EULYNX is a European initiative in the area of railway signalling, with the aim of reducing the cost and installation time of signalling equipment. Currently, there are 13 members from all across Europe, with baseline 1 published in March 2017 and baseline 2 published in December 2017. The project documents lay down a system architecture for interlocking systems, including standard interfaces for the individual interlocking components, that can be used in any of the participating countries. The objective is to turn interlockings into modular systems, where different parts of one interlocking can be supplied by different manufacturers while maintaining the high safety and reliability levels required of a critical railway safety system.
EULYNX was started in 2014 by the railway infrastructure managers of 6 European countries: Germany, Netherlands, Belgium, France, Luxembourg and Great Britain. [1] This has expanded with time to 12 by including the railway infrastructure managers from: Finland, Norway, Sweden, Slovenia, Switzerland, Italy and Austria. The project is meant to standardise railway signalling and control interfaces, in order to reduce cost and installation time of signalling equipment.
EULYNX stems from the shorter lifetime of new signalling equipment technology, especially of interlockings which are at the core of the railway safety system. [2] An interlocking system using mechanical technology could be expected to last up to 80 years but electronic interlocking equipment has a shorter lifetime, between 15 and 20 years. [3]
The high cost of railway signalling equipment and the fact that until recently, suppliers operated mostly within national borders, resulted in a significant amount of technological diversity, and elements installed over many decades. [3] When there is the need to install a new interlocking system core, this might not be compatible with the old field elements, such as signals and level crossing protection systems, forcing a substitution of elements that are still decades away from their expected end of lifecycle. Mergers and acquisitions in the supplying industry also mean less competition which can be another factor driving up costs. [3]
By standardising the system architecture and interfaces of railway signalling equipment, [4] the lifecycle of the interlocking core can be decoupled from the field elements, which have longer lifecycles, [5] changing the traditional business logic of using a complete system from one manufacturer. Furthermore, the intellectual property (IP) rights of the specifications belong to the project partners, [4] contrary to when buying off the shelf products. The use of this approach enables manufacturers to bid for only a particular component, thereby lowering entry costs and increasing opportunities for competition. Furthermore, when a component has to be replaced, any company can supply that particular product.
EULYNX aims to reinforce the process of defining and standardising interfaces in the future railway digital control command communication, signalling and automation system. [2] The process of digitization in the railway industry provides a huge opportunity to reduce costs by improving efficiency, streamlining processes and reliability. [6] The major goal is to increase the railway capacity and reliability with a significant reduction in the life-cycle cost of the system.
The technical documents are published in stages, with baseline 1, covering CENELEC phases 1 - 4/5 published in 31 of March 2017 and baseline 2 published in December 2017, at the moment the consortium is working on the development of the state machines corresponding to the baseline 2 requirements. [7] Part of the specifications are openly available and the more detailed specifications require a previous registration.
Bane NOR the Norwegian railway infrastructure manager has introduced EULYNX requirements in its ERTMS expansion programme, including equipping rolling stock and installing its whole network with ETCS level 2 signalling system. Both the signalling system and the traffic management system are now required to have EULYNX interfaces. [8]
SŽ-Infrastructure has also announced the roll-out of EULYNX-compliant equipment in Slovenia after 2020. [9]
DB Netz is in a pre-series phase until 2019, using EULYNX requirements in ongoing signalling projects, while the specifications are completed. Production phase will follow. [10]
EULYNX specifications are also implemented in the Reference CCS Architecture (RCA) initiative, based on the white paper released in 2018. [11]
EULYNX uses formal methods which are essential in other high-tech industries but not used widely by the railway infrastructure managers. The introduction of a distributed safety system is also pioneering in the sector, leading the way for other projects that need to go through a similar certification process. [4]
Systems engineering is an interdisciplinary field of engineering and engineering management that focuses on how to design, integrate, and manage complex systems over their life cycles. At its core, systems engineering utilizes systems thinking principles to organize this body of knowledge. The individual outcome of such efforts, an engineered system, can be defined as a combination of components that work in synergy to collectively perform a useful function.
In systems engineering, information systems and software engineering, the systems development life cycle (SDLC), also referred to as the application development life cycle, is a process for planning, creating, testing, and deploying an information system. The SDLC concept applies to a range of hardware and software configurations, as a system can be composed of hardware only, software only, or a combination of both. There are usually six stages in this cycle: requirement analysis, design, development and testing, implementation, documentation, and evaluation.
