Rail’s Growing Complexity Requires Vecow’s Workstation-Grade Platform

August 26, 2024

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The Indian railway system is one of the most extensive and complex railway networks in the world, ranking fourth in size after the United States, Russia, and China. This expansive network plays a crucial role in connecting the vast regions of India, facilitating both passenger and freight transport across the country.

Some quick stats show that India’s rail system has a total track length of over 125,000 km, covering a diverse range of geographical terrains. It serves over 7000 stations, reaching even remote areas and providing connectivity to millions of people.

Over the past three years, the Indian rail system grew by more than 8,000 km. In addition to adding length, the Indian government is looking to modernize its railway network to accommodate the growing demands of transportation in the country. In addition to passenger services, the railways play a vital role in freight transport, carrying essential goods like coal, iron ore, food grains, and other commodities across the country. This is crucial for industries and the economy, supporting both domestic and international trade.

At the same time, the vast railway network faces its share of challenges, including overcrowding, aging infrastructure, and safety concerns. Addressing these issues requires substantial investment and strategic planning.

In recent years, the Indian government has focused on electrification as part of its modernization efforts. Electrification reduces dependency on fossil fuels and helps lower greenhouse gas emissions. By 2023, over 80% of the network was electrified, with plans to achieve 100% electrification soon. At the same time, the railways are investing in modern technologies, such as high-speed trains, improved signaling systems, and advanced ticketing solutions, to enhance efficiency and the passenger experience.

Railways Demand a Workstation-Grade Automation Platform

What’s needed in this application is an embedded computing platform that can automatically generate control tables, and manage signaling interlocking logic programs and circuits, as well as interface circuits. The system should also help manage the station operator console, and the maintenance console, all with minimal inputs. Such a system would increase productivity and reduce the amount of manual work (and rework) and overhead. Ideally, it would be used to configure different signaling rules irrespective of the size of the stations.

The basis of such a central network can be served by Vecow’s RCX-3750 PEG workstation-grade platform. Specifically, it functions as a signaling input automater. It’s designed with an Intel Core i9/i7/i5/i3 processor (14th generation) running with Intel’s R680E PCH chipset to support a maximum of 65 watts TDP. The total 1800-watt power budget supports dual 900-watt NVIDIA or AMD two-slot full-length graphics cards.

Up to seven slots are available for PCIe expansion, with PCIe 4.0 x16/PCIe 4.0 x8 and PCIe x4 signals. That’s complemented by dual front-access M.2 and 2.5-in. SSD trays, as well as multiple 5G/ Wi-Fi/4G/LTE/GPRS/UMTS ports. Four DisplayPort outputs offer up to 4K resolution, and a USB 3.2 Gen 2x2 Type C connection pushes the maximum bandwidth to 20 Gbits/s.

Other features of the RCX-3750 PEG that make it appropriate for this application include the use of Cloud-based software; the generation of design outputs for anytime and anywhere access; and template-driven inputs to generate the related and expected outputs.

Doubling as a Traffic-Management System

That same platform, the RCX-3750 PEG, can serve as a traffic-management system (TMS), where it is used for monitoring and diagnostics of real-time train tracking, and looking at the operations, maintenance, and diagnostics of train movements within a particular territory. The monitoring occurs at a centralized Operations Control Center (OCC), for a group of railway stations that comprise the territory. Though monitoring happens from the OCC, the actual actions are performed by the respective station masters based on the information received from the OCC, including a quick diagnosis of any issues, followed by timely action.

By upgrading with the RCX-3750 PEG, a host of issues can be resolved, including upping the reliability, even in harsh conditions (operating in temperatures ranging from -40°C to 75°C), allowing for expansion through compatibility with existing and future installations like isolated LAN, PoE+, isolated DIO and COM ports, and an M12 connector, and the ability to customize if needed. And by working with a partner like Vecow, long-term support is provided.

A host of interfaces on the RCX-3750 PEG make this application possible, from varying locations. For example, at the OCC, they would take advantage of the Centre for Railway Information Systems (CRIS), master clock, SCADA, GSM-R, train information system, and other TMS, while the local station would enable the Computer-Based Interlocking (CBI), as well as a video wall for real-time display of signaling field gear status indications and train movement.

Some of the features of the RCX-3750 PEG that are particularly suited for this application include:

• Train timetable preparation and management
• Full-fledged reports and train graphs
• User, locomotive, and crew management
• Failure alarms
• Redundancy to ensure fail-proof operations

A second platform that could be deployed in this application is the Vecow ECX-3200MX workstation-grade system. It is designed around an Intel Core i9/i7/i5/i3 processor (14th generation) and RPL-S Refresh/RPL-S/ADL-S with Intel’s R680E chipset. The fanless ECX-3200MX operates at temperatures ranging from -40°C to +75°C. Other features include 4X coded M12 2.5G PoE+ LAN, six USB 3.2 ports and USB Type-C supporting up to 20 Gbits/s, SIM sockets supporting 5G/WiFi/4G/3G/LTE/GPRS/UMTS, and PCIe expansion.

While we highlighted one specific application here, the rail management system, it’s clear that this platform can be utilized in a host of similar arenas. Selecting a partner like Vecow ensures that your deployment works not only today, but far down the road. Contact the company for more information.