and Weight for High-Speed Train Operations in the U.S.

This report describes an evaluation of the effects of increased crashworthiness performance on high-speed train weight.  The crashworthiness features investigated include occupied volume strength, energy absorption systems, seats, and fire protection systems.  In each case, a baseline...

Trespasser Detection Systems on Railroad Rights-of-Way

The U.S. Department of Transportation’s Volpe Center, under the direction of DOT’s Federal Railroad Administration Office of Research, Development, and Technology, conducted a research study to evaluate the effectiveness of trespass detection technology on rail property linked to and controlled...

Trespasser Detection on Railroad Property Using Unmanned Aerial Vehicles

The U.S. Department of Transportation’s (DOT) John A. Volpe National Transportation Systems Center (Volpe), under the direction of DOT’s Federal Railroad Administration (FRA) Office of Research, Development and Technology (RD&T), conducted a research study that evaluated the effectiveness of...

Predicting Fully-Developed Passenger Rail Car Fire Heat Release Rate

This report provides the results of the initial development of scaling laws for use in developing cost effective experimental measurements of a passenger rail car heat release rate (HRR) history as well as modeling approaches for predicting passenger rail car HRR. Scaling laws were successfully...

In-service Performance of a Truck Component Inspection System

The Federal Railroad Administration (FRA), in collaboration with the Association of American Railroads (AAR), sponsored Transportation Technology Center, Inc. (TTCI) to conduct a revenue service test of an automated machine vision (MV) inspection system for evaluating truck components on...

Load Shedding - Phase II & III: Concept Development and Prototype Design for Passenger Rail Equipment

An investigation occurred by Sharma & Associates, Inc. (SA) of the feasibility of temporarily shedding electrical demand associated with passenger car heating ventilation and air conditioning (HVAC) systems during periods of peak traction demand, with the goal of right-sizing the main engine...

Feasibility of Load-Shedding to Improve Efficiency and Reduce Energy Consumption on Passenger Locomotives, Phase I

This report discusses the feasibility of temporarily shedding electrical demand associated with heating and ventilation air conditioning (HVAC) systems of passenger cars during periods of peak traction, with the goal of right-sizing the main engine on a passenger locomotive. Industrial...

Inclusive and Universal Accessible Design Considerations for Next Generation of Passenger Railcars

Positive Train Control Braking Algorithm Evaluation Methodology Enhancement

This report describes the investigation and implementation of changes performed by Transportation Technology Center, Inc. (TTCI) to improve the efficiency and capabilities of the current Positive Train Control (PTC) braking algorithm evaluation methodology for freight operations. Improvements...