EP3250437A1 - System and method for coupling/uncoupling moving guided vehicles during operation - Google Patents

System and method for coupling/uncoupling moving guided vehicles during operation

Info

Publication number
EP3250437A1
EP3250437A1 EP15725256.0A EP15725256A EP3250437A1 EP 3250437 A1 EP3250437 A1 EP 3250437A1 EP 15725256 A EP15725256 A EP 15725256A EP 3250437 A1 EP3250437 A1 EP 3250437A1
Authority
EP
European Patent Office
Prior art keywords
uncoupling
guided vehicle
coupling
vehicle unit
track section
Prior art date
Legal status (The legal status is an assumption and is not a legal conclusion. Google has not performed a legal analysis and makes no representation as to the accuracy of the status listed.)
Granted
Application number
EP15725256.0A
Other languages
German (de)
French (fr)
Other versions
EP3250437B1 (en
Inventor
Indalecio CARBONELL PASCUAL
Current Assignee (The listed assignees may be inaccurate. Google has not performed a legal analysis and makes no representation or warranty as to the accuracy of the list.)
Siemens Rail Automation SA
Original Assignee
Siemens Rail Automation SA
Priority date (The priority date is an assumption and is not a legal conclusion. Google has not performed a legal analysis and makes no representation as to the accuracy of the date listed.)
Filing date
Publication date
Application filed by Siemens Rail Automation SA filed Critical Siemens Rail Automation SA
Publication of EP3250437A1 publication Critical patent/EP3250437A1/en
Application granted granted Critical
Publication of EP3250437B1 publication Critical patent/EP3250437B1/en
Active legal-status Critical Current
Anticipated expiration legal-status Critical

Links

Classifications

    • B—PERFORMING OPERATIONS; TRANSPORTING
    • B61—RAILWAYS
    • B61L—GUIDING RAILWAY TRAFFIC; ENSURING THE SAFETY OF RAILWAY TRAFFIC
    • B61L23/00—Control, warning or like safety means along the route or between vehicles or trains
    • B61L23/34—Control, warning or like safety means along the route or between vehicles or trains for indicating the distance between vehicles or trains by the transmission of signals therebetween
    • B—PERFORMING OPERATIONS; TRANSPORTING
    • B61—RAILWAYS
    • B61L—GUIDING RAILWAY TRAFFIC; ENSURING THE SAFETY OF RAILWAY TRAFFIC
    • B61L27/00—Central railway traffic control systems; Trackside control; Communication systems specially adapted therefor
    • B61L27/04—Automatic systems, e.g. controlled by train; Change-over to manual control
    • B—PERFORMING OPERATIONS; TRANSPORTING
    • B61—RAILWAYS
    • B61L—GUIDING RAILWAY TRAFFIC; ENSURING THE SAFETY OF RAILWAY TRAFFIC
    • B61L15/00—Indicators provided on the vehicle or train for signalling purposes
    • B61L15/0062—On-board target speed calculation or supervision
    • B—PERFORMING OPERATIONS; TRANSPORTING
    • B61—RAILWAYS
    • B61L—GUIDING RAILWAY TRAFFIC; ENSURING THE SAFETY OF RAILWAY TRAFFIC
    • B61L15/00—Indicators provided on the vehicle or train for signalling purposes
    • B61L15/0081—On-board diagnosis or maintenance
    • B—PERFORMING OPERATIONS; TRANSPORTING
    • B61—RAILWAYS
    • B61L—GUIDING RAILWAY TRAFFIC; ENSURING THE SAFETY OF RAILWAY TRAFFIC
    • B61L25/00—Recording or indicating positions or identities of vehicles or trains or setting of track apparatus
    • B61L25/02—Indicating or recording positions or identities of vehicles or trains
    • B61L25/021—Measuring and recording of train speed

Definitions

  • the present invention concerns a system and a method for cou- pling/uncoupling moving vehicles, said vehicle being preferentially a guided vehicle.
  • the present invention is related to vehicles comprising mul ⁇ tiple units (or cars/coaches) that need to be coupled to, or respectively uncoupled from, each other, each unit comprising moving means, like a motor, so that it can move independently from another unit when they are uncoupled.
  • the present invention concerns all kinds of ve ⁇ hicles comprising multiple units or cars, but is preferen- tially directed to multiple unit guided vehicles, wherein "guided vehicle” refers to public transport means such as subways, trains or train subunits, etc., as well as load transporting means such as, for example, freight trains, for which safety is a very important factor and which are guided along a route or railway by at least one rail, in particular by two rails.
  • Coupling and uncoupling guided vehicle units of a multi-unit guided vehicle is an operation carried out in a highly manual way, with little automation and at a very low speed or when at least one of the guided vehicles that has to be coupled/uncoupled is stationary.
  • An objective of the present invention is to propose a system and a method for coupling, or respectively uncoupling, two uncoupled, or respectively coupled, guided vehicle units in movement during service operation, for example between two stations and while they are operating, i.e. in service.
  • the invention is also focused in ensuring the safety of the coupling and/or uncoupling (hereafter coupling/uncoupling) operations from the signaling point of view so that for in- stance a coupling/uncoupling operation can be carried out with passengers in the guided vehicle units.
  • the present invention provides a method for cou ⁇ pling/uncoupling two guided vehicle units of a multi-unit guided vehicle while said guided vehicle units are operating and moving on a track network according to a predefined itinerary, for example moving at high speed on said track, each guided vehicle unit comprising an on-board signaling system and a rolling stock system, the track comprising trackside devices, the method comprising:
  • a. Receiving a command for coupling/uncoupling the guided vehicles units, wherein said command might be manually given by an operator of one of said guided vehicle units, or automatically predefined in at least one, or each, of said on-board signaling system.
  • the guided vehicle unit receiving said command communi ⁇ cates said command to the other guided vehicle unit, i.e. the vehicle unit to which it will be coupled or from which it will be uncoupled.
  • a cou ⁇ pling/uncoupling information related to said command is communicated to a trackside device, e.g. at least to an interlocking and a zone controller for ensuring that sufficient track space is available (authorized routes ahead are available for the coupling/uncoupling opera ⁇ tion) .
