EUROPE: Freight train operators are using a sensor-based system from technology company A1 Digital and its hardware partner Cargomon to accurately determine wagon weights in real time, reducing the risk of uneven loading and lowering costs without needing to send wagons to weighing stations.
The bogie-mounted strain gauges stretch in proportion to the load applied to the wagon. Temperature compensation ensures high accuracy even at widely fluctuating temperatures, and calibration allows fine-tuning.
All sensors as well as the telematics unit communicate wirelessly to provide the operator with data, and a mobile app can be used for configuration and to display the actual weight during the loading process.
A wagon can be fitted with a single sensor to detect whether it currently loaded and to help optimise maintenance and planning by providing information on the distances travelled when loaded and unloaded.
Adding a second sensor provides more accuracy and enables the detection of uneven loading to help reduce the risk of derailment.
A1 Digital says all users of its Rail Insight are actively considering and partially evaluating the integration of high-precision weight measurement into their cargo digitisation projects. Most opt to use four sensors per wagon, two per bogie. This offers less than 2% deviation in more than 95% of measurements and minimises the risk of asymmetric loading.
- A1 Digital and Cargomon Systems will be showcasing the technology at InnoTrans 2024, including an event at the Speakers’ Corner on September 24.
