RailPulse, Amsted Team on Telematics

Written by Marybeth Luczak, Executive Editor
Amsted Digital Solutions IQ Series gateway mounted on a railcar truck. (Amsted Digital Solutions Photograph)

Amsted Digital Solutions IQ Series gateway mounted on a railcar truck. (Amsted Digital Solutions Photograph)

Amsted Digital Solutions has signed a multi-year agreement allowing RailPulse™—the coalition established in late 2020 to “facilitate and accelerate the adoption of GPS and other telematics technology across the North American railcar network”—to act as a non-exclusive reseller of its IQ Series telematics technology.

The RailPulse coalition comprises founding members Norfolk Southern (NS), GATX Corporation, Genesee & Wyoming Inc., TrinityRail, and Watco, which cumulatively own nearly 20% of the North American railcar fleet; plus The Greenbrier Companies, Union Pacific (UP) and Railroad Development Corporation (RDC). CPKC is the latest member, joining in February, and agribusiness company Bunge signed on as the first railcar-owning shipper in January.

“RailPulse seeks to drive productivity, value and growth in the freight rail industry through a vendor-neutral and open-architecture railcar telematics infrastructure,” the coalition reported May 20. That infrastructure or platform is said to emphasize “data standardization, cloud storage, and delivering actionable insights to enhance service levels, visibility, safety, and efficiency.” According to the coalition, “[c]onstituents will be able to leverage RailPulse’s standard service level agreement with vendors such as Amsted Digital Solutions and access device performance data and installation recommendations for various car types. Amsted Digital Solutions is also working with RailPulse to expand its software application.”

Amsted Digital Solutions describes the IQ Series™ gateway as “a maintenance-free, low-power telematics device built to perform in the harshest operating environments,” and its “powerful built-in capabilities … paired with advanced machine learning technology virtually eliminate the need for specialized external sensors.”

When mounted on the body of almost any railcar, Amsted Digital Solutions said its IQ Series gateway provides:

  • “Dynamic ETA calculations and geofence entry and exit alerts for first- and last-mile validation.
  • “Accurate Load Status in Motion (LSiM) for precise loaded and empty mileage calculations
  • “Impact detection.”

When mounted on one or both trucks of a railcar configured with Bogie IQ® technology, Amsted Digital Solutions said the IQ Series gateway “provides real-time onboard health monitoring in addition to all of the data available from the body-mounted gateway,” including “stationary loading/unloading detection (firmware release targeted for third-quarter 2024 via over-the-air upgrade); monitoring of wheel health; real-time monitoring of brake slide events; and impact differential detection, a feature that identifies which end of a railcar took the initial impact during a coupling event.”

According to Amsted Digital Solutions, as new features become available, “existing installed gateways can be updated through simple, over-the-air firmware upgrades,” eliminating the need for physical replacements.

“We’re excited to offer Amsted Digital Solutions’ robust telematics platform to RailPulse and its customers,” said RailPulse General Manager David Shannon, who added that the coalition is “excited about [the Amsted] approach to sensor-free technology through the Bogie IQ® solution. We anticipate substantial benefits to our users while contributing to freight rail as a whole.”

“We’re proud to partner with RailPulse as we work together to improve the competitive position of rail freight transportation,” said Brad Myers, COO and EVP of Amsted Digital Solutions, which is said to work closely with railcar systems and components supplier Amsted Rail to deliver the Bogie IQ technology. “Our innovative approaches to telematics align seamlessly with RailPulse’s vision for an interconnected, data-driven future for freight rail.”

RailPulse also serves as a non-exclusive reseller of Nexxiot’s telemetry solutions.

For more on Amsted Digital Solutions technology, read Railway Age sister publication IRJ’s interview with Brad Myers, Executive Vice President and Chief Operating Officer, who explains how advances in telematics technology are making RailPulse possible. Additionally, Amsted Digital Solutions SAS in 2023 landed a multi-year contract with Greenbrier Europe to supply its IQ Series™ technology to improve shipment visibility and railcar maintenance.

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