The present invention provides a network system of a railcar, the network system being capable of efficiently performing maintenance work. One example of the network system of the railcar of the present invention includes: intra-car networks (N1 to N3) to which first and second apparatuses are connected; an inter-car network (NA) for transmission of information between the apparatuses mounted on different cars; routers (R1 to R3) each provided and connected between the corresponding intra-car network (N1 to N3) and the inter-car network (NA) and each including a network address translation portion configured to mutually convert a private address of the first apparatus and an IP address of the inter-car network (NA); and a maintenance transmission path forming unit configured to form a transmission path through which the transmission and reception of the information are performed between a maintenance terminal (5) and a maintenance target apparatus selected from the first and second apparatuses, the transmission path not passing through the network address translation portion of the car on which the maintenance target apparatus is mounted.

The present invention relates to a heavy freight train marshalling device and marshalling method, and an electronically controlled pneumatic brake system; the latitude and longitude data of the carriage control unit is acquired by a Beidou positioning module; the first-vehicle state data of the carriage control unit is acquired by detecting a first-vehicle identification terminal; and, the carriage control units only need to transmit the acquired location data and the first-vehicle state data to the HEU via communication modules. Accordingly, the number of communication messages between the carriage control units and the HEU is decreased, the complicated process of connecting the carriage control units to or disconnecting the carriage control units from a switchable load is omitted, the marshalling time is shortened, and the complexity of marshalling is reduced.

A system comprises a first sensor on a first end of a vehicle and an on-board controller coupled to the first sensor. The first sensor is configured to detect a radio frequency (RF) signature of a marker along a guideway. The first sensor is a radar detection device. The on-board controller is configured to determine a first position of the vehicle on the guideway or a first distance from the position of the vehicle to a stopping location along the guideway based on at least the RF signature received from the first sensor. The marker is a metasurface plate comprising a first diffused element, a first retroreflector element, a first absorbing element and a second diffused element between the first retroreflector element and the first absorbing element.

A system and a method includes a monitoring device disposed onboard a first vehicle of a vehicle system. The monitoring device may obtain information about one or more of the monitoring device, the first vehicle, the vehicle system, or a route along which the vehicle system moves. The system includes a communication system having one or more processors configured to wirelessly activate and communicate with the monitoring device. The communication system is configured to wirelessly activate the monitoring device by controlling the monitoring device to establish a communication link between the monitoring device and a control system disposed onboard another vehicle of the vehicle system. The communication system is separate from and disposed a distance away from the monitoring device and the vehicle system.

A method for safe supervising train integrity includes: (a) acquiring first position data of the first carriage via a first tracking unit which is installed on-board of a first carriage and acquiring second position data of a second carriage via a second tracking unit which is installed on-board of the second carriage, wherein the position data is related to a rail route coordinate system; (b) determining a deviation between a reference value which depends on the length of the train and a position value which depends on position data of at least one of the tracking units; (c) detecting whether train integrity is given by analyzing the deviation; (d) repeating steps a) through c); wherein the tracking units are part of on-board units of an automatic train protection system. Thus a cost-efficient method for supervising train integrity which complies with safety level SIL4 can be realized.

A system, method, and apparatus for determining a location of a train as it travels on a track network is provided. The system includes an end-of-train device located on an end of the train, the end-of-train device comprising at least one signal receiving device configured to activate and receive transponder data from a plurality of passive transponders located throughout at least a portion of the track network. The system also includes at least one processor in communication with the at least one signal receiving device, the at least one processor programmed or configured to determine a location of the train based at least partially on at least a portion of the transponder data.

Railyard management system for managing, assembling, disassembling and validating train consists and monitoring railcars in the railyard. The system provides for the collection of data and the movement of data from lower processing levels to higher processing levels, where an inference engine draws inferences regarding the current state of railcars and train consists within the railyard. The inferences are assigned confidence levels based on the methods and available data used to draw the inferences. The system can be used to track the location and orientation of railcars in the railyard and to validate order and orientation of assets in a train consist.

This system includes a ground ATC and an on board ATC, which is switched from an active mode toward a standby mode and vice versa by a wake-up unit. In the standby mode, only the following components remain powered: odometry device; a main computer; a radio communication device between the on board ATC and the ground ATC; the wake-up unit. The main computer is programmed so as, in the standby mode, to verify that the movement of the train measured by the odometry device from the switching from the active mode to the standby mode is zero and, in the affirmative, to send the ground ATC an instantaneous position of the train using the radio communication device.

An end-of-train device, a system, and a method for monitoring barrier gates are provided. The method includes receiving at least one image associated with a barrier gate from an imaging device mounted on a train. Further, the at least one image is analyzed to determine a current status of the barrier gate. The current status corresponds to a position associated with the barrier gate. Based on the current status of the barrier gate, an action to be performed is identified. Further, one or more instructions for performing the identified action are generated.

A safety device including a pneumatic conductor and a pneumatic valve, the pneumatic conductor configured to be connected at a first end of the pneumatic conductor to the pneumatic valve and the pneumatic conductor configured to be connected at a second end to a second valve, wherein the second valve is configured to be pneumatically connected to an air brake system, wherein the pneumatic valve is opened to activate the air brake system and closed to de-activate the air brake system.