  • route cancelling or modification might only take place if the coupling/uncoupling operation is finalized;
  • Checking by means of at least one, preferentially each, of said on-board signaling systems coupling/uncoupling conditions, preferentially the on-board signaling system of the guided vehicle unit that is in the front of each other guided vehicle unit proceeds with the check of said coupling/uncoupling conditions, wherein said conditions comprise preferentially at least one, or in par ⁇ ticular all, of the following:
  • ii. a first set of redundancy conditions wherein said first set of redundancy conditions depends on the on-board signaling system and defines a minimum level of availability of systems and redundancy of the guided vehicle unit it equips in order to ensure that a single failure of the on-board signaling sys ⁇ tem will not cause a braking of the guided vehicle unit equipped with said on-board signaling system; iii. a second set of redundancy conditions, which are
  • said second set of redundancy conditions depends on the rolling stock system and defines a minimum level of availability of systems and redundancy of the guided vehicle unit it equips in order to ensure that a single failure of the rolling stock system will not cause a braking of the guided vehicle unit equipped with said rolling stock system.
  • the rolling stock system of a guided vehicle unit is able to transmit to the on- board signaling system of said guided vehicle unit an information related to the fulfillment of the second set of redundancy conditions;
  • a free track distance ahead condition that comprises a verification, by a trackside device, of an availa ⁇ bility of a dedicated and protected track section for ensuring the coupling/uncoupling operation, said availability being confirmed or infirmed by the trackside device to the on-board signaling system; Locating, by means of at least one of said on-board sig ⁇ naling system, preferentially by each on-board signaling system of each guided vehicle unit, a cou ⁇ pling/uncoupling track section on the itinerary of the guided vehicle units, wherein the coupling/uncoupling track section is a track section fulfilling criteria defined for ensuring the safety of the coupling/uncoupling operation.
  • Each on-board signaling system is in particular capable of determining, notably by cooperating with the trackside device (e.g. a wayside signaling system) , if a track section fulfills said criteria and might be classified as a "cou ⁇ pling/uncoupling track section".
  • the coupling/uncoupling track section is for example a section of track wherein a braking of said guided vehicle units is not required, in other words, it is for example a section of track fulfilling a non-braking criterion of the guided vehicle units over a predefined length of said section.
  • the non- braking criterion ensures the safety of the cou ⁇ pling/uncoupling operations of the guided vehicle units of the multi-unit guided vehicle.
  • the present in ⁇ vention proposes in particular to carry out said coupling/uncoupling operations only at track sections fulfilling specific criteria and called coupling/uncoupling track sections.
  • Said criteria ensure that the track sec ⁇ tion is appropriate for carrying coupling/uncoupling operations.
  • the "non braking" criterion of a track section ensures for example that there is no braking need for the guided vehicle units when moving over the length of said track section when considering the topology and infrastructure of said section, and therefore they may perform the coupling/uncoupling operations in safe condition.
  • each on-board signaling system is capable to determine if a track section is configured for ensuring the safety of the coupling/uncoupling operations.
  • the coupling/uncoupling track section comprises at least one protection trackside de ⁇ vice.
  • the protection trackside device according to the invention is in particular capable of communicating with each guided vehicle unit and determining if the cou ⁇ pling/uncoupling track section is safe for performing coupling/uncoupling operations.
  • the protection trackside device is notably capable of:
  • the guided vehicle units After coupling, the guided vehicle units are coupled to each other and move at a same speed according to said itinerary, while after uncoupling, the guided vehicle units are uncoupled from each other and their respective on-board signaling system are configured for keeping a separation distance between the guided vehicle units, for example the on ⁇ board signaling system of a guided vehicle unit A2 lo ⁇ cated behind a guided vehicle unit Al is configured for decreasing the speed of said guided vehicle unit A2 once the guided vehicle units Al, A2 are uncoupled, while the on-board signaling system of the guided vehicle unit Al may command an increase of the speed of guided vehicle unit Al .
  • each on-board signaling system is configured for managing the cou ⁇ pling/uncoupling of the guided vehicle units in function of the location of, and criteria fulfilled by, the track sec ⁇ tion, so that the coupling/uncoupling takes place and is only allowed during the moving of the guided vehicle units on a track section fulfilling the criterion.
  • performing the coupling/uncoupling operations takes place once each guided vehicle unit enters the cou ⁇ pling/uncoupling track section.
  • performing the coupling/uncoupling operations comprises the following steps :
  • the guided vehicle unit Al of information regarding a deceleration state.
  • the on-board signaling system of guided vehicle unit Al detects an activation of brakes of the guided vehicle unit Al or a reduction of its speed, information regarding said activation and/or speed reduction is automatically and immediately communicated to the on-board signaling system of guided vehicle unit A2.
  • the on-board signaling system of guided vehicle unit Al is able to transmit said information in high priority and at a very high rate to ensure a quick reaction of guid ⁇ ed vehicle unit A2 ;
  • the position and speed of guided vehicle unit Al allows the on-board signaling system of guided vehicle unit A2 to calculate a coupling and/or uncoupling deceleration curve for guided vehicle unit A2 in case of coupling/uncoupling of guided vehicle unit A2 to/from guided vehicle unit Al, said calculation being based on the assumption that guided vehicle unit Al does not brake during its displacement along the coupling/uncoupling track section.
  • the position and speed of guided vehicle unit A2 is also used by the on-board signaling system of guided vehicle unit A2 for the calculation of said coupling and/or uncoupling deceleration curve for guided vehicle unit A2.
  • guided vehicle unit A2 has first a speed higher than guided vehicle unit Al and then smoothly decelerates according to the coupling deceleration curve in order to approach guided vehicle unit Al .
  • the on-board signal ⁇ ing system of the guided vehicle A2 is configured for decreasing the speed of guided vehicle A2 ac ⁇ cording to said uncoupling deceleration curve once the guided vehicles are uncoupled. Consequently, the present invention proposes in particular to control the relative position of the guided vehicle units Al and A2 by means of the on-board signaling system of guided vehicle unit A2 in function/according to a calculated coupling/uncoupling deceleration curve for the coupling as well as for the uncoupling.
