Duos Granted Patent for RIP® Technology

Duos Technologies Group

Duos Technologies Group, Inc. (Duos), through its subsidiary Duos Technologies, Inc., announced May 2 that it has been granted another patent for its Railcar Inspection Portal (RIP®) technology.

The patent, Device to Capture High Resolution Images of a Train as it Passes Through an Inspection Portal, “confirms Duos’ methodology and the supporting technology as the standard for wayside detection, transforming railcar inspection processes through innovative state-of-the-art engineering and AI,” the company stated in a release.

As the inventor of the technology and the process for implementation, Duos’ latest patent for a comprehensive wayside detection system “gives railcar operators and owners an efficient, high function alternative to manual inspection,” according to the company. In some cases, rail operators have been able to use the Duos automated inspection technologies covered by this patent, to obtain waivers, eliminating certain Federal Railroad Administration (FRA) mandated inspections.

Duos, which developed the concept more than 12 years ago, has been constantly refining and upgrading the system. With the granting of this patent, Duos now has 10 patents covering all aspects of automated visual inspection of railcars and has a further six pending for visualization of moving objects.

The newly issued patent (download below) discusses the methodology and related technology, detailing the advanced engineering from Duos, sophisticated lighting systems, and state-of-the-art sensors to capture high-resolution images of trains as they traverse Duos’ RIP®. With proprietary line scan camera technology ensuring precise image capture, Duos says anomalies or defects on railcars “can be accurately detected with unprecedented accuracy.”

“Duos’ latest patent marks a significant milestone in our ongoing mission to revolutionize railcar inspection processes,” said Duos CEO Chuck Ferry. “In development for many years, this technology is in productive use in 13 locations across the US, Canada and Mexico, with an additional three locations expected within nine months. The full system covered by this patent delivers value by identifying even the most minor anomalies or defects according to AAR and FRA Rules and Regulations, thereby helping to facilitate the safety and reliability of rail transportation networks.”

According to Duos, the combination of the RIP, AI and associated Edge Data Centers provides a comprehensive solution to the rail operators. The company is also expanding its target market by offering bespoke solutions, such as subscriptions for customized data, specific industry applications outside of traditional rail operations and high-speed edge data processing. The underlying technology is developed and supported “in-house” using AI and rail industry experts. This patent, the company says, “confirms the integrated approach giving Duos a significant advantage in terms of custom-built implementations and speed of results delivery versus a home-grown system using third party developers.”

Duos was recently granted a rail safety AI patent incorporating supervised machine learning. This, combined with the recently awarded patent, covers an integrated set of technology that the company says, “offers rail operators a completely integrated railcar inspection system designed to detect defects and prevent costly derailments.”