Wheel-Rail Force Measurement Based on Wireless <i>LC</i> Resonance Sensing
Changrong Yang, Gui Yun Tian, Mark Robinson, Emmanuel Tashiwa Ibrahim
Abstract
Wheel-rail contact force measurement is one of the key issues in rolling stock monitoring. Traditional methods using strain gauges are a relative measurement, which requires strong bonding on the wheel webs with complicated telemetry transmission systems. This article proposes a wireless inductive–capacitive resonance sensing approach for noncontact measurement of wheel-rail contact forces. The proposed inductor–capacitor ( <italic xmlns:mml="http://www.w3.org/1998/Math/MathML" xmlns:xlink="http://www.w3.org/1999/xlink">LC</i> ) resonance sensor is low-cost, high sensitivity, and consists of a dual-layer rectangular inductance coil and a parallel capacitor. Validation using a standard dog-bone specimen tested on a universal testing machine was performed, with the resonant frequency of the proposed <italic xmlns:mml="http://www.w3.org/1998/Math/MathML" xmlns:xlink="http://www.w3.org/1999/xlink">LC</i> resonance sensor increasing monotonically with loading force. Investigation of the lift-off and aspect ratio of the inductance coil shows that lower lift-off and lower aspect ratio offer better sensitivity. The proposed <italic xmlns:mml="http://www.w3.org/1998/Math/MathML" xmlns:xlink="http://www.w3.org/1999/xlink">LC</i> resonance sensing with the LDC chip approach has great potential for rolling stock monitoring.