There is currently a need for more precise knowledge of the load limits of this type of bridge when supporting increasingly faster and heavier trains, which requires the adaptation of prevention technology to address these changes.

As a result of the unique characteristics of this type of bridge and their age, there has been a lack of interest in the development of modern techniques to facilitate their maintenance. Nevertheless, there are a considerable number of these bridges in service, with masonry bridges accounting for 45% of all of the railway bridges in Spain, and there is growing interest in them in terms of their historic value.

The project’s goal is to generate a new acoustic surveying methodology to assess the dynamic performance characteristics of masonry structures to make it possible to maintain stonework or brickwork railway structures.

Some of the specific scientific-technical goals include:

1. Formulate proposed criteria to guide the selection of the optimum level of excitation, in addition to the preferred methodology for calibrating models, for the dynamic characterization of masonry bridges (optimum BiME)
2. Validate a new procedure for two representative structures, using four levels of excitation and different EMA and OMA techniques for dynamic characterization.
3. Determine whether or not level E4 dynamic excitation should be used, due to the appearance of some type of non-linear behavior.
4. Determine whether or not the non-linear FEM-DEM models need to be adjusted to reproduce the dynamic structural behavior.
5. Experimental testing to verify the proposal formulated to choose the optimum BiME.
6. Propose equivalent linear models to predict the dynamic behavior of masonry bridges.
7. Demonstrate the capacity for predictive analysis

The technical capabilities of the participants bring together INSE RAIL’s extensive experience in other projects in the industry, the research potential of the Polytechnic University of Valencia, and the technological innovation of TRES and HAMERTEC.

Source: Inse Rail

Inse Rail, together with the UPV (Polytechnic University of Valencia), and the support of the CDTI, has completed the Hyperstrooct Project, a state-of-the-art project in the field of structural calculation for the infrastructure of Hyperloop lines, which consisted of the development of an advanced simulation tool to analyze, calculate and validate the structural response and vehicle-structure interaction.

After almost two years of development, we have achieved the goal set by the R&D department of designing and developing a computerized system to simulate the structural response and vehicle-structure interaction for Hyperloop viaducts, enabling us to automate the design calculations for the evaluation and subsequent construction of this infrastructure.

Some of the many innovative objectives of this project included solving the problem of structural analysis of vehicle movement in the Hyperloop system along the viaduct or similar infrastructure, as well as determining the expected response of the structure and the vehicle in terms of movement, deformation, stress and strain. It is also key to obtain results that are applicable in the field of engineering, such as ensuring the ability to carry out studies of alternatives that are comparable to each other to assess the required construction time and required investment, or to plan lines and their segmentation based the route and environmental specifications.

This software positions Inse Rail as a cutting-edge engineering firm in the field of transport, sharing knowledge with professionals from the UPV (Polytechnic University of Valencia), who are undoubtedly the top specialists in this field internationally.

Source: Inse Rail

Inse Rail, with the support of the CDTI (Centro para el Desarrollo Tecnológico Industrial), launches a new innovation project: GALIBRAIL. 

The final goal of the GALIBRAIL project is to design and develop a computerized system to calculate and analyze railway gages that takes all of the elements of a railway line, its environment and rolling stock into consideration, and applies new algorithms to calculate and dimension the maximum measurements to validate the traffic conditions in the current real situation.

Gage calculation is a process that verifies that there is sufficient space between the rolling stock and the infrastructure on which it will operate, to ensure the safety of rail traffic by preventing collisions between trains running on adjacent tracks or with the infrastructure itself, always providing a minimum margin of safety. 

Since gage calculation is the basic pillar for developing new rail corridors, diversifying the operation of existing ones, and enabling interoperability in international traffic, the need for this previously non-existent automated calculation system to address this aspect is now more necessary than ever, and will represent a significant competitive advantage for Inse Rail when this innovation project is successfully completed.