Detecting a Hunting Condition of a Railcar Axle

Abstract

Systems, methods, and non-transitory machine-readable media for remote monitoring and for detecting that an axle of a railcar is in a hunting condition in accordance with embodiments of the invention are disclosed. In one or more example embodiments, a device for detecting a hunting condition of a railcar axle that includes a controller having one or more processors, a data array, an accelerometer, and memory storing executable instructions that, when executed by the one or more processors, cause the controller to obtain from an accelerometer acceleration data indicating lateral acceleration of a railcar, store the acceleration data in the data array, determine multiple standard deviations of accelerometer readings based on the acceleration data stored in the data array, and provide an indication that an axle of the railcar is in a hunting condition based on at least one of the standard deviations of accelerometer readings satisfying a standard deviation threshold.

What is claimed is: 
     
         1 . A computer-implemented method of detecting a hunting condition of a railcar axle, the method comprising:
 obtaining, by a monitoring device attached to a railcar and from an accelerometer of the monitoring device, acceleration data indicating lateral acceleration of the railcar;   determining, by the monitoring device and based on the acceleration data, a plurality of standard deviations of accelerometer readings; and   based on at least one of the plurality of standard deviations of accelerometer readings satisfying a standard deviation threshold, providing, by the monitoring device and to a remote device located remotely relative to the monitoring device, an indication that an axle of the railcar is in a hunting condition.   
     
     
         2 . The computer-implemented method of  claim 1 , further comprising filtering, by the monitoring device and using a low-pass filter, the acceleration data received from the accelerometer. 
     
     
         3 . The computer-implemented method of  claim 1 , further comprising:
 storing, by the monitoring device and in a data array of the monitoring device, the acceleration data as a plurality of accelerometer readings; and   obtaining, by the monitoring device and from the accelerometer, a new accelerometer reading indicating lateral acceleration of the railcar; and   based on the data array having no empty indices, replacing, by the monitoring device, the oldest accelerometer reading stored in the data array with the new accelerometer reading.   
     
     
         4 . The computer-implemented method of  claim 1 , further comprising providing, by the monitoring device and to the remote device, summary data associated with movement of the railcar, wherein the summary data comprises one or more of:
 an indication of a speed of the railcar;   an indication of a latitude and a longitude of the railcar;   an indication of an average of the plurality of standard deviations of accelerometer readings;   an indication of a maximum standard deviation of the plurality of standard deviations of accelerometer readings; or   an indication of a percentage of the plurality of standard deviations of accelerometer readings satisfying the standard deviation threshold.   
     
     
         5 . The computer-implemented method of  claim 1 , wherein the obtaining the acceleration data is based on a speed of the railcar satisfying a speed threshold. 
     
     
         6 . The computer-implemented method of  claim 1 , further comprising determining, by the monitoring device and based on the accelerometer experiencing an acceleration that satisfies an acceleration threshold and for a portion of the plurality of standard deviations of accelerometer readings received during travel of the railcar over a predefined distance, one or more statistical summaries. 
     
     
         7 . The computer-implemented method of  claim 1 , further comprising:
 receiving, by a controller of the monitoring device from the accelerometer and based on the accelerometer experiencing lateral acceleration that satisfies an acceleration threshold, an interrupt signal;   based on receiving the interrupt signal, exiting, by the controller, a low-power mode; and   after the providing the indication that the railcar axle is in a hunting condition, entering, by the controller, the low-power mode.   
     
     
         8 . The computer-implemented method of  claim 1 , wherein the acceleration data indicates lateral acceleration of a body of the railcar at a location above a truck of the railcar. 
     
     
         9 . The computer-implemented method of  claim 1 , wherein the providing the indication that the railcar axle is in a hunting condition comprises transmitting, by the monitoring device via a wireless network and to the remote device, a message comprising the indication that the axle of the railcar is in a hunting condition. 
     
     
         10 . The method of  claim 1 , further comprising, after the providing the indication that an axle of the railcar is in a hunting condition, resetting, by the monitoring device, a reference frame of the accelerometer. 
     
