NORWEGIAN rail infrastructure authority Jernbaneverket has taken delivery of its Roger 1000 track and overhead line recording car from MerMec of Italy (RG 3.98 p169). The Roger 1000 is a key element in the authority's programme of network upgrading to accommodate tilting trains. It is carried on ETR470 Pendolino bogies, with helical spring primary and secondary suspensions and active lateral suspension. This enables it to run through curves in the same condition as a passenger train, and exert similar dynamic forces on the track.
Measuring 22·6m over buffers, the self-propelled car weighs 60 tonnes, and has an installed traction rating of 620 kW. It is powered by two Cummins NTA855-R4 underfloor diesel engines, each driving the inner axle on one bogie through a Voith hydrodynamic transmission. Top speed when self-propelled is 160 km/h, although the car reached 181 km/h on Italian State Railways tracks during pre-delivery trials. It is also able to work in loco-hauled mode at up to 200 km/h, but has again exceeded this, recording 245 km/h during tests.
Designed to operate at temperatures ranging from -40í to +40íC, the vehicle is fully self-contained, with monitoring and conference saloons, crew sleeping accommodation, kitchen and toilet facilities. It has a range of 3000 km between fuelling stops. Roger 1000 is equipped with Norwegian ATP, anti-skid brakes and cruise control, together with full GPS location equipment. A GSM modem permits remote diagnosis of all operating equipment and on-board plant. An independent 55KW diesel generator provides power for on-board auxiliaries.
Roger 1000 is effectively a travelling laboratory, with 19 computers able to monitor and analyse:
- track geometry;
- running rail profiles;
- overhead line geometry;
- rail corrugations.
It can also undertake visual inspection of the overhead line. The unit is designed for future diagnostics of three telecommunications networks: GSM, GSM-R and RTT.
An open structure for hardware and software design allows for future upgrading where necessary. The system architecture is arranged on three levels: data acquisition, pre-processing and full-function, including integration with the driving controls.
The measuring equipment is designed for operation at up to 250 km/h, and the different readings are fully synchronised in time and space to build up an integrated database of infrastructure measurements. The distances are synchronised both to ATP beacons and passive milestones.
All parameters are sampled at 500mm intervals using contactless measurement to ensure accuracy at high speed. Special positioning sensors compensate for differential movement between the body and bogies.
A high degree of automation means that Jernbaneverket can operate the vehicle with a crew of just two: a driver and a technician. n
- CAPTION: Built by MerMec at its Monopoli factory in Italy, the Roger 1000 was tested on FS tracks before handing over to Jernbaneverket. The pantograph (inset) is used to measure the contact wire stagger, forces between the pan and the wire, and to detect hard points
- CAPTION: Main control desk (left) and the technician's workstation (below); the vehicle can be operated by a crew of two
