Ultrasonic flaw detector UDS2-RDM-23 is designed for detection, registration and decoding of signals from defects in rails of railway tracks with track gauge from 990 to 1550 mm, located along the entire length and cross-section of the rail, except for the sole feathers, for continuous inspection by ultrasonic transducer units with a speed of up to 6 km/h, as well as for random manual inspection of welded joints, individual sections and sections of rails with the determination of the coordinates of locations, detection rate, and the conditional length of the detected defects.

The flaw detector is produced according to technical specifications SF-20454236-007:2009

Rails of P43, P50, P65, P75, UIC 60, S 49, as well as rails of connecting tracks, cross rails, cross whiskers, shackles and frame rails of switches are subject to control.
Codes of detectable defects according to the classifier of rail defects NTD/CP-1-93 with an addendum on classification of defects and damages of elements of switches from 27.01.1996:
20.1-2, 21.1-2, 24.1-2, 25.1-2, 26.3, 27.1-2, 30B.1-2, 30G.1-2, 38.1, 50.1-2, 52.1-2, 53.1-2, 55.1-2, 56.3, 60.1-2, 66.3, 69.2, 70.1-2, 74.1-2, 79.1-2, DO.20.2, DSN.20.2, DO.60.2, DSN.60.2, DR.21.2, DU.22.2, DUN.21.2.

• The number of independent information channels realized at work with blocks of piezoelectric resonators (SR) in the mode of continuous control is 14, 8 of them with realization in a channel of separate, and 6 – combined scheme of emission and reception of ultrasonic sounding.
• The number of excitation and reception channels of ultrasonic excitation and reception, provided for operation with manual piezoelectric transducers (PEP), is 3 (1 of them – for operation with manual low-frequency PEP).
• Sound and color (on the screen of the matrix display) signaling of defects.
• Color indication of set values of conditional sensitivity of channel control (dB); defect detectability coefficient; defect coordinates; current track coordinate of control, track section.

The flaw detector provides:

• continuous documentation (registration) of the inspection results in the form of defectograms of the inspected sections recorded after 1 mm of track, with accompanying information on amplitude and time characteristics of the registered echo-signals, set in each channel of the settings parameters, current values of the track coordinate and speed of the bogie.
• possibility of operative viewing of the registered defectograms on the matrix indicator of the flaw detector, as well as output of defectograms with accompanying information to a personal computer (PC) for further decoding.

The flaw detector has the following functional differences from its closest analog – flaw detector UDS2-RDM-22:

• possibility to use one of 4 software-set advanced schemes of sounding realized on the basis of 28 channel serial-parallel system of excitation and reception of ultrasonic oscillations provided in the flaw detector, providing detection of differently oriented defects in rails of both track strings for one pass of the controlled section;
• use of transducer blocks (TB) of 8 differently oriented ultrasonic resonators for control of working and non-working edges of the rail head, which allow to increase the reliability of control on the track sections with “noisy” rails and rails, the wear of which is close to the maximum permissible;
• completion of the flaw detector with a specialized coordinate device for carrying out a refining inspection by a manual piezoelectric transducer (PEP) with the possibility of obtaining an inspection protocol in the form of a projection of the defectogram of the inspected rail section on the PEP scanning plane and viewing the protocol on the flaw detector screen and on a personal computer (PC);
• use of GLONASS, GPS global positioning system in the flaw detector to determine the coordinates of the flaw detector location on the way;
• possibility to display on the flaw detector screen together with the channel mnemonic scheme either the A-type sweep of the activated channel or the CD-type sweep of the same channel in real time (sweep in coordinates: ultrasonic sound propagation time – traveled path with color gradation of the echo-signal amplitude);
• possibility to enter into the flaw detector memory a list of coordinates of rail sections, which, according to the results of defectograms decoding on the PC, need to be rechecked due to the loss of acoustic contact in the inspection channel, the presence of surface defects or suspicious marks on defectograms decoded on the PC at the registration level of minus 6 dB. In the flaw detector, when approaching the areas on the above list, a voice notification is introduced, requiring increased attention during inspection with indication of the reason;
• availability of a programmable database for the included PSUs and PEPs (by type and number) with parameters of resonators and PEPs used in each of the control channels. PSUs are equipped with an electronic block identifier on the basis of energy-dependent memory, which allows storing and automatically reading the parameters of resonators of the block during the operational change of the block on the way;
• a system of automatic restoration to the level of the recommended conditional control sensitivity in the channel where the sensitivity was previously reduced by the operator (e.g., when going to the “noisy” rails and then returning to the “non-noisy” rails);
• the system of voice notification of acoustic contact loss in the channel, if the length of the loss section exceeds the value programmed in the menu.
• transfer of information from the flaw detector electronic unit to PC using removable USB Flash drive media, as well as via USB-device interface (cable connection between the electronic unit and PC);

Software for ultrasonic flaw detectors UDS2-RDM-23, UDS2-RDM-22, UDS2-RDM-12: “Program of visualization and signal processing” allows the transcriber to get the most complete picture of the inspected track section and give a detailed conclusion on it. The software automatically detects and recognizes the protocols of the corresponding flaw detector.

• Electronic unit of flaw detector UDS2-RDM-23 is made in dust and water-proof version with protection degree IP54.
• The flaw detector is resistant to ambient relative humidity up to 98% at 35°C and lower temperatures without condensation.