JAPAN: JR Kyushu is using image processing with AI capabilities to automate high speed line track inspections, replacing the need for staff to go out on foot.
A two-seat trolley travels at 20 km/h, with one operator driving and the other monitoring images and data on a tablet. If a problem such as a loose bolt is detected, they stop to examine the issue.
The machine vision technology supplied by Tokyo Artisan Intelligence uses a high speed camera with AMD Kria K26 SOM hardware for AI-enhanced pre-and-post data and image processing.
‘The most important benefit of AI in this case was reduction of cost’, said Hiroki Nakahara, co-founder and CEO of TAI, adding that the it had brought ’a dramatic improvement in operational efficiency’.
