Hitachi has started a 12-month trial of digital asset monitoring technology to find potential hazards such as overhanging trees, leaves and subsidence on a major UK railway line.

Front-facing CCTV digital monitoring should optimise safety and maintenance of infrastructure and vegetation using AI technology from CrossTech. Hitachi Rail is applying CrossTech’s technology to LNER Azuma trains.

Monitoring areas in real time further enhances safety, helping detect potential hazards such as overhanging or invasive tree species, leaves on the track, or embankment subsidence that could cause harm or delays.

UK railway infrastructure owner Network Rail previously estimated that vegetation-related incidents cost up to £3m annually in the southern region alone.

The forward-facing CCTV camera has been installed inside the driver’s cabin of a LNER Azuma train for the 12-month trial, which started in May. The train now has a key role in digitising infrastructure monitoring and maintenance on the East Coast Main Line. This uses artificial intelligence (AI) camera sensor technology.

Automating the detection of potential hazards, combined with pinpointing where maintenance is necessary, enables a proactive approach to infrastructure maintenance. Equally, the trial will provide insights and guidance to optimise when and where maintenance is needed on the East Coast Main Line.

“Vegetation is the only living asset on the railway network and as such understanding the potential risk to trains is ever changing,” said Johanna Priestley, route engineer at Network Rail (www.networkrail.co.uk). “Using forward facing footage allows us to see from the driver’s perspective. We can use this technology to understand where vegetation is encroaching on the operational railway and at risk of making contact with either trains or fixed infrastructure such as overhead electrified wires. We can also identify where vegetation growth has compromised the driver’s view such as on the approach to signals or level crossings. This initiative will allow us to make passengers’ journeys more reliable and help minimise the risk of disruption on the network.”

Hitachi Rail is helping convene the pilot project, using its digital supplier CrossTech. The UK SME is one of Network Rail’s AI technology success stories, using computer vision technology to live monitor tracks and the surrounding environment, via data that come directly from the forward-facing video camera.

“The team at CrossTech is thrilled to be working with our partners to introduce market-leading computer vision infrastructure inspection analytics to the East Coast Mainline,” said Haydon Bartlett-Tasker from CrossTech (crosstech.co.uk). “The project is a testament to our long-standing collaboration with Network Rail’s eastern and southern regions. It marks a significant advancement for frontline teams with passengers and freight customers continuing to benefit from Network Rail’s adoption of forward facing CCTV computer vision technology to support a safer and higher performance railway.”

The monitoring system was developed by combining CrossTech technology with Hitachi Rail’s digital expertise to assist with integration, operations and interface.

“We are proud to play a role in this digital monitoring which could reduce disruption and support more convenient journeys for passengers,” said Nick Hughes, senior director at Hitachi Rail (www.hitachirail.com). “The trial demonstrates how Hitachi Rail is a trusted partner to deliver value and collaboration which supports digital innovation and UK SMEs.”

This is the latest development in a wider suite of Hitachi digital asset monitoring, which can live-monitor tracks, overhead lines and the train itself. These digital technologies, working either independently or in combination, allow for automated and more accurate monitoring to help modernise the railways.

“At LNER, we are always looking at how we can further enhance our performance and innovate to provide our customers with an even better experience when travelling with us,” said Linda Wain, engineering director at LNER (www.lner.co.uk). “We are delighted to be working with our industry partners on this digital trial, with technology fitted in the train cab that will provide real-time information and updates on infrastructure, helping to highlight any potential issues.”