  • the on-board signaling system of guided vehicle unit A2 is in particular capable of controlling guided vehi- cle unit A2 according to the deceleration curve, i.e. so that the speed of guided vehicle unit A2 in function of the time has a same profile as the de ⁇ celeration curve.
  • the on-board signaling system of guided vehicle unit A2 detects a speed reduction of guided vehicle unit Al or a loss of the communication with the on-board signaling system of guided vehicle unit Al, then the on-board signaling system of guided vehicle unit A2 automati ⁇ cally triggers an emergency brake of guided vehicle unit A2 ;
  • controlling the relative position of the guided ve ⁇ hicle units Al and A2 by controlling, by means of the on-board signaling device of guided vehicle unit A2, the speed of guided vehicle unit A2 according to the coupling/uncoupling deceleration curve and automatically coupling/uncoupling the guided vehicles units Al and A2 by means of a coupling device, said coupling device being preferentially configured for mechanically coupling/uncoupling the guided vehicle units Al and A2 ;
  • the proximity sen ⁇ sor is configured for continuously measuring the distance separating guided vehicle unit A2 from guided vehicle unit Al during coupling/uncoupling operations and for communicating said measurement to the on-board signaling system of guided vehicle unit A2.
  • the on-board signaling system of guided vehicle unit A2 might be configured for triggering an emergency brake, or a continuous increase of the braking intensity until a decrease of the distance between the guided vehicle units de ⁇ tected.
  • said measurement of the distance might be used by the on-board signaling system of guided vehicle unit A2 for approaching guided vehicle unit Al according to the coupling de ⁇ celeration curve.
  • the present invention also concerns an on-board signaling system configured for equipping a guided vehicle unit, the latter being configured for being coupled to or uncoupled from another guided vehicle unit of a multi-unit guided vehi ⁇ cle, the on-board signaling system comprising:
  • a controller configured for:
  • o locating a coupling/uncoupling track section by determining if a track section belonging to the itinerary of the multi-unit guided vehicle fulfills the previously described criteria defined for ensuring the safety of the coupling/uncoupling operation; o controlling the guided vehicle unit during cou ⁇ pling/uncoupling operations as previously de ⁇ scribed, notably controlling the coupling device for coupling/uncoupling the guided vehicle unit with said another guided vehicle unit;
  • Said communication means are in particular configured for automati ⁇ cally exchanging information with a protection trackside device equipping the coupling/uncoupling track section;
  • a proximity sensor configured for being in ⁇ stalled on a front end of the guided vehicle unit and capable of measuring a distance separating the front end of the guided vehicle unit from the rear end of said an ⁇ other guided vehicle unit.
  • Figure 1 schematic representation of uncoupling operations of guided vehicle units according to the inven ⁇ tion.
  • Figure 2 schematic representation of braking curves in a coupling/uncoupling track section for uncoupling operations .
  • the present invention concerns a multi-unit guided vehicle 1 composed of several guided vehicle units, and more precisely the coupling/uncoupling of guided vehicles units of said mul ⁇ ti-unit guided vehicle 1.
  • Each multi-unit guided vehicle 1 according to the invention comprises at least one guided ve ⁇ hicle unit.
  • the present invention refers thus to the coupling of a guided vehicle unit with a multi-unit guided vehicle, i.e. with a guided vehicle unit of said multi-unit guided ve ⁇ hicle, or the uncoupling of a guided vehicle unit from a guided vehicle unit of said multi-unit guided vehicle 1.
  • Figure 1 shows in particular a multi-unit guided vehicle 1 comprising 3 guided vehicle units indicated respectively by Al, A2, A3.
  • a multi-unit guided vehicle according to the in- vention may comprise n guided vehicle units, successively called ⁇ ,.,., ⁇ , wherein the guided vehicle unit Ai precedes the guided vehicle unit Ai + i compared to the direction of dis ⁇ placement of the multi-unit guided vehicle.
  • the guided vehicle unit Ai is in front of the guided vehicle unit Ai + i compared to the direction of displacement of the multi-unit guided vehicle i.e. compared to the direction of displacement of the units of the multi-unit guided vehicle.
  • Figure 1 shows the positions of the guided vehicle units Al, A2, A3 at six different times in chronological order, respec ⁇ tively Tl, T2, T3, T4, T5, and T6, and has thus to be read from the top to the bottom.
  • Figure 1 schematically describes the displacement of guided vehicle units Al, A2, A3 of a mul ⁇ ti-unit guided vehicle 1, e.g.
  • guided vehi ⁇ cle unit Al moves from a first station SI to a fourth station S4 without stopping
  • guided vehicle unit A2 moves from the first station SI to a third station S3 without stopping and will stop in the third station S3 at time T6
  • guided ve ⁇ hicle unit A3 moves from the first station SI to a second station S2 without stopping, but will stop at second station S2 at time T4.
  • the multi-unit guided vehicle 1 is stationary at the first station SI. For instance, boarding of passengers may take place, wherein passenger's seats are defined in function of their destination, i.e. passengers going to sec- ond station S2 are seated in guided vehicle unit A3, passen ⁇ gers going to third station S3 are seated in guided vehicle unit A2, and passengers going to the fourth station S4 are seated in guided vehicle unit Al .
  • passenger's seats are defined in function of their destination, i.e. passengers going to sec- ond station S2 are seated in guided vehicle unit A3, passen ⁇ gers going to third station S3 are seated in guided vehicle unit A2, and passengers going to the fourth station S4 are seated in guided vehicle unit Al .
  • an intelli ⁇ gent ticketing system is used for determining passenger' s seat in the units of the multi-unit guided vehicle in func ⁇ tion of their destination station.
  • the multi-unit guided vehicle 1 comprises thus three guided vehicle units, respectively Al, A2, and A3, wherein guided vehicle unit Al is in front of the multi-unit guided vehicle 1 and is coupled to guided vehicle unit A2, which is itself coupled to guided vehicle unit A3 representing the rear of the multi-unit guid ⁇ ed vehicle 1 compared to the direction of displacement indi ⁇ cated by the arrow D.
