UAV framework for railroad inspection and predictive maintenance

Abstract

Increasingly sophisticated technologies are influencing the railroad sector due to the need to maintain systems in a more efficient, effective, economic and safe manner. The modern technologies provide opportunities to solve issues, save time, effort, and cost. Modern technologies have recently facilitated significant improvements in inspection and maintenance practices within the architecture, engineering, construction, and facility management (AEC/FM) sectors. However, several challenges need to be addressed to ensure optimal maintenance management in railroads and infrastructure sectors. Therefore, this research developed a framework that enables unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs) for optimized inspection and predictive maintenance of railroad infrastructure. The framework considers and connects important factors that impact UAV adoption, such as technological factors, organizational factors, regulatory and environmental factors, adoption and usage factors. Furthermore, this research paper uses strength, weakness, opportunities, and threats (SWOT) analysis to evaluate the proposed framework for industry adoption.