(Photo Credit: Danny Karnik)
Rail yards are sprawling, complex environments where the safe and efficient movement of rolling stock depends on the accurate configuration of mechanical switches. Before any locomotive or railcar can be moved, operators must ensure that each switch along the intended route is correctly positioned. In yards that span miles and serve both intermodal freight and automotive shipments, this requirement translates into time-intensive walkouts and significant operational drag.
In response to these challenges, members of the VectorLink team designed a cost-effective, scalable system to digitize switch monitoring—offering real-time visibility without the overhead of conventional infrastructure. Rather than attempting to remotely actuate switches (an expensive and invasive retrofit), the proposed solution focuses on detecting and reporting the current position of each switch using low-power, wireless sensors.
Most rail switches in large yards are purely mechanical and lack any native telemetry. Traditionally, crews verify switch positions by walking the yard and visually inspecting each unit before locomotives or railcars are moved. In a typical facility, this process must be repeated multiple times per shift—especially when cars are being sorted, staged, or coupled for outbound trains.
Rail yards present difficult conditions for any digital system. There is rarely permanent power infrastructure near the switches, and in many locations, cellular coverage is limited or nonexistent. Any viable monitoring solution must therefore be battery-powered, wireless, and capable of operating autonomously across long distances without relying on consumer-grade connectivity.
The proposed system is built around LoRaWAN—a low-power, long-range networking standard optimized for wide-area IoT deployments. Unlike Wi-Fi or cellular, LoRa operates in unlicensed radio spectrum and can reliably transmit small amounts of data over hundreds or even thousands of meters with minimal power consumption.
Each switch is fitted with a LoRaWAN contact sensor. This compact device detects open or closed states via a dry contact interface and transmits its status to a central network. The sensor is powered by a high-capacity lithium battery and is designed for multi-year service life without maintenance.
The sensor can report contact state changes in real time or at configured intervals and includes features such as open-duration tracking and customizable alarms if a switch remains in an unexpected position. With no need for external power, these sensors can be installed quickly and without disruption to yard operations.
To ensure reliable communication across the entire yard, the system uses a LoRa mesh architecture, with strategically placed nodes to relay messages back to a central gateway. Rail yards are cluttered RF environments—filled with stacked containers, parked railcars, and heavy machinery—all of which can interfere with signal propagation.
A mesh network design allows sensor data to hop between devices, bypassing physical obstacles and maintaining robust connectivity even in low-visibility zones. Compared to cellular or Wi-Fi alternatives, LoRa delivers superior coverage, battery life, and long-term reliability—without recurring fees or the need for site-wide trenching or wireless access point installation.
The result is a highly cost-effective network that supports broad area coverage with minimal infrastructure and exceptional energy efficiency.
Data from the field sensors is streamed to a centralized dashboard, presented as a digital twin of the rail yard. In this interactive interface, each switch is represented in its true physical location and labeled according to its current state. Dispatchers and yard operators can view the system remotely and instantly assess whether all required switches are aligned correctly for upcoming movements.
The system also includes GPS tracking for the yard locomotive, allowing teams to coordinate routing and switching in context. Rather than dispatching personnel to confirm switch positions, operators can make informed decisions directly from the interface—saving time and reducing physical strain on crews.
This visibility enables more agile operations, particularly in high-throughput yards where timing and coordination are critical.
The system was projected to eliminate dozens of hours each month previously spent on manual switch inspections. In yards handling high volumes of train movements, this time savings has a direct impact on throughput and schedule adherence.
Beyond labor efficiency, the switch monitoring network supports:
All of these benefits are delivered with a low total cost of ownership, minimal disruption during installation, and no reliance on high-power infrastructure or commercial cellular service.
While this design was tailored for a rail yard environment, its core components—battery-powered contact sensing, LoRaWAN connectivity, and lightweight dashboard integration—can be applied to a range of other sectors.
Industries with distributed assets, remote facilities, or limited infrastructure can benefit from similar architectures. Example use cases include:
The underlying principle remains the same: enable cost-effective visibility in places where conventional systems are too complex, expensive, or power-hungry to deploy.
This reference design demonstrates how modern LPWAN technologies can be used to bring simple but meaningful digital awareness to traditionally analog infrastructure. By combining long-range wireless communication with ultra-low-power sensing, it’s possible to create reliable, real-time monitoring systems that scale across vast physical spaces without introducing operational friction.
In rail yards and beyond, this model offers a pathway to greater operational awareness, improved coordination, and more efficient asset utilization—without sacrificing simplicity or maintainability.