  • guided vehicle unit Al is in front of the multi-unit guided vehicle 1 and is coupled to guided vehicle unit A2, which is itself coupled to guided vehicle unit A3 representing the rear of the multi-unit guid ⁇ ed vehicle 1 compared to the direction of displacement indi ⁇ cated by the arrow D.
  • coupling/uncoupling of two guided vehicle units takes place while said guided vehicle units are operated and moving on a track 2 according to a predefined itinerary.
  • each guided vehicle unit A1,...,A3 comprises an on-board signaling system and a rolling stock system.
  • one and only one of the guided vehicle units composing a multi-unit guided ve ⁇ hicle takes the lead over the other guided vehicle units for controlling the multi-unit guided vehicle.
  • the on-board signaling system of one of the guided vehicle units of the multi-unit guided vehicle is automatically granted a master function, while the other on-board signaling systems equipping the other guided vehicle units have a slave function.
  • the on-board signaling system of the guided vehicle unit in front of the multi-unit guided ve ⁇ hicle takes said lead and is thus able to wholly control the multi-unit guided vehicle 1.
  • At least one of guided vehicle units After leaving the first station SI, at least one of guided vehicle units, more precisely at least one on-board signaling system equipping one of the guided vehicle units receives a command for coupling/uncoupling a guided vehicle unit to/from the multi-unit guided vehicle 1.
  • the on-board signaling system of the guided vehicle unit Al re ⁇ ceives a command for uncoupling the guided vehicle unit A3 from the multi-unit guided vehicle 1.
  • the on-board signaling system of the guided vehicle unit Al is able to check coupling/uncoupling conditions in order to ensure that safety conditions are satisfied for uncoupling guided vehicle unit A3 from guided vehicle unit A2, and to locate a cou ⁇ pling/uncoupling track section 31 on the itinerary of the guided vehicle units A1,...,A3, wherein the coupling/uncoupling track section 31 is a track section fulfilling criteria defined for ensuring safe coupling/uncoupling operation.
  • the coupling/uncoupling track section shall satisfy at least one of the following criteria, preferentially each of the criteria (a) , (b) , (e) , (c) , or each of the cri ⁇ teria (a) , (b) , (e) , (d) , or each of the criteria (a) - (e) , wherein said criteria are given by:
  • a covered area e.g. a tunnel
  • predefined track and topology conditions like gradient, curves, existence of points, maximum speed profile, etc. that are designed to allow a safe cou ⁇ pling/uncoupling operation.
  • predefined track and topology conditions are for example:
  • the coupling/uncoupling track section 31 does not comprise a curve needing a guided vehicle brak ⁇ ing;
  • the coupling/uncoupling track section 31 is free of points, or comprises at least a limited number of points, e.g. less than two points, said points being in particular locked throughout the coupling/uncoupling operation;
  • Maximum speed profile the maximum speed profile defined for the coupling/uncoupling track section 31 is , ,
  • the on-board signaling system is configured for checking that the guided vehicle has enough free track sections ahead so that each guided vehicle involved in the cou ⁇ pling/uncoupling operation can get coupled/uncoupled and for instance, in the case of uncoupling operation, gain enough separation to ensure normal safe operation once they are out of the uncoupling track section.
  • the on-board equipment of each guided vehicle unit is automatically informed by the on-board signaling sys ⁇ tem about the coupling/uncoupling operation so that they drive the guided vehicle unit according to predefined driving conditions, e.g. not driving close to the maximum speed au ⁇ thorized on said coupling/uncoupling track section in order to avoid the necessity of braking.
  • a coupling/uncoupling track section according to the invention is preferentially equipped by at least one protection trackside device that may comprise a camera system, and/or a rail continuity checking device, and/or a net of sensors for protecting the cou ⁇ pling/uncoupling track section, and/or a mechanism to ensure that no obstacle is or comes on the track.
  • the protection trackside device is able to communicate with the on-board signaling system of each guided vehicle unit ap ⁇ proaching the coupling/uncoupling track section 31.
  • the on-board signaling system is able to find/locate a coupling/uncoupling track section and if the latter fulfills the coupling/uncoupling conditions, then the coupling/uncoupling of the guided vehicle units is automatically performed when the guided vehicle units enter said cou- pling/uncoupling track section, otherwise the guided vehicle units continue moving according to said itinerary and direc ⁇ tion of displacement until another coupling/uncoupling track section is located or a station wherein at least one of the guided vehicle units of the multi-unit guided vehicle has to stop is reached.
  • the on-board signaling system of guided vehicle unit Al is for example able to locate the coupling/uncoupling track section 31 and to determine if the latter satisfies the coupling/uncoupling conditions.
  • all guided vehicle units of the multi-unit guided vehicle are located within the coupling/uncoupling track section 31 and the on-board signaling system of guided vehicle unit Al is in particular capable of controlling the automatic uncoupling of guided ve ⁇ hicle unit A3 from guided vehicle unit A2.
  • the on ⁇ board signaling system of the uncoupled guided vehicle unit i.e. guided vehicle unit A3 for instance, takes the lead of the guided vehicle unit it equips and controls the latter.
  • an on-board signaling system of one of the guided vehicle units of the uncoupled multi-unit guided vehicles takes the lead and controls the uncoupled multi-unit guided vehicle.
  • the on-board signaling system which controls the guided vehicle units from which a guided vehicle unit has been uncoupled is in particular configured for continuously controlling each guided vehicle unit coupled to the guided vehicle unit it equips.
  • the guided vehicle unit A3 is uncoupled from guided vehicle unit A2 and moves independently from the guid ⁇ ed vehicle units Al and A2 composing the multi-unit guided vehicle 1.
  • the guided vehicle unit A3 is for example controlled by its on-board signaling system, while the guided vehicles units Al and A2 are controlled preferen- tially by the on-board signaling system of guided vehicle unit Al .
