Finnish Research Impact Foundation awards funding for research on railway wheel defects and satellite positioning
The Finnish Research Impact Foundation has awarded a record amount of funding to support collaborative projects between companies and research organisations in response to high demand. Funding was allocated to nine joint projects, including two conducted at Tampere University.
Assistant Professor Xinxin Yu received €218,640 for a project titled M3 WheelOOR: Monitoring, Mechanism Analysis, and Mitigation for Sustainable Asset Management of Railway Wheel Out of Roundness in Nordic Harsh Winter Conditions.
Railway wheels can wear unevenly over time and gradually lose their round shape. Initially, wheel out-of-roundness may be difficult to detect. As the defect progresses, it increases noise and vibration levels and accelerates wear on both trains and tracks.
The project will study how these defects develop under Nordic conditions and how they can be detected and prevented at an earlier stage. The findings have the potential to reduce maintenance costs and improve the reliability, safety and resilience of rail transport in demanding northern conditions.
The industry partner on the project is VR FleetCare.
Professor Heidi Kuusniemi leads a project titled Performance Limits and Design of Resilient LEO-PNT for Next-Generation Networks (PERLEO), which was awarded €201,493 in funding.
Our society is increasingly dependent on satellite positioning and precise timing. At the same time, the jamming and spoofing of satellite signals are becoming an increasing concern. The PERLEO project will examine how low Earth orbit (LEO) satellites could be used for positioning and precise timing. The aim is to complement existing systems with a more resilient alternative.
The findings will support the development of future 6G networks and satellite systems. For society, they could lead to more resilient communication networks and more reliable positioning in areas such as transport, autonomous systems and emergency response.
The industry project in the PERLEO project is Nokia Bell Labs.
The Finnish Research Impact Foundation awards TIA Postdoc funding to support joint research projects carried out by companies and research organisations. Last year, six projects received grants totalling approximately €1.3 million. This year, the number of funded projects has been increased to nine, bringing the total amount allocated to €1.9 million.
For more information, please visit the website of the Finnish Research Impact Foundation
