Transportation Technology Center, Inc., a subsidiary of the Association of American Railroads
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Positive Train Control Overview
IV Encontro de Ferrovias
ANTF
September 7th, 2013
Ruben D. Peña Paulo Vieira
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Transportation Technology Center, Inc.
♦ Operates FRA’s Transportation Technology Center (TTC) - the world’s leading and largest railroad technology development and test center
♦ The largest concentration of railroad research and test engineers in the Western Hemisphere
♦ It was the AAR Research & Test Department until 1998
♦ Now, a for-profit subsidiary of AAR
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North American Rail Network
PTC Overview
• > 300,000 kms of tracks • > 600 separate RRs
• Mostly private • > 1.5 million cars • > US$ 50 billion revenue
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Class I Railroads Network of North-America PTC Overview
• > 265,000 Kms of track • > 70% of operation • > 90% of revenue • Almost 90 % of employees
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Why so much Interest in PTC?
HIGH PROFILE ACCIDENTS
RAIL SAFETY IMPROVEMENT ACT OF 2008 (RSIA’08)
Each Class I railroad carrier and each entity providing regularly scheduled intercity or commuter rail passenger transportation shall implement a Positive Train Control system by Dec 31, 2015, governing operations on:
its main line over which intercity rail passenger transportation or commuter rail passenger transportation,
its main line over which poison- or toxic-by-inhalation hazardous materials are transported, and
such other tracks as the Secretary may prescribe by regulation or order.
> ha
lf of
US
Rai
l Lin
es
RSIA’08 has been codified & Detailed as 49CFR236 Subpart I
PTC Overview
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PTC Requirements
PTC = a system designed to prevent: 1. train-to-train collisions, 2. over-speed derailments, 3. incursions into established work zone limits, 4. movement of a train through a switch left in the
wrong position.
PTC provides Protection against Human Error
PTC Overview
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Strategic actions made to achieve PTC
PTC Overview
• Soon after RSIA08 was enacted, the Class I railroads started a joint effort to define common standards and requirements.
• Interoperable Train Control Committee (ITC) was created o Design of the Concept of Operations. o Application level requirements. o Requirements for the communication system. o Ensure interoperability and open architecture design.
• FRA has been funding strategic research projects for PTC
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PTC System Overview • Today’s predominant PTC systems are overlay
PTC Overview
Dispatching System
Interlocking Interlocking
Signaled Territory
Signaling System Track Warrant
PTC – Safety Overlay
Non-signaled Territory
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PTC is Communications-Based Train Control (CBTC) with Computers & Displays On Board that Govern Train Movements & Speed iaw: ● Limits Received from Off Board, ● High-Resolution Self-Positioning, and ● Predictive Enforcement Braking.
PTC Overview
PTC System Overview – Current System Design
GPS
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PTC Characteristics – Interoperability PTC Overview
BNSF Site 2
NS Site 1 CP Site 1
NS Center BNSF Center UP Center CP Center
BNSF Site 1
UP Site 1
Up train msgs
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Main differences between European Train Control System (ETCS) and PTC
ITEM PTC ETCS Radio System • Developing its own 220
MHz data radio • Allows direct
communication between train and wayside devices
• Uses GSM-R - Global Systems for Mobile Communications Railway
Locomotive positioning
• Uses GPS - Global Positioning System
• Based on tags placed along the tracks
Locomotive onboard components
• Distinct hardware and software components
Current PTC implementation is equivalent to ETCS Level 2
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GSM-R
ETCS – European Train Control System
OBC
220 MHz Radio
220 MHz Radio
OBC
GSM-R
GPS
TAG TAG TAG
PTC – Positive Train Control
PTC Overview
Main differences between European Train Control System (ETCS) and PTC
220 MHz Radio
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Key PTC Projects where TTCI plays a main role:
● Train Enforcement Braking Algorithm
● RF Network Planning and Design
● PTC Radio and System Testing
PTC Overview
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Challenge: 1. Response of the braking system of rolling stock
(locomotives, cars) is not uniform 2. Variation can be considerable for freight trains 3. Braking system must guarantee train stop before target.