  • the guided vehicle unit A3 reaches its destina ⁇ tion station, i.e. the second station S2, while the multi- unit guided vehicle composed now of guided vehicle unit Al and guided vehicle unit A2 is located in a cou ⁇ pling/uncoupling track section 32 located between the second station S2 and the third station S3.
  • the guided vehicle unit A3 reaches its destina ⁇ tion station, i.e. the second station S2, while the multi- unit guided vehicle composed now of guided vehicle unit Al and guided vehicle unit A2 is located in a cou ⁇ pling/uncoupling track section 32 located between the second station S2 and the third station S3.
  • automatic uncoupling of the guided vehicle units A2 and Al takes place mutatis mutandis at time T4.
  • guided vehicle unit A2 and guided vehicle unit Al are moving independently since their uncoupling, guided vehi ⁇ cle unit Al having passed the third station S3 without stop- ping.
  • the guided vehicle unit A2 stops at the third station S3, while guided vehicle unit Al continues moving in direction of its destination station, namely the fourth sta- tion S4.
  • Figure 2 shows in more details the coupling/uncoupling sec ⁇ tion 31 and the uncoupling operations taking place between the time T2 and a time T2', wherein T2 ⁇ T2' ⁇ T3.
  • the on-board signaling system of each uncoupled guided vehicle unit e.g. the guided vehicle unit A3 according to the preferred embodiment of Fig. 2 is configured for calculating an uncoupling deceleration (or braking) curve 41 in function of the speed of guided vehicle unit to which it was previously coupled, i.e. in function of guided vehicle unit A2 according to Figure 2, and based on the assumption that the guided vehicle unit to which it was previously coupled does not brake.
  • Figure 2 also shows the uncoupling braking/deceleration curve 42 for the guided vehicle units Al and A2 composing the multi-unit guided vehicle 1. Dotted rectangles represent the position of the guided ve ⁇ hicles units A3, A2 and Al in case of emergency braking at time T2' .
  • the present invention proposes a method and system for automatically coupling/uncoupling a guided vehicle unit to/from one or several other guided vehicle units com- posing a multi-unit guided vehicle, wherein the guided vehi ⁇ cle units is configured for coupling/uncoupling in motion during service operation, for example leaving behind at least one guided vehicle unit that has been uncoupled and that is configured for serving a station at which the multi-unit guided vehicle does not stop.
  • the present invention has in particular the following main advantage compared to prior art techniques: it allows reduc ⁇ ing the travelling time between a first station SI and a third station S3.
  • a guided vehicle unit Al coupled to a guided vehicle unit A2, wherein guided vehicle unit Al is in front of guided vehicle unit A2 compared to a direction of displacement of the multi-unit guided vehicle 1, runs faster from the first station SI to the third station S3 since the guided vehicle units Al and A2 might be uncoupled during move, i.e. without stopping the guided vehicle unit Al, while serving nevertheless a second station S2 by means of the guided vehicle unit A2, the latter stopping at said second station S2 between first station SI and third station S3 while guided vehicle unit Al may keep moving until reaching the third station S3.

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  • Engineering & Computer Science (AREA)
  • Mechanical Engineering (AREA)
  • Electric Propulsion And Braking For Vehicles (AREA)
  • Train Traffic Observation, Control, And Security (AREA)

Abstract

The present invention concerns a system and a method for coupling/uncoupling two guided vehicle units while said guided vehicle units are operated and moving on a track according to a predefined itinerary, the method comprising: - receiving a command for coupling/uncoupling the guided vehicles units; - checking coupling/uncoupling conditions; - locating a coupling/uncoupling track section on the itinerary of the guided vehicle units, wherein the coupling/uncoupling track section is a track section fulfilling criteria defined for ensuring safe coupling/uncoupling operation; - if a coupling/uncoupling track section has been located and the coupling/uncoupling conditions are fulfilled, then automatically performing the coupling/uncoupling of the guided vehicle units when the guided vehicle units enter said coupling/uncoupling track section, otherwise moving the coupled/uncoupled guided vehicles units according to said itinerary until a coupling/uncoupling track section is located or a station is reached.

Description

System and method for coupling/uncoupling moving guided vehicles during operation
The present invention concerns a system and a method for cou- pling/uncoupling moving vehicles, said vehicle being preferentially a guided vehicle.
The present invention is related to vehicles comprising mul¬ tiple units (or cars/coaches) that need to be coupled to, or respectively uncoupled from, each other, each unit comprising moving means, like a motor, so that it can move independently from another unit when they are uncoupled. From a general point of view the present invention concerns all kinds of ve¬ hicles comprising multiple units or cars, but is preferen- tially directed to multiple unit guided vehicles, wherein "guided vehicle" refers to public transport means such as subways, trains or train subunits, etc., as well as load transporting means such as, for example, freight trains, for which safety is a very important factor and which are guided along a route or railway by at least one rail, in particular by two rails.
Coupling and uncoupling guided vehicle units of a multi-unit guided vehicle, like a train, is an operation carried out in a highly manual way, with little automation and at a very low speed or when at least one of the guided vehicles that has to be coupled/uncoupled is stationary.
An objective of the present invention is to propose a system and a method for coupling, or respectively uncoupling, two uncoupled, or respectively coupled, guided vehicle units in movement during service operation, for example between two stations and while they are operating, i.e. in service. The invention is also focused in ensuring the safety of the coupling and/or uncoupling (hereafter coupling/uncoupling) operations from the signaling point of view so that for in- stance a coupling/uncoupling operation can be carried out with passengers in the guided vehicle units.
