Technology news – Page 9
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Rail Business UKCost-Reducing Dynamic Electrification System demonstrated
UK: A section of remotely movable 25 kV 50 Hz overhead that can be adjusted to test proposed electrification designs before installation has been demonstrated at the Global Centre of Rail Excellence site in South Wales.
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Rail Business UKScotRail launches Tap&Pay ticketing app
UK: Following a six-month pilot scheme, ScotRail has launched a Tap&Pay pay-as-you-go ticketing app developed by Tracsis Rail Technology & Services using its Hopsta platform. The app is initially available for travel on ScotRail services in the Strathclyde area and between Strathclyde and Edinburgh. If the deployment ...
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Rail Business UKTransition zone management method wins UK patent
UK: Geotechnical contractor Geobear has been granted a UK patent for its track strengthening method for use in transition zones. Transition zones are found at the change from flexible formations like ballast to rigid foundations like concrete. These abrupt changes can cause differential settlement, leading to ...
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Rail Business UKRailway time and date standard issued
UK: The Rail Safety & Standards Board has released a standard promoting the wider use of Coordinated Universal Time and the consistent formatting of date and time values across the railway network. This aims to help the industry combine and analyse data, specify new systems and ...
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News‘Landmark’ research project seeks to understand FRMCS-ERTMS integration
EUROPE: The ‘landmark’ FP2-MORANE-2 research project has been launched to test Future Railway Mobile Communication System technology under real conditions in Europe. FRMCS is the emerging telecoms standard being coordinated by UIC and partners to enable railways to make better use of next-generation communications technology including ...
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Rail Business UKHigh Speed 2 SME Innovation Accelerator gets underway
UK: High speed line project promoter HS2 Ltd has launched its seventh Innovation Accelerator programme, with six SMEs selected to develop ideas for automating asset management, maximising site productivity and future-proofing operations. Archangel Imaging will refine its AI-equipped security camera technology to monitor security across HS2’s ...
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NewsICF orders Alstom traction equipment for Vande Bharat sleeper trains
INDIA: Integral Coach Factory in Chennai has awarded Alstom a contract to supply Mitrac traction components and other electrical equipment for 17 24-car Vande Bharat Sleeper trainsets. Alstom will produce the equipment at its Maneja site, with a prototype to be delivered by August 2026 followed ...
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NewsSaudi Arabia Railways train equipped for ETCS Level 2
SAUDI ARABIA: The first Saudi Arabia Railways train to be fitted with CAF’s latest Auriga ETCS equipment has entered passenger service on Saudi Arabia Railways’ Riyadh to Dammam network, following a two-year programme of design, testing, certification and training. The whole fleet will be able to ...
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NewsComposite fishplate certified to latest standard
FINLAND: Exel Composites says it is the first company to obtain the latest EN16843 certification for a glass fibre composite rail joint. The updated EU standard for insulated and non-insulated rail joints includes tougher requirements for mechanical and electrical performance. These are designed to address higher ...
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Metro Report InternationalMRT Jakarta introduces WhatsApp ticketing
INDONESIA: MRT Jakarta and Route Mobile Ltd have launched WhatsApp-based metro ticketing. Passengers who purchase tickets from MRT Jakarta vending machines can receive three automated messages with instructions on using a QR code, a unique QR code to be scanned for entry at the origin station ...
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NewsNew Year bug halts Spanish high speed train fleet
SPAIN: Drivers entering the cabs of RENFE’s Series 106 Avril high speed trainsets on January 1 discovered the entire fleet could not be activated. The operator contacted manufacturer Talgo, which contacted its suppliers. The problem was soon traced to the Ingeteam charging system for the batteries ...
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NewsHitachi to acquire Omnicom rail asset monitoring technology business
INTERNATIONAL: Hitachi Rail has agreed to acquire Balfour Beatty’s rail asset monitoring technology business Omnicom. Hitachi said this would form a ‘key strategic pillar’ of the Hyper Mobility Asset Expert platform launched at InnoTrans 2024. Derby-based Omnicom provides hardware and software for surveying, inspecting and monitoring ...
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Rail Business UKPark Signalling to develop SSI design workstation
UK: Network Rail has awarded Unipart company Park Signalling a £3m contract to produce a design workstation to support Solid State Interlocking signalling systems. Replacing obsolete and unsupported technology, the workstation will provide engineers with hardware and software to test, configure and make changes to SSI ...
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Rail Business UKPlatform scans to facilitate level boarding of new trains
UK: Cordel has installed Lidar sensors on two Network Rail maintenance units to make accurate measurements of platforms which will help to maximise the opportunities for level boarding of Southeastern’s next generation of London suburban trains. Platform heights, shapes and curvature vary ...
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Rail Business UKDigital twins help ScotRail reduce station and depot energy consumption
UK: ScotRail has partnered with Optimise AI to create digital twins of its stations and depots which will help the operator identify opportunities to save energy. The technology monitors energy usage and carbon emissions in real time, assesses the data against the UK Energy Performance Certification ...
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NewsHeavy steel train tests digital automatic couplers in real-world conditions
SWEDEN: The country’s heaviest freight trains outside the iron ore sector are being used to test digital automatic couplers in real-world conditions. DAC equipment from Dellner and Voith has been fitted to wagons used on daily 3 800 tonne trains which Green Cargo uses to transport ...
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NewsAmtrak track renewals train ready for delivery
USA: Swiss plant manufacturer Matisa is ready to deliver a novel track renewals train to Amtrak to support work to modernise the US national passenger operator’s upgrading of the 735 km Northeast Corridor between Boston and Washington DC. Matisa says the diesel-powered P95 machine will be ...
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NewsChicago commuter rail network upgrades communications
USA: Chicago commuter operator Metra’s legacy 900 MHz communications system is to be upgraded to the dot16 standard, in what suppliers Siemens Mobility and Ondas Networks say is a ‘milestone’ first for a major railway. Designed for mission-critical private industrial networks, dot16 provides an upgrade path ...
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NewsAutomated wheel shape monitor to detect wear
JAPAN: Central Japan Railway has developed a device that allows the shape of wheels to be measured while trains are passing over it at up to 80 km/h. Following a series of field tests, the equipment is being introduced on JR Central’s Tokyo – Shin Osaka ...
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Rail Business UKRail cyber-resilience collaboration
INTERNATIONAL: A memorandum of understanding to collaborate on enhancing the cyber-resilience of rail operations was signed by rail cybersecurity specialist RazorSecure, Mitsubishi Electric Corp, Mitsubishi Electric Europe and EKE Electronics during the 18th UK-Japan Rail Working Group hosted by the Department for Transport in London on ...