Stop at target
60 MPH
4. If the braking curve is too conservative, it would cause a significant impact in train operation
Conservative Curve
Effective Curve
Train Enforcement Braking Issue
PTC Overview
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0
0.0005
0.001
0.0015
0.002
0.0025
0.003
250 50
-150
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-550
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-950
-115
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Distance (feet)
Poi
nt o
f Enf
orce
men
t Bra
ke A
pplic
atio
n
Targ
et
Offs
et T
arge
t
Offset (Margin) 1750 ft
Typical Distribution of stopping points
Freight train stopping from 60 mph
Predictive automatic enforcement algorithms based solely on car braking: • No dynamic braking • No locomotive braking (except for short trains) • Worst case braking parameters Train weight Braking efficiency Type of brake valve
Train Enforcement Braking Issue
Large Safety Margin in PTC Braking Algorithms causes trains to Slow or Stop Sooner than Desired, which can Degrade Capacity
PTC Overview
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Approach to resolve the issue: Adaptive Train Enforcement Braking Algorithm
• Intellingent algorithm that adjusts the braking curve as the train moves: o Onboard computer knows where the train is and the
topography of the track o Onboard computer learns for previous train brake
application o Dynamic adjustments as train operates
Stop at target
60 MPH
Adjusted Curve Conservative Curve
Effective Curve
PTC Overview
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Enforcement Braking Solutions Evaluated by TTCI
0
5
10
15
20
25
30
35
40
-4000 -3000 -2000 -1000 0 1000 2000 3000
Distance (Feet)
Spee
d (m
ph)
Case 1Case 4Case 7Base Case20 Sec Warning40 Sec Warning
Case 1: Start of Current PTC Enforcement
Case 7: Emergency Only
Base Case: Adaptive Braking
Braking Distances – From 40 mph – 10 cars
Case 4: Less conservative train parameters
During full service enforcement, PTC monitors EOT brake pipe pressure & applies emergency braking only after reduction has reached EOT (train is bunched).
Enforcement Algorithm TOESTM
Test Controller and Logger
PTC Overview
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RF Network Planning and Design ♦ Main Issues to Resolve in Dense Urban Areas
● How much RF spectrum is needed ? ● What additional resources are necessary (like new sites) ? ● What is the plan for railroads to share communication resources
in those areas ?
Railroad Route Miles UP 154 NS 82 BNSF 31 CN 269 NICTD 32 Metra 187 CSX 60 IHB 44 BRC 20 Amtrak 1 TOTAL 880
Chicago Case
TTCI was hired to resolve the dense urban areas in the
USA
> 800 radio sites
PTC Overview
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Train Traffic Simulation
PTC Message Simulation
RF Propagation Simulation and
Loading Analysis
RTC Simulator
TTCI’s Simulator
Planet RF Simulator
RF Network Planning and Design
PTC Overview
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♦ RF network projects developed for the folowing cities
Urban Area Track extension (Km) # of Radios # of Railroads Los Angeles 1200 320 5 Chicago 4500 900 11 St. Louis 1000 350 7 Kansas City 900 280 6 New Orleans 1200 340 7 Mn-St.Paul 750 260 5 Toledo 700 250 5 New York 1500 400 6 Dallas-Ft Worth 650 N/A 5
Chicago Model
RF Network Planning and Design
PTC Overview
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PTC Radio and System Testing
♦ System testing of new functionality in live, operating environment is very difficult ●Difficult or impossible to conduct Stress Testing ●Often Not Repeatable ●Must accommodate Revenue Traffic ●Must obey all Operating Rules or obtain Waivers ●Changes to Vital Equipment require Lengthy V&V
On-track Test Bed without Revenue Traffic and Regulations can Alleviate these Problems.
