A city-based engineering expert has developed state- of-the-art real-time vibration and condition monitoring systems using photonic technology to assess the structural health of railway track, bridges, and other infrastructure.
Patent applied
The breakthrough, for which patent application has been submitted, was showcased at the new flyover at Thagarapuvalasa, about 40 km from here, before Director-General (Road Development), Ministry of Transport and Highways, S.N. Das, on Saturday. Mr. Das told The Hindu that they would consider examining the efficacy of the new technology in a few bridges identified as a pilot project. He said they already had a system in place to assess the condition of various structures with periodical inspection. “This could help us to supplement our effort,” he added.
Rao Tatavarti, Director (Research and Consultancy), Gayatri Vidya Parishad Scientific and Industrial Research Centre, said that after over 10 years of research, he developed two technologies – VIDUR (Vibration Intelligence Data Unravelling Remotely) and VEDA (Vibrational Effects-Detection Analysis). A mobile app has also been developed by Castle Advanced Technologies & System, a start-up founded by him a year ago with branches in the city and two other places.
“Now, we want to market our technology with multiple applications to various firms and government departments through the start-up,” Prof. Tatavarti said, and claimed that once they installed the embedded devices at a designated place, the new technology would send signals instantly to the central command (main monitoring station). In case of any abnormal changes, it would enable timely preventive measures.
