The rail industry is undergoing a major development boom in recent years and photonics is at the front of it. Tens of thousands of kilometers of new high-speed lines are planned for the next decade at an estimated cost of hundreds of billions of dollars only in China, not taking into account our national, European and offshore markets.

Nowadays, the condition of the rail track infrastructure is generally recorded with the aid of camera-based systems. Several rail track parameters must be measured regularly in order to maintain a safe rail track infrastructure. Irregularities in geometry on the rail tracks, which are subject to tension, may lead to abrupt cracking and thus to a “domino effect”, where rail tracks and sleepers may break over long distances.

Other applications in railway industry vary from on-site train moving parts monitoring and improving communication systems inside trains.