     
         11 . A device for detecting a hunting condition of a railcar axle, the device comprising:
 a controller comprising one or more processors;   a data array;   an accelerometer; and   memory storing executable instructions that, when executed by the one or more processors while the device is attached to a railcar, cause the controller to:
 obtain, from the accelerometer, acceleration data indicating lateral acceleration of the railcar; 
 store, in the data array, the acceleration data; 
 determine, based on the acceleration data stored in the data array, a plurality of standard deviations of accelerometer readings; and 
 based on at least one of the plurality of standard deviations of accelerometer readings satisfying a standard deviation threshold, provide, to a remote device located remotely relative to the device, an indication that an axle of the railcar is in a hunting condition. 
   
     
     
         12 . The device of  claim 11 , further comprising a low-pass filter configured to filter the acceleration data obtained from the accelerometer. 
     
     
         13 . The device of  claim 11 , wherein the instructions, when executed while the device is attached to the railcar, further cause the controller to:
 obtain, from the accelerometer, a new accelerometer reading indicating lateral acceleration of the railcar; and   based on the data array having no empty indices, replace the oldest accelerometer reading stored in the data array with the new accelerometer reading.   
     
     
         14 . The device of  claim 11 , wherein the instructions, when executed while the device is attached to the railcar, further cause the controller to provide, to the remote device, summary data associated with movement of the railcar, wherein the summary data comprises one or more of:
 an indication of a speed of the railcar;   an indication of a latitude and a longitude of the railcar;   an indication of an average of the plurality of standard deviations of accelerometer readings;   an indication of a maximum standard deviation of the plurality of standard deviations of accelerometer readings; or   an indication of a percentage of the plurality of standard deviations of accelerometer readings satisfying the standard deviation threshold.   
     
     
         15 . The device of  claim 11 , wherein the instructions, when executed while the device is attached to the railcar, cause the controller to obtain the acceleration data based on a speed of the railcar satisfying a speed threshold. 
     
     
         16 . The device of  claim 11 , wherein the instructions, when executed while the device is attached to the railcar, further cause the controller to determine, based on the accelerometer experiencing an acceleration that satisfies an acceleration threshold and for a portion of the plurality of standard deviations of accelerometer readings received during travel of the railcar over a predefined distance, one or more statistical summaries. 
     
     
         17 . The device of  claim 11 , wherein:
 the accelerometer is configured to provide, to the controller and based on the accelerometer experiencing lateral acceleration that satisfies an acceleration threshold, an interrupt signal; and   the controller is configured to:
 based on receiving the interrupt signal, exit a low-power mode; and 
 after providing the indication that the axle of the railcar is in a hunting condition, enter the low-power mode. 
   
     
     
         18 . The device of  claim 11 , wherein the device is mounted, via a plate comprising a plurality of studs, to the railcar at a lateral centerline of the railcar and above a truck that carries the axle of the railcar. 
     
     
         19 . The device of  claim 11 , wherein the instructions, when executed while the device is attached to the railcar, cause the controller to provide the indication that the axle of the railcar is in a hunting condition at least by causing transmission, via a wireless network and to the remote device, of a message comprising the indication that the axle of the railcar is in a hunting condition. 
     
     
         20 . The device of  claim 11 , wherein the instructions, when executed, further cause the controller to, after providing the indication that the axle of the railcar is in a hunting condition, reset a reference frame of the accelerometer. 
     
     
         21 . A non-transitory machine-readable medium comprising instructions for detecting a hunting condition of a railcar axle, wherein the instructions, when executed by a monitoring device attached to a railcar, configure the monitoring device to:
 obtain, from an accelerometer of the monitoring device, acceleration data indicating lateral acceleration of the railcar;   determine, based on the acceleration data, a plurality of standard deviations of accelerometer readings;   provide, to a remote device located remotely relative to the monitoring device and only if at least one of the plurality of standard deviations of accelerometer readings satisfies a standard deviation threshold:
 an indication that an axle of the railcar is in a hunting condition; 
 an indication of a speed of the railcar; 
 an indication of a location of the railcar; 
 an indication of an average of the plurality of standard deviations of accelerometer readings; 
 an indication of a maximum of the plurality of standard deviations of accelerometer readings; and 
 an indication of a percentage of the plurality of standard deviations of accelerometer readings that satisfied the standard deviation threshold. 
   
