Mass_Transit_March_2020 - 32

UAV Applications
be considered a defect, such as
broken ties, cracked joint bars
and wide gage.
"That way we can really be
confident in looking at [the data]
and having it say this is a defect,
this is not a defect," McCain said.
"We've done a significant number
of ground walkthroughs to go back
and say, yeah there's not a false positive, there's not a false negative."
Once the dataset has been
compiled, there's a way to screen
by defect and by track classification, explains Larry Stockton,
CEO 360 Rail Services.
"We're able to filter out some
of those defects that may be applicable to a Class 5 track but not
applicable to a Class 1 track,"
Stockton said.
Once the dataset has been
compiled according to the clients'
needs, 360 Rail Services sends the
client a digital folder they log into
where they can see a list of the defects. McCain notes this includes
a map of the photo so the clients
can easily locate defects. Instead
of having someone manually scan
the tracks, they can send someone
to the exact coordinates of where
the defect can be found, while also
already knowing what the nature
of the defect is.
"The intention is in the future
to provide a customer portal that
will allow them to look at current
inspection and past inspection for
their specific tracks, and be able to
relate that to where problems are
starting to come up," Stockton said.

Is a UAV really the
best solution?

Marc A. Cañas, vice president and
a founder of Zephyr Rail, agrees
it's more than flying a drone in the
air to capture data, noting there
are multi-levels and multilayers at
play with technology and regulation that need to come together in
order to get a usable and accurate
end product.
"It takes a lot of sound engineering and judgement and our years
of railroad engineering experience,

32 |

where we take the information and
see if the application of the drone is
correct or not," Cañas said.
Zephyr Rail was established
in 2015 and provides engineering
and construction management
services. The company's founders
first started working with UAVs in
2013 to solve a workflow problem,
Cañas says. Specifically, when it
came to mapping, the company
needed a solution that provided
more control, higher resolution
and closer-up details for a project it was working on at the time.
"As soon as everybody understands what we can do with
drones, they become an [important] piece for workflow in not only
engineering but also in workflow
for construction management,"
Cañas said. "So, we rolled them
into our regular project cycles and
we use them to enhance either design or inspection or construction
management. It's really another
tool in our toolbelt."
While UAVs are a great tool,
it's important to understand when
it's an appropriate application.
This usually comes down more to
regulations than the technology
being able to perform the task,
such as restrictions on where
people can fly UAVs. For instance,
operating a UAV in a controlled
airspace, such as an active airport,
wouldn't be the best solution due
to FAA regulations.
"That is not a good spot for
a drone because the logistics of
being able to get permission to fly
in close proximity to an airport
because of the controlled airspace
issue makes the tool unusable,"
Cañas said.
Another thing to consider is
the time of day when the UAV
will be used. When performing
mapping or inspection services,
the UAV needs to capture video
or photos, which requires light. If
flying at night, not only is there a
lack of light to capture quality images and videos but the FAA also
requires a waiver to fly at night.
Even if the technology is applica-

Mass Transit | MassTransitmag.com | MARCH 2020

A SCREENSHOT
of the piloting
platform used to
monitor a UAV's
flight path.
Zephyr Rail

"We need

something to
keep going
forward,
otherwise that
technology is
going to die
off or it's going
to be over
regulated. It's
up to us who
are in this
industry to
work with the
regulators as
much as we
can to come
up with a
middle ground
that is going
to work."

-MARC. A.
Cañas, vice
president
and a
founder of
Zephyr Rail,

ble, it comes down to regulations
when considering if a UAV is the
correct solution.
"Usable is not always the only
litmus test; you have to go beyond
that," Cañas said. "You have to
have a working knowledge of what
the rail operation requires versus
what the air operation requires
and how you meld those two together using sound engineering
and construction management
and inspection experience to
bring that together. And then
come up with a deliverable with
what the client is really needing."

UAVs bring an added
level of safety at FRA

Construction management and
engineering projects aren't the
only applications for UAVs. FRA
is testing UAV applications concerning safety, such as evaluating
UAVs' effectiveness in detecting
trespassers along the railroad
right-of-way and creating accurate grade-crossing profile data.
FRA worked to determine the
effectiveness of using UAVs to
detect trespassers along the rightof-way in partnership with the
Brunswick, Maine, Police Department (BPD), explains Francesco
Bedini-Jacobini, general engineer,
Train Control and Communications Research Division, the results
from this project will be published
in an upcoming technical report.
FRA is also funding Michigan
Technological University's (MTU)
study using UAVs with artificial
intelligence and machine learning
techniques to provide real-time detection of railroad trespassers.
"In the BPD project, a UAV was
flown at certain times of the day
and the camera mounted on the
vehicle would transmit video to
the operator, who in turn would
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