Volpe Center | Information Resources | Highlights

Information Resources

Volpe Center Highlights

Safety

Promote public health and safety by working toward the elimination of transportation-related deaths, injuries, and property damage.

Technical Presentation on Passenger Trains Fire Safety (FRA)

At the request of FRA, Ms. Stephanie H. Markos, of the Volpe Center's Accident Prevention Division, recently presented a paper, entitled "Fire Safety of Passenger Trains: A Review of Current Approaches and of New Concepts," at the World Congress on Railway Research, in Paris, France. The paper, co-authored with Mr. Richard Bukowski, of the National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST), summarizes the results of a study comparing U.S. and European approaches to fire safety. The paper also describes a new research effort by NIST to investigate the use of heat release rates to evaluate rail passenger car fire safety.

Improving Seaway Safety and Efficiency with Vessel Traffic Control (SLSDC)

A team from the Volpe Center recently traveled to the Saint Lawrence Seaway Development Corporation (SLSDC) facilities, located in Massena, NY, for final evaluation of the prototype GPS-based vessel traffic control system that was demonstrated in August 1994. Assessments by the Volpe team determined the optimum location on vessels of the GPS tracking units that relay vessel position information to the controller console at the Eisenhower Lock. The evaluation marked the first time that commercial vessels in North America inland waterways were tracked by a GPS-based system. This activity is a prelude of a fully operational system that the Seaway Corporation intends to deploy in 1997. The success of the GPS vessel tracking system has generated interest in its possible use on other continental waterways. Inquiries have been received from the U.S.Coast Guard about system operational characteristics. The Coast Guard is considering application of the SLSDC system in the Saint Mary river that connects Lakes Superior and Huron. In addition, the Canadian Coast Guard is contemplating deployment of the system for vessel traffic control in both the Saint Clair and the Detroit rivers.

Flight Crew Performance in GPS Operations (FAA)

As part of the Volpe Center's support to the FAA's Satellite Program office, Dr. Stephen Huntley, of the Operator Performance and Safety Analysis Division, recently delivered a prototype handbook that provides procedures and guidelines for the certification of stand-alone Global Positioning System (GPS) receivers to the FAA. He delivered the prototype to the FAA's Operations Implementation Team at their November 2, 1994 meeting in Washington, D.C. The handbook provides the evaluator with a standard set of scenarios, including flight maneuvers, for examining the functional and human factors aspects of the equipment. The handbook also provides rating forms that the evaluator will need, information describing relevant FAA performance requirements, and human factors guidelines for easy reference. It is anticipated that this approach to certification would standardize the process of certification of such avionics, reduce training of certification specialists who normally do this work, and provide manufacturers with clear guidance regarding the operational and human factors criteria that would be used in certifying receivers. The FAA recently initiated field testing in Wichita, KS with certification specialists, who used the handbook for the first time in evaluating a new GPS receiver.

Runway Surface Lights System (FAA)

To enhance airport runway and surface traffic safety, the Volpe Center has been working with the FAA to develop a Runway Surface Lights System (RSLS). Recently, one of the sites selected for RSLS installation at Logan International Airport became operational for the evaluation of light fixtures in the RSLS Logan Test Program. The test site is located alongside runway 15R/33L (just opposite the Northwest Airlines Terminal). After tests and measurements were made with various light fixture candidates, the "Wig-Wag" (a red steady light similar to a railway crossing light) was selected for use in the RSLS Logan installation. This milestone was detailed by Mr. Robert P. Rudis, the Center's RSLS Program Manager, during a recent meetings of the Logan Users Group, and principal pilots at Logan Airport. Mr. Rudis discussed the interactive approach to be taken in testing the system, stressing how the participation of pilots is crucial to the assessment of the installation. He also met with NASA Langley Research Center personnel concerning development of a simulation of Logan Airport equipped with RSLS lights on all of the runways. This simulation, using a Boeing 737 cockpit simulator, will serve as an evaluation and training tool for the actual Logan RSLS installation.