The present invention provides a method for cou¬ pling/uncoupling two guided vehicle units of a multi-unit guided vehicle while said guided vehicle units are operating and moving on a track network according to a predefined itinerary, for example moving at high speed on said track, each guided vehicle unit comprising an on-board signaling system and a rolling stock system, the track comprising trackside devices, the method comprising:
a. Receiving a command for coupling/uncoupling the guided vehicles units, wherein said command might be manually given by an operator of one of said guided vehicle units, or automatically predefined in at least one, or each, of said on-board signaling system. Preferentially, the guided vehicle unit receiving said command communi¬ cates said command to the other guided vehicle unit, i.e. the vehicle unit to which it will be coupled or from which it will be uncoupled. Preferentially, a cou¬ pling/uncoupling information related to said command is communicated to a trackside device, e.g. at least to an interlocking and a zone controller for ensuring that sufficient track space is available (authorized routes ahead are available for the coupling/uncoupling opera¬ tion) . In particular, according to the present invention, route cancelling or modification might only take place if the coupling/uncoupling operation is finalized; Checking by means of at least one, preferentially each, of said on-board signaling systems coupling/uncoupling conditions, preferentially the on-board signaling system of the guided vehicle unit that is in the front of each other guided vehicle unit proceeds with the check of said coupling/uncoupling conditions, wherein said conditions comprise preferentially at least one, or in par¬ ticular all, of the following:
i. a track profile condition and a speed limitation
condition defined for ensuring that the on-board signaling system will not request braking during a time period equal to the time needed for the cou¬ pling/uncoupling operations of said two guided vehi¬ cle units;
ii. a first set of redundancy conditions, wherein said first set of redundancy conditions depends on the on-board signaling system and defines a minimum level of availability of systems and redundancy of the guided vehicle unit it equips in order to ensure that a single failure of the on-board signaling sys¬ tem will not cause a braking of the guided vehicle unit equipped with said on-board signaling system; iii. a second set of redundancy conditions, which are
checked by means of each of said rolling stock sys- tern. Preferentially, said second set of redundancy conditions depends on the rolling stock system and defines a minimum level of availability of systems and redundancy of the guided vehicle unit it equips in order to ensure that a single failure of the rolling stock system will not cause a braking of the guided vehicle unit equipped with said rolling stock system. Preferentially, the rolling stock system of a guided vehicle unit is able to transmit to the on- board signaling system of said guided vehicle unit an information related to the fulfillment of the second set of redundancy conditions;
a free track distance ahead condition that comprises a verification, by a trackside device, of an availa¬ bility of a dedicated and protected track section for ensuring the coupling/uncoupling operation, said availability being confirmed or infirmed by the trackside device to the on-board signaling system; Locating, by means of at least one of said on-board sig¬ naling system, preferentially by each on-board signaling system of each guided vehicle unit, a cou¬ pling/uncoupling track section on the itinerary of the guided vehicle units, wherein the coupling/uncoupling track section is a track section fulfilling criteria defined for ensuring the safety of the coupling/uncoupling operation. Each on-board signaling system according to the invention is in particular capable of determining, notably by cooperating with the trackside device (e.g. a wayside signaling system) , if a track section fulfills said criteria and might be classified as a "cou¬ pling/uncoupling track section". The coupling/uncoupling track section is for example a section of track wherein a braking of said guided vehicle units is not required, in other words, it is for example a section of track fulfilling a non-braking criterion of the guided vehicle units over a predefined length of said section. The non- braking criterion ensures the safety of the cou¬ pling/uncoupling operations of the guided vehicle units of the multi-unit guided vehicle. Thus, the present in¬ vention proposes in particular to carry out said coupling/uncoupling operations only at track sections fulfilling specific criteria and called coupling/uncoupling track sections. Said criteria ensure that the track sec¬ tion is appropriate for carrying coupling/uncoupling operations. The "non braking" criterion of a track section ensures for example that there is no braking need for the guided vehicle units when moving over the length of said track section when considering the topology and infrastructure of said section, and therefore they may perform the coupling/uncoupling operations in safe condition. In particular, each on-board signaling system is capable to determine if a track section is configured for ensuring the safety of the coupling/uncoupling operations. Preferentially, another criterion that has to be fulfilled by each coupling/uncoupling track section according to the invention, together with or independently of the fulfillment of another criterion like the non- braking criterion, is that the coupling/uncoupling track section comprises at least one protection trackside de¬ vice. The protection trackside device according to the invention is in particular capable of communicating with each guided vehicle unit and determining if the cou¬ pling/uncoupling track section is safe for performing coupling/uncoupling operations. The protection trackside device is notably capable of:
- determining if the coupling/uncoupling track section is free of any obstacle in order to prevent any cou¬ pling/uncoupling if any obstacle is detected. For example, it can determine if the coupling/uncoupling track section is free of any non-authorized person; and/or
- determining if each rail of the coupling/uncoupling track section is continuous in order to prevent that a broken rail causes a guided vehicle unit disrup¬ tion; and/or r
- checking if physical criteria and availability cri¬ teria of the coupling/uncoupling track section are fulfilled in order to avoid any braking of the guid¬ ed vehicle units during their displacement on the coupling/uncoupling track section;
if a coupling/uncoupling track section has been located and the coupling/uncoupling conditions are fulfilled, then automatically performing the coupling/uncoupling of the guided vehicle units when the guided vehicle units enter said coupling/uncoupling track section, by controlling each guided vehicle unit by means of its on¬ board signaling system, otherwise moving the coupled/uncoupled guided vehicles units according to the itinerary until a coupling/uncoupling track section is located or a station where at least one of the guided vehicle units has to stop is reached. After coupling, the guided vehicle units are coupled to each other and move at a same speed according to said itinerary, while after uncoupling, the guided vehicle units are uncoupled from each other and their respective on-board signaling system are configured for keeping a separation distance between the guided vehicle units, for example the on¬ board signaling system of a guided vehicle unit A2 lo¬ cated behind a guided vehicle unit Al is configured for decreasing the speed of said guided vehicle unit A2 once the guided vehicle units Al, A2 are uncoupled, while the on-board signaling system of the guided vehicle unit Al may command an increase of the speed of guided vehicle unit Al .
