Mind the Gap - Isis Project No 4238

Gapless railway points that improve the passengers’ comfort, reduce wear and tear of wheels and rails, and overcome the speed restrictions at the bends especially in high-speed railways.

Marketing Opportunity

The opportunity for gapless railways points is huge, and can be applied across the global rail industry targeting main-lines and high-speed lines.

The Oxford Invention

The railway industry continues to evolve, and grow its share of the travel market. It has been at the forefront of implementing new technologies, and targets a future, which is sustainable, safe and passenger focussed. Rail points play a key role in routing the railway traffic. However, conventional railway points have gaps between a flange and the fixed rail (see image). In addition, the angle at the frog must not be too narrow, as the gap required for carrying the traffic across would result in an unacceptably large gap for traffic moving along. In consequence the radius of curvature at the bends has to be somewhat small, and the maximum speed restricted.

The Oxford invention offers a new arrangement of the movable rails or flanges in railways points that eliminates the existing gap. The proposed continuous rail design offers several advantages including:

• Long life due to reduced wear and tear of rail and wheels.
• Much higher speeds, and improvements in passenger comfort.

Patent Status

This work is the subject of a UK patent application, and Isis would like to talk to companies interested in commercialising this opportunity. Please contact the Isis Project Manager to discuss this further.

Request Further Information: Project Number 4238 - Mind the Gap