Train Braking Performance Safety Research (FRA)

Under the Rail Equipment Safety program, the Volpe Center's Structures and Dynamics Division has been conducting studies on railroad train braking performance. The results of these studies were applied by the FRA in developing the "Power Brake Regulations," published in the Federal Register on September 16, 1994. Volpe Center staff have recently attending hearings on this subject to respond to questions relating to the technical basis for the regulations. Mr. Jeffrey Gordon attended hearings in Newark, NJ on November 4 and in Sacramento, CA on November 9; Dr. Oscar Orringer will be present on December 13 and 14 at a hearing in Washington, D.C. In a separate activity, Mr. J. Christopher Dorsey, of the Center's Structures and Dynamics Division, gave a presentation at a meeting of the Rail Transportation Division of the American Society of Mechanical Engineers (ASME), held during the recent ASME Winter Annual Meeting in Chicago, IL. The presentation was based on a paper prepared by Mr. Dorsey and Dr. Robert Greif (also of the Center) titled "The Influence of Side Bearing Clearance on Rail Freight Car Harmonic Roll Behavior." The paper, which will be included in the conference proceedings, describes results from side-bearing clearance tests performed at the USDOT Transportation Test Center (TTC) during the summer and fall of 1993, and extrapolated results from simulations conducted by Mr. Dorsey.

Highway-Railroad Grade Crossing Safety Research (FRA)

Messrs. John Hitz and Jordan Multer, and Ms. Anya Carroll, all of the Volpe Center, recently participated in the Third International Symposium on Railroad-Highway Grade Crossing Research and Safety, held in Knoxville, TN. Mr. Hitz presented plans for the assessment of an in-vehicle system that will alert priority vehicle operators of the presence of a train at a grade crossing ahead, including police cars, emergency vehicles, and school buses. Ms. Carroll presented results of a nationwide field evaluation of reflectors on freight cars involving several cooperating railroads. The use of reflectors on freight cars is seen as a promising means of improving their visibility to motorists and thus reducing the number of night-time grade crossing accidents. Mr. Multer presented the status of current efforts to evaluate a wayside horn system at several grade crossings in Gering, NE. Located at the grade crossing, the system is remotely activated by an approaching train. The wayside horn is seen as a means of minimizing the noise impact of train horns on the community while concentrating the warning sound at the crossing where it is most effective.

Alcohol Countermeasures Expertise (NHTSA)

Dr. Arthur Flores, of the Volpe Center's Safety and Environmental Technology Division, recently represented NHTSA at a meeting of the Committee on Alcohol and Other Drugs of the National Safety Council, held in San Diego, CA. At the meeting he presented the latest developments in alcohol detection equipment for use as mandated under the DOT rule for testing of transportation workers. Subsequently, Dr. Flores was in Seattle, WA, to meet with Dr. Barry Logan, State Toxicologist, and the staff of the Washington State Crime Laboratory. He reported on the NHTSA alcohol countermeasures program and discussed details of a non-technical manual, to be prepared by the International Association for Chemical Testing, covering breath-alcohol testing.

Safety Research in Commuter Rail Wheel Cracking (FRA)

Under the Rail Equipment Safety program, the Volpe Center's Structures and Dynamics Division supports FRA efforts to determine the causes of, and assess the countermeasures for, thermal cracking in commuter-rail vehicle wheels. The leading cause has been tied to residual stress, which results from three sources: the manufacturing process, braking, and contact with the running rail. With assistance from Concurrent Technologies Corporation, the Center has been conducting experiments and simulation studies to determine the type and amount of stresses that are retained in the wheels during manufacturing. As part of this effort, Mr. Jeffrey Gordon recently prepared a paper, titled "Simulation of the Quenching Process of Railroad Wheels," describing results of studies to simulate the quenching and tempering performed after a wheel is forged to make the rim harder and improve wear resistance. The effects of manufacturing variables on predicted residual stress were studied. The paper is to be presented at the "11th International Wheelset Congress," in Paris in June 1995.