According to the present invention and in particular, each on-board signaling system is configured for managing the cou¬ pling/uncoupling of the guided vehicle units in function of the location of, and criteria fulfilled by, the track sec¬ tion, so that the coupling/uncoupling takes place and is only allowed during the moving of the guided vehicle units on a track section fulfilling the criterion. According to the pre- sent invention, performing the coupling/uncoupling operations takes place once each guided vehicle unit enters the cou¬ pling/uncoupling track section. Preferentially, performing the coupling/uncoupling operations comprises the following steps :
- a communication, during the whole coupling/uncoupling operations, from the on-board sig¬ naling system of the guided vehicle unit which is ahead compared to a direction of displacement of said guided vehicle units (hereafter guided vehicle unit Al) to the on-board signaling system of the guided vehicle unit which is behind (hereafter guid¬ ed vehicle unit A2) the guided vehicle unit Al of information regarding a deceleration state. Preferentially, if the on-board signaling system of guided vehicle unit Al detects an activation of brakes of the guided vehicle unit Al or a reduction of its speed, information regarding said activation and/or speed reduction is automatically and immediately communicated to the on-board signaling system of guided vehicle unit A2. Preferentially, the on-board signaling system of guided vehicle unit Al is able to transmit said information in high priority and at a very high rate to ensure a quick reaction of guid¬ ed vehicle unit A2 ;
- a communication, during the whole coupling/uncoupling operations, preferentially a peri¬ odical communication, of the on-board signaling sys¬ tem of guided vehicle unit Al with the on-board sig- naling system of guided vehicle unit A2 of the posi¬ tion and speed of guided vehicle unit Al . Advanta¬ geously, the position and speed of guided vehicle unit Al allows the on-board signaling system of guided vehicle unit A2 to calculate a coupling and/or uncoupling deceleration curve for guided vehicle unit A2 in case of coupling/uncoupling of guided vehicle unit A2 to/from guided vehicle unit Al, said calculation being based on the assumption that guided vehicle unit Al does not brake during its displacement along the coupling/uncoupling track section. Preferentially, the position and speed of guided vehicle unit A2 is also used by the on-board signaling system of guided vehicle unit A2 for the calculation of said coupling and/or uncoupling deceleration curve for guided vehicle unit A2. In case of coupling, guided vehicle unit A2 has first a speed higher than guided vehicle unit Al and then smoothly decelerates according to the coupling deceleration curve in order to approach guided vehicle unit Al . In case of uncoupling, the on-board signal¬ ing system of the guided vehicle A2 is configured for decreasing the speed of guided vehicle A2 ac¬ cording to said uncoupling deceleration curve once the guided vehicles are uncoupled. Consequently, the present invention proposes in particular to control the relative position of the guided vehicle units Al and A2 by means of the on-board signaling system of guided vehicle unit A2 in function/according to a calculated coupling/uncoupling deceleration curve for the coupling as well as for the uncoupling. The on-board signaling system of guided vehicle unit A2 is in particular capable of controlling guided vehi- cle unit A2 according to the deceleration curve, i.e. so that the speed of guided vehicle unit A2 in function of the time has a same profile as the de¬ celeration curve. Preferentially, if the on-board signaling system of guided vehicle unit A2 detects a speed reduction of guided vehicle unit Al or a loss of the communication with the on-board signaling system of guided vehicle unit Al, then the on-board signaling system of guided vehicle unit A2 automati¬ cally triggers an emergency brake of guided vehicle unit A2 ;
controlling the relative position of the guided ve¬ hicle units Al and A2 by controlling, by means of the on-board signaling device of guided vehicle unit A2, the speed of guided vehicle unit A2 according to the coupling/uncoupling deceleration curve and automatically coupling/uncoupling the guided vehicles units Al and A2 by means of a coupling device, said coupling device being preferentially configured for mechanically coupling/uncoupling the guided vehicle units Al and A2 ;
Optionally, a measurement, during the cou¬ pling/uncoupling operations, of the distance sepa¬ rating the rear end of guided vehicle unit Al and the front end of the guided vehicle unit A2 by means of a proximity sensor of the on-board signaling sys¬ tem, said proximity sensor being preferentially in¬ stalled on guided vehicle unit A2 and cooperating with the on-board signaling system of said guided vehicle unit A2. Preferentially, the proximity sen¬ sor is configured for continuously measuring the distance separating guided vehicle unit A2 from guided vehicle unit Al during coupling/uncoupling operations and for communicating said measurement to the on-board signaling system of guided vehicle unit A2. During uncoupling, if said distance does not continuously decrease, then the on-board signaling system of guided vehicle unit A2 might be configured for triggering an emergency brake, or a continuous increase of the braking intensity until a decrease of the distance between the guided vehicle units de¬ tected. During coupling, said measurement of the distance might be used by the on-board signaling system of guided vehicle unit A2 for approaching guided vehicle unit Al according to the coupling de¬ celeration curve. The present invention also concerns an on-board signaling system configured for equipping a guided vehicle unit, the latter being configured for being coupled to or uncoupled from another guided vehicle unit of a multi-unit guided vehi¬ cle, the on-board signaling system comprising:
a) a connection to a database defining an itinerary for the guided vehicle unit and the multi-unit guided vehicle, or, more generally speaking, a connection to any source of information that may provide a movement authority for the guided vehicle units and track profile conditions for the calculation of speed and braking curves to pro¬ tect and control the guided vehicle unit movement and the multi-unit guided vehicle;
b) a controller configured for:
o controlling coupling/uncoupling conditions, wherein said conditions are preferentially a track profile condition and a speed limitation condition, and/or said first set of redundancy conditions, and/or said second set of redundancy conditions, and/or the free track distance ahead condition, as previ¬ ously disclosed, all of said above-mentioned condi¬ tions being preferentially checked;
o locating a coupling/uncoupling track section by determining if a track section belonging to the itinerary of the multi-unit guided vehicle fulfills the previously described criteria defined for ensuring the safety of the coupling/uncoupling operation; o controlling the guided vehicle unit during cou¬ pling/uncoupling operations as previously de¬ scribed, notably controlling the coupling device for coupling/uncoupling the guided vehicle unit with said another guided vehicle unit;
c) communication means for communicating with said another guided vehicle unit of the multi-unit guided vehicle and exchanging data/information with the latter in order to manage the coupling/uncoupling operations. Said communication means are in particular configured for automati¬ cally exchanging information with a protection trackside device equipping the coupling/uncoupling track section; d) optionally, a proximity sensor configured for being in¬ stalled on a front end of the guided vehicle unit and capable of measuring a distance separating the front end of the guided vehicle unit from the rear end of said an¬ other guided vehicle unit.