GSM-R, Global System for Mobile Communications – Railway or GSM-Railway is an international wireless communications standard for railway communication and applications.
Radio Electronic Token Block is a system of railway signalling used in the United Kingdom. It is a development of the physical token system for controlling traffic on single lines. The system is slightly similar to North American direct traffic control, which unlike RETB does not have a cab display unit.
The Cambrian Line, sometimes split into the Cambrian Main Line and Cambrian Coast Line for its branches, is a railway line that runs from Shrewsbury, England, westwards to Aberystwyth and Pwllheli in Wales. Passenger train services are operated by Transport for Wales Rail between the western terminals of Pwllheli, in Gwynedd, and Aberystwyth, in Ceredigion, and the eastern terminal at Shrewsbury, Shropshire, as part of the Wales & Borders franchise. The railway line is widely regarded as scenic, as it passes through the Cambrian Mountains in central Wales, and along the coast of Cardigan Bay in Snowdonia National Park.
The European Train Control System (ETCS) is a train protection system designed to replace the many incompatible systems used by European railways, and railways outside of Europe. ETCS is the signalling and control component of the European Rail Traffic Management System (ERTMS).
PKP Polskie Linie Kolejowe S.A. is the Polish railway infrastructure manager, responsible for maintenance of rail tracks, conducting the trains across the country, scheduling train timetables, and management of railway land.
The Indian Railway Service of Signal Engineers (IRSSE) is a central engineering services group A cadre of the Indian railways. The officers of this service are responsible for managing the Signal and Telecommunications Engineering Organization of the Indian Railways.
In functional safety a safety instrumented system (SIS) is an engineered set of hardware and software controls which provides a protection layer that shuts down a chemical, nuclear, electrical, or mechanical system, or part of it, if a hazardous condition is detected.
The European Rail Traffic Management System (ERTMS) is the system of standards for management and interoperation of signalling for railways by the European Union (EU). It is conducted by the European Union Agency for Railways (ERA) and is the organisational umbrella for the separately managed parts of
A Eurobalise is a specific type of a balise installed between the rails of a railway. Eurobalises are part of the European train control system (ETCS). The balises are pre-programmed and contain information that is read by train antennas. One of their many functions is to allow a train to determine its location.
Solid State Interlocking (SSI) is the brand name of the first generation processor-based interlocking developed in the 1980s by British Rail's Research Division, GEC-General Signal and Westinghouse Signals Ltd in the UK.
ERTMS Regional is a simplified and low-cost variant of the European Rail Traffic Management System suitable for train control on lines with low traffic volumes. It is intended to reduce the amount of lineside and equipment required, thus reducing costs, increasing reliability and improving safety for track workers.
LOCOPROL has been a project to research the integration of satellite navigation into railway networks targeting low-density track lines. It is supposed to extend the ERTMS train protection systems. The partner project LOCOLOC was looking into cab signaling and speed control measures.
Communications-based train control (CBTC) is a railway signaling system that uses telecommunications between the train and track equipment for traffic management and infrastructure control. CBTC allows a train's position to be known more accurately than with traditional signaling systems. This makes railway traffic management safer and more efficient. Metros are able to reduce headways while maintaining or even improving safety.
Computer-based interlocking is railway signal interlocking implemented with computers, rather than using older technologies such as relays or mechanics.
The European Rail Traffic Management System (ERTMS) is an initiative backed by the European Union to enhance cross-border interoperability and the procurement of signalling equipment by creating a single Europe-wide standard for train control and command systems.
A rail operating centre (ROC) is a building that houses all signallers, signalling equipment, ancillaries and operators for a specific region or route on the United Kingdom's main rail network. The ROC supplants the work of several other signal boxes which have thus become redundant.
The European Union Agency for Railways (ERA) is an agency of the European Union (EU) that sets mandatory requirements for European railways and manufacturers in the form of Technical Specifications for Interoperability (TSI), which apply to the Trans-European Rail system. The ERA publishes a document summarising the status of the TSIs. The ERA sets common safety targets, common safety methods and common safety indicators, following Directive 2004/49/EC and amendments. The ERA also hosts a number of databases, among which a register of remaining, applicable national rules.
The Advanced Train Management System is a train control system under development by Lockheed Martin for Australian Rail Track Corporation (ARTC). The ATMS uses Global Positioning System to locate and track the position of trains within the ARTC network. In particular the system will be deployed across the Nullabor Plain to connect the eastern states of Australia with Perth and Western Australia. ATMS has been proposed as a low cost functional equivalent to European Rail Traffic Management System.