AMD POWERS AI TRACK INSPECTION SOLUTION FOR JAPANESE BULLET TRAIN OPERATOR JR KYUSHU

AMD announced that JR Kyushu Railway Company, a Japanese bullet train operator, is using the AMD Kria™ K26 System-on-Module (SOM) to automate track inspection. This AI-based solution replaces traditional methods of inspecting miles of track on foot, creating significant efficiencies by improving the inspection speed, cost and accuracy to meet Japan’s stringent railway safety requirements.

JR Kyushu bullet trains operate across an enormous territory of more than 1,455 miles of railroad tracks, with trains travelling at speeds of up to 161 mph. Safety is the company’s number-one priority, requiring diligent track inspections carried out at specified intervals.

To increase the efficiency and accuracy of assessments, JR Kyushu chose an AMD-powered solution from Tokyo Artisan Intelligence (TAI), which uses high-speed image processing and advanced AI capabilities to detect and inspect loose bolts and other track issues.

At the heart of the track inspection solution is a vision computing box attached to a cart that inspects tracks at speeds of 12 mph. The box features a high-speed camera that uses the FPGA-based Kria K26 SOM for AI-enhanced pre-and-post data and image processing. The Kria K26 SOM is a compact, all-in-one embedded platform that integrates a custom-built AMD Zynq™ UltraScale+™ MPSoC with DDR memory, nonvolatile storage devices, a security module, and an aluminium thermal heat spreader.

The programmability, durability, and embedded intelligence of the AMD Kria SOM-powered solution also make it adaptable to the unique and changing conditions, geographies, and needs of JR Kyushu’s territory and ridership. Since railways are installed in a natural environment, the ability to update the Kria SOM to suit the daily changing natural conditions is critical and helps future-proof investments.