A new in-track measuring instrument for railway vehicles with the OPTImess laser system has been put into operation by German traffic company Stadtwerke München.

Up to a speed of 20km/h, the wheel diameter, the back-to-back distance and the flange gauge are measured in addition to the wheel profile parameters for wheel flange thickness, wheel flange height SH and the qR dimension. The entire profile of every wheel is available for evaluating the wear and optimising the profile.

All the data are saved in a data base with the vehicle number which is detected automatically by a transponder. In addition to analysis functions the software also offers a wear forecast for planning maintenance assignments.

The compact design only requires slight modifications to the user’s rail. The system was designed under special consideration of the limited space available under for low-floor vehicles.