Journey Safety Assessment to Urban Aerial Ropeways Transport Systems Based on Continuous Inspection During Operation

摘要

This article proposes a continuous inspection method to assess the journey safety applied to aerial cable vehicles of mass transportation-a type of detachable gondola lift in terms of commercial operation in an urban area, specifically referring to the device coupling assembly on the track rope. The inspection method has been developed on the basis of a continual measurement process of the recorded strain conditions on a principal component of the coupling assembly. The selected component is commonly referred to as moving jaw. The proposed inspection procedure is structured based on the following set of consecutive stages: (ⅰ) characterization of the load states generated by the commercial operation of the system; (ⅱ) definition of the sections of greater sensitivity to the strains caused by the load states, by means of finite elements; (ⅲ) development of a measurement system; (ⅳ) calibration of the measuring system with controlled tests; and (ⅴ) implementation and continuous records data in commercial operation.