Russian Railways Trains AI to Spot Illegal Dump Sites Along Tracks
The system could also be used to monitor vegetation within railway right-of-way zones.
Russian Railways has begun testing a remote monitoring system for its railway right-of-way areas. The company has tasked artificial intelligence with identifying illegal dump sites near the tracks, its press service told IT Russia.
The system has been installed on a suburban electric train operating between St. Petersburg and Nevskaya Dubrovka. As the train moves, a smart camera scans the territory along the railway and detects unauthorized waste piles. The AI software identifies trash by comparing captured images with reference samples stored in its database.
Once detected, the system sends the dump site’s coordinates and related data to a local platform. Specialists then receive the alert and are dispatched to remove the potential hazard to train operations.
No More Long Patrol Walks
Russian Railways noted that the system could also be used to monitor vegetation within the railway right-of-way. Previously, inspectors had to cover long distances on foot.
Earlier, we reported that robotic dogs being tested by Russian Railways are being trained to understand and execute voice commands. Equipped with cameras and lidars, the robots transmit real-time situational data to operators. The “robot dog” can reach speeds of up to 20 kilometers per hour, navigate obstacles such as stairs, gravel piles, and track infrastructure elements, and inspect hard-to-reach facilities. It can also perform diagnostics on the lower sections of rolling stock.
