A driving assistance device including means for determining a target speed, means for comparing an instantaneous speed of the railway vehicle with the target speed or with an interval around the target speed, and means for displaying driving instructions intended for a conductor of the railway vehicle, the driving instructions including instructions for modifying the instantaneous speed in order to bring it closer to the target speed, the display means being configured to: display a speed increase instruction icon when the instantaneous speed is below a first predetermined value, and to display a speed decrease instruction icon when the instantaneous speed is above a second predefined value.

A protection method for a railway network, which is divided into section segments by section elements and can be traveled upon by vehicles. In order to optimize the vehicle sequence in the railway network, different train sequence point types are specified and different braking curves of the same braking curve type are provided by the vehicles. Each of the different braking curves of the same braking curve type of the particular vehicle is associated with one of the different train sequence point types.

A method for operating a train comprising two or more locomotives, the method comprising the steps of: a) Setting one or more locomotive control levels and choosing a selected route of travel; b) Calculating a target train speed profile and a target in-train force profile over at least a portion of the selected route; c) Measuring one or more operating parameters related to the operation of the train; d) Calculating a future train speed profile and a future in-train force profile for a future period based on at least one of the one or more operating parameters, at least one of the one or more locomotive control levels and one or more pieces of information relating to the selected route; e) Calculating adjusted locomotive speed control levels relating to the one or more operating parameters based on a difference between the target train speed profile and the future train speed profile, the adjusted locomotive control levels being adapted to maintain the target train speed profile over the future period; f) Calculating adjusted in-train force control levels relating to the one or more operating parameters based on a difference between the target in-train force profile and the future in-train force profile, the adjusted in-train force control levels being adapted to maintain the target in-train force profile below a target level over the future period; g) Dividing the adjusted locomotive control levels and the adjusted in-train force control levels between the two or more locomotives to form locomotive-specific locomotive control levels for each of the two or more locomotives, the locomotive-specific locomotive control levels being at least partially adapted to control and/or balance in-train force levels below the target level h) Provide locomotive-specific locomotive control levels for communication to each of the two or more locomotives; and i) Operating each of the two or more locomotives according to the locomotive-specific locomotive control levels.

System includes a controller comprising one or more processors configured to generate alertness requests to an operator of a vehicle system during a trip. The alertness requests are generated according to a determined routine. The controller is further configured to receive reactive inputs from the operator that are responsive to the alertness requests. The controller is further configured to determine whether the trip includes a permissible route segment for suspending the determined routine. The permissible route segment has a route characteristic of one or both of: a reduced likelihood of operator-required events occurring or a predicted workload for the operator that is less than a defined workload threshold.

A vehicle system having processors configured to determine permissible regions of a trip where the vehicle system is permitted for automatic control. The permissible regions of the trip are determined based on one or more of parameters of a route, a trend of operating parameters of the vehicle system, or a trip plan that designates one or more operational settings of the vehicle system at different locations, different times, or different distances along a route. The processors also are configured to control transition of the vehicle system between manual control and the automatic control in the permissible regions by alerting an operator of the vehicle system, automatically switching between the manual control and the automatic control, or modifying conditions on which the transition occur.

A speed control system for a railcar mover where the speed control system prevents the railcar mover from exceeding a predetermined maximum vehicle speed. The speed control system determines a target engine speed that overrides a user's throttle control input to keep the railcar mover from exceeding the predetermined maximum vehicle speed. The speed control system also determines a target throttle control position and disables the throttle control from the user until the user moves the throttle control to a position at or less than the target throttle control position.

A control system identifies vehicle systems for combining into a larger convoy. Each the vehicle systems is formed from at least one propulsion-generating vehicle and at least one non-propulsion-generating vehicle. The control system directs the identified vehicle systems to couple with each other for travel as the convoy from a first location toward a different, second location. The control system directs a first vehicle system in the convoy to separate from the convoy and/or a second vehicle system to join the convoy by coupling with at least one of the vehicle systems in the convoy in an intermediate location between the first and second locations. The vehicles in each of the vehicle systems in the convoy remain connected during separation of the first vehicle system from the convoy and/or during joining of the second vehicle system to the convoy.

The present invention concerns a method and system for reducing the electric power consumption of a railway system comprising at least one catenary, trains and at least one substation connected to sections of catenary and providing electric power to the catenary, wherein during the braking of the trains, the braking trains provide electric power to the catenary. The substation is associated to one device for reducing the electric power consumption and the invention: detects the presence of a braking train in one of the section connected to the substation, interrupts the electric power provided by the substation to the catenary if the presence of the braking train is detected, detects the absence of braking trains in each section connected to the substation, means for enabling the electric power to be provided by the substation to the catenary if the absence of braking trains is detected.

A vehicle control system determines a predicted location of wheel slip for an upcoming trip of a vehicle system by comparing a vehicle characteristic, route characteristic, and/or weather characteristic associated with the upcoming trip with a vehicle characteristic, route characteristic, and/or weather characteristic associated with a previous detection of wheel slip. Movement of the vehicle system is controlled during the upcoming trip by reducing tractive effort generated by a leading vehicle of the vehicle system relative to a trailing vehicle of the vehicle system during movement over the predicted location, reducing tractive effort generated by a leading axle in a vehicle of the vehicle system relative to a trailing axle of the vehicle during movement over the predicted location, and/or directing an adhesion modifying device to automatically dispense an adhesion modifying substance onto the predicted location.

A voltage estimating device for a power supply line according to one aspect of the present disclosure includes a voltage detector, a current detector, a voltage calculator. The voltage calculator calculates a magnitude of alternating primary voltage that a primary winding in a transformer receives from a power supply line based on a magnitude of tertiary voltage in the transformer detected by the voltage detector, a magnitude of output current in the transformer detected by the current detector, and correlation information. The correlation information indicates a correlation between a voltage ratio and the magnitude of the output current, and the voltage ratio represents a ratio of the magnitude -of the primary voltage to the magnitude of the tertiary voltage.