The objective of this team is to develop a new form of technology for the company Norfolk Southern to help improve there already ahead of the curve technology.

To develop is a sensor that can detect when a friction material reaches a certain level and disables the pump from working. There is a 100-gallon powder-coated tank with a water-soluble material inside that is slowly applied to the top of a rail.  If the level of material gets too low, parts in the pump get exposed to air, and the result is rust.  If air bubbles get into the material, it also begins to harden, which causes another problem. This sensor needs to monitor this tank, without drilling through it, therefore monitoring it from the outside of a 1/4-inch steel plate.  This sensor needs to also make retrofitting existing tanks easy.  This sensor might also need to send information elsewhere.