Portable data acquisition testing system for railway switches

Sistema portatile di test scambi ferroviari

Portable testing system for data acquisition

The portable testing system for data acquisition has been designed for the acquisition and analysis of signals related to railway exchanges. In particular, it is compact, practical, and reliable, it is the ideal solution for field use, ensuring high performance and compliance with the latest operating systems such as Windows 10. Moreover, this system originates from the revamping of the device developed by CATE in 2006, now offering greater flexibility, portability, and compatibility.

Challenge

New operational requirements, therefore, necessitated a redesign of the original system, which, while still functional, had to meet new demands:

Reconfiguration of the signals to be acquired
Introduction of current sensors
Quick and user-friendly connections in railway environments
Compact and easily transportable design
Software update for Windows 10

Technical features of the portable aata acquisition testing system

The system has been optimized from both a hardware and software perspective, with particular attention to the robustness and precision required by the railway sector.

Hardware section

Reconfiguration and wiring: Recovery of existing components, optimization, and enhancement of connections.
Advanced connections: Sensors connect via quick connectors, improving convenience over terminal systems.
Current sensors: Supply and integration of 4 openable current sensors, with cables and connectors for a quick and secure connection.
Connector installation: Optimized panel with ILME connectors for current sensors and generic signaling.
Electronic connections: Ethernet interface and Schuko sockets for power supply.

Software section

Windows 10 compatibility: Updated software to manage collected data, installed on rugged PCs.
Simplified signal management: Redesigned interface for quick analysis.
Cross-platform installation: Software package installable on various PCs.
Customizable configuration: Allows setting acquisition speeds and logging frequencies, as well as managing triggers for rapid monitoring activation.

Data acquisition

The core of the system is based on a cDAQ chassis with Ethernet interface and high-precision analog input modules. Consequently, this configuration allows data acquisition up to 200 kS/s with a 16-bit resolution, ensuring the precision required for railway monitoring. The software, developed with National Instruments (NI) LabVIEW, offers maximum flexibility:

Channel configuration for managing force and current signals.
Acquisition and logging speeds in CSV format for post-processing analysis.
Triggering and sampling for quick event response.
Real-time data visualization with the ability to compare multiple curves.

Testing and configuration

The testing phase offers an intuitive interface for setting key parameters:
Channel management: Configuration and modification of channels, triggers, and calibration curves.
Acquisition models: Ability to save preconfigured models for future use.
Post-processing analysis: Tools for processing, comparing, and transforming acquired data.