     
     
         22 . The non-transitory machine-readable medium of  claim 21 , wherein the instructions, when executed by the monitoring device attached to the railcar, further configure the monitoring device to:
 based on a speed of the railcar being unavailable and based on a lateral acceleration of the railcar not satisfying an acceleration threshold for a defined duration, provide, to the remote device, an indication of a maximum lateral acceleration detected, during the defined duration, by the accelerometer;   based on the speed of the railcar being unavailable, based on a lateral acceleration of the railcar satisfying the acceleration threshold for the defined duration, and based on none of the plurality of standard deviations of accelerometer readings satisfying a standard deviation threshold, provide, to the remote device, an indication of an average of the plurality of standard deviations of accelerometer readings and an indication of a maximum of the plurality of standard deviations of accelerometer readings; and   based on the speed of the railcar being unavailable, based on a lateral acceleration of the railcar satisfying the acceleration threshold for the defined duration, and based on at least one of the plurality of standard deviations of accelerometer readings satisfying the standard deviation threshold, provide, to the remote device, an indication of an average of the plurality of standard deviations of accelerometer readings, an indication of a maximum of the plurality of standard deviations of accelerometer readings, and an indication of a percentage of the plurality of standard deviations of accelerometer readings that satisfied the standard deviation threshold.   
     
     
         23 . The non-transitory machine-readable medium of  claim 21 , wherein the instructions, when executed by the monitoring device attached to the railcar, further configure the monitoring device to:
 based on a location of the railcar being unavailable and based on a lateral acceleration of the railcar not satisfying an acceleration threshold for a defined duration, provide, to the remote device, an indication of a speed of the railcar and an indication of a maximum lateral acceleration detected, during the defined duration, by the accelerometer;   based on a location of the railcar being unavailable, based on a lateral acceleration of the railcar satisfying the acceleration threshold for the defined duration, and based on none of the plurality of standard deviations of accelerometer readings satisfying a standard deviation threshold, provide, to the remote device, an indication of a speed of the railcar, an indication of an average of the plurality of standard deviations of accelerometer readings, and an indication of a maximum of the plurality of standard deviations of accelerometer readings; and   based on a location of the railcar being unavailable, based on a lateral acceleration of the railcar satisfying the acceleration threshold for the defined duration, and based on at least one of the plurality of standard deviations of accelerometer readings satisfying the standard deviation threshold, provide, to the remote device, an indication of a speed of the railcar, an indication of an average of the plurality of standard deviations of accelerometer readings, an indication of a maximum of the plurality of standard deviations of accelerometer readings, and an indication of a percentage of the plurality of standard deviations of accelerometer readings that satisfied the standard deviation threshold.   
     
     
         24 . The non-transitory machine-readable medium of  claim 21 , wherein the instructions, when executed by the monitoring device attached to the railcar, further configure the monitoring device to:
 based on a speed of the railcar not satisfying a speed threshold, provide, to the remote device, an indication of the speed of the railcar and an indication of a location of the railcar.   
     
     
         25 . The non-transitory machine-readable medium of  claim 21 , wherein the instructions, when executed by the monitoring device attached to the railcar, further configure the monitoring device to:
 based on a lateral acceleration of the railcar not satisfying an acceleration threshold for a defined duration, provide, to the remote device, an indication of a speed of the railcar, an indication of a location of the railcar, and an indication of a maximum lateral acceleration detected, during the defined duration, by the accelerometer.   
     
     
         26 . The non-transitory machine-readable medium of  claim 21 , wherein the instructions, when executed by the monitoring device attached to the railcar, further configure the monitoring device to:
 based on a lateral acceleration of the railcar satisfying an acceleration threshold for a defined duration and based on none of the none of the plurality of standard deviations of accelerometer readings satisfying a standard deviation threshold, provide, to the remote device, an indication of a speed of the railcar, an indication of a location of the railcar, an indication of an average of the plurality of standard deviations of accelerometer readings, and an indication of a maximum of the plurality of standard deviations of accelerometer readings.