PTC Overview
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PTC Radio and System Integration Testing
Related Systems: DGPS – Beacon Site
Nearby HANDGPS
80 km of Test Track on 160 km2 of land near Pueblo, CO
180’ Tower • MCC SDRs • VHF Site Radio • ATCS • 452.465 MHz VTS • Microwave 6GHz T1
120’ Tower • VHF • ATCS
Operations Building (OPS) • 802.11b/g • Microwave 6GHz T1
802.11b/g CDMA Cellular
w/1xEVDO
802.11b/g
Test Loop Length & Max Speed RTT – 14 mi. 165 mph TTT – 9 mi. 80 mph HTL – 3 mi. 40 mph
N
Tower & Antenna Locations
DGPS Coverage over the Test Bed
4000 ft. Siding
Test Capabilities for: Interoperability &
Standards Compliance Performance Evaluation Proof of Concept for
New Applications V&V Handoff Schemes
Infrastructure for Testing: Communications
Systems PTC Systems &
Components Remote Control
Locomotives (RCL) Other Wireless
Applications
PTC Overview
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List of PTC Projects at TTCI Customer Project
•FRA TO 219 Low Cost Adv Act Xing Dem •FRA TO 234 HA-GPS Upgrade/Testing •FRA TO 242 Braking Algorithm, Freight •FRA TO 256 FRA PTC Test Bed Upgrades •FRA TO 257 FRA EIC PRT Integration •FRA TO 267 Braking Performance Model, Passenger •FRA TO 269 Braking Performance Model, Passenger •FRA TO 270 PTC Test Bed Upgrade •RRF RRF CA - HPDR •RRF RRF ITP Proof of Concept Project •RRF RRF/FRA R&D Enhance PTC •FTA FTA Rail Capacity •Alaska Railroad ARRC TOES •AAR AAR PTC Enhance RTC Simulator •PTC-220, LLC PTC 220 RF Coordination •Proprietary 220 PTC Radio Testing •SYSTRA Metrolink PTC Consulting •SYSTRA LIRR PTC Consulting •SYSTRA MNR PTC Consulting •ARINC CAD Consulting •Invensys Rail Invensys PTC Braking Algorithm Test •EMD EMD PTC Proof of Concept
•Network Simulator •Test Controller/Logger •Broken Rail Detection •C&TC Test Bed
IR&D Project
PTC Overview
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Summary of what TTCI’s C&TC Team Does
TTCI applies System Engineering & State of the Art Tools to:
Solve Critical PTC Issues (e.g., enforcement braking, data comms)
Assess PTC Performance Impacts, e.g., on Network Capacity
Plan & Conduct Testing – at TTC’s PTC Test Bed or Railroad
Help RRs select the best suited PTC Technologies & Configurations
Develop Procurement Documents (Rqmt Specs, ConOps, RVCCM)
Provide Train Control & Communications System Training
Provide Radio Frequency Coordination & Design
TTCI doesn’t supply PTC systems … We help improve PTC System Safety, Performance & Cost Effectiveness.
PTC Overview
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Main Challenges and Concerns for PTC Successful Deployment
PTC Overview
• Main challenges o Finish all integration and interoperability tests o Be able to deploy components in the field and locomotives according
to deadline
• Concerns o Cost of PTC implementation for track and locomotive o Unforeseen impact in production (train operation, interoperability,
reliability)
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Current Deployment Stage
PTC Overview
• Intensive tests with PTC system and components o Radio and onboard components o Integration and interoperability
• Deployment at railroads
o Field infrastructure (WIUs, base stations towers and antennas) at major cities and main railroad links are under way
• First PTC deployment => L.A. basin area (Metrolink)
o RF network design in final stages o Field deployment in advanced stages
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The Future
PTC Overview
• Explore communications infra-structure Improve train monitoring/control (efficiency) Improve communications with field operations Improve reliability/availability (real-time health monitor)
• Stand-alone System Operation Reduce field infra-structure (maintenance costs and reliability) Signaling system is currently the fall back
• Moving Block Concept Still not feasible for freight operation (need to resolve dependency on
track circuit for broken rail detection and train integrity). Unless under extremely heavy traffic, production gains are unlikely to
justify its use.
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OBRIGADO !
PTC Overview