Further aspects of the present invention will be better understood through the following drawings, wherein like numerals are used for like and corresponding parts:
Figure 1 schematic representation of uncoupling operations of guided vehicle units according to the inven¬ tion. Figure 2 schematic representation of braking curves in a coupling/uncoupling track section for uncoupling operations .
The present invention concerns a multi-unit guided vehicle 1 composed of several guided vehicle units, and more precisely the coupling/uncoupling of guided vehicles units of said mul¬ ti-unit guided vehicle 1. Each multi-unit guided vehicle 1 according to the invention comprises at least one guided ve¬ hicle unit. The present invention refers thus to the coupling of a guided vehicle unit with a multi-unit guided vehicle, i.e. with a guided vehicle unit of said multi-unit guided ve¬ hicle, or the uncoupling of a guided vehicle unit from a guided vehicle unit of said multi-unit guided vehicle 1.
Figure 1 shows in particular a multi-unit guided vehicle 1 comprising 3 guided vehicle units indicated respectively by Al, A2, A3. A multi-unit guided vehicle according to the in- vention may comprise n guided vehicle units, successively called ΑΙ,.,.,Αη, wherein the guided vehicle unit Ai precedes the guided vehicle unit Ai+i compared to the direction of dis¬ placement of the multi-unit guided vehicle. In other words, the guided vehicle unit Ai is in front of the guided vehicle unit Ai+i compared to the direction of displacement of the multi-unit guided vehicle i.e. compared to the direction of displacement of the units of the multi-unit guided vehicle. In Figure 1, the guided vehicles units Al, A2, and A3 move from the "left" to the "right" according to the arrow D indi- eating the direction of displacement of said guided vehicle units Al, A2, A3. Figure 1 shows the positions of the guided vehicle units Al, A2, A3 at six different times in chronological order, respec¬ tively Tl, T2, T3, T4, T5, and T6, and has thus to be read from the top to the bottom. Figure 1 schematically describes the displacement of guided vehicle units Al, A2, A3 of a mul¬ ti-unit guided vehicle 1, e.g. a train, wherein guided vehi¬ cle unit Al moves from a first station SI to a fourth station S4 without stopping, guided vehicle unit A2 moves from the first station SI to a third station S3 without stopping and will stop in the third station S3 at time T6, and guided ve¬ hicle unit A3 moves from the first station SI to a second station S2 without stopping, but will stop at second station S2 at time T4. The events taking place at each time T1,...,T6 will be described now in more details.
At time Tl, the multi-unit guided vehicle 1 is stationary at the first station SI. For instance, boarding of passengers may take place, wherein passenger's seats are defined in function of their destination, i.e. passengers going to sec- ond station S2 are seated in guided vehicle unit A3, passen¬ gers going to third station S3 are seated in guided vehicle unit A2, and passengers going to the fourth station S4 are seated in guided vehicle unit Al . Preferentially, an intelli¬ gent ticketing system is used for determining passenger' s seat in the units of the multi-unit guided vehicle in func¬ tion of their destination station. At time Tl, the multi-unit guided vehicle 1 comprises thus three guided vehicle units, respectively Al, A2, and A3, wherein guided vehicle unit Al is in front of the multi-unit guided vehicle 1 and is coupled to guided vehicle unit A2, which is itself coupled to guided vehicle unit A3 representing the rear of the multi-unit guid¬ ed vehicle 1 compared to the direction of displacement indi¬ cated by the arrow D. According to the invention, coupling/uncoupling of two guided vehicle units takes place while said guided vehicle units are operated and moving on a track 2 according to a predefined itinerary. According to the present invention, each guided vehicle unit A1,...,A3 comprises an on-board signaling system and a rolling stock system. Preferentially, one and only one of the guided vehicle units composing a multi-unit guided ve¬ hicle takes the lead over the other guided vehicle units for controlling the multi-unit guided vehicle. For this purpose, the on-board signaling system of one of the guided vehicle units of the multi-unit guided vehicle is automatically granted a master function, while the other on-board signaling systems equipping the other guided vehicle units have a slave function. Preferentially, the on-board signaling system of the guided vehicle unit in front of the multi-unit guided ve¬ hicle takes said lead and is thus able to wholly control the multi-unit guided vehicle 1. After leaving the first station SI, at least one of guided vehicle units, more precisely at least one on-board signaling system equipping one of the guided vehicle units receives a command for coupling/uncoupling a guided vehicle unit to/from the multi-unit guided vehicle 1. According to figure 1, the on-board signaling system of the guided vehicle unit Al re¬ ceives a command for uncoupling the guided vehicle unit A3 from the multi-unit guided vehicle 1.
While the multi-unit guided vehicle is moving and thus during service operation of the guided vehicle units, the on-board signaling system of the guided vehicle unit Al is able to check coupling/uncoupling conditions in order to ensure that safety conditions are satisfied for uncoupling guided vehicle unit A3 from guided vehicle unit A2, and to locate a cou¬ pling/uncoupling track section 31 on the itinerary of the guided vehicle units A1,...,A3, wherein the coupling/uncoupling track section 31 is a track section fulfilling criteria defined for ensuring safe coupling/uncoupling operation. Preferentially, the coupling/uncoupling track section shall satisfy at least one of the following criteria, preferentially each of the criteria (a) , (b) , (e) , (c) , or each of the cri¬ teria (a) , (b) , (e) , (d) , or each of the criteria (a) - (e) , wherein said criteria are given by:
a) the so-called "non-braking" criterion;
b) it shall comprise at least one protection trackside de¬ vice ;
c) it is a covered area (e.g. a tunnel);
d) it is restricted area, and/or an area protected by a
ceiling;
e) it fulfils predefined track and topology conditions like gradient, curves, existence of points, maximum speed profile, etc. that are designed to allow a safe cou¬ pling/uncoupling operation. Said predefined track and topology conditions are for example:
Gradient: the gradient of the coupling/uncoupling track section 31 is flat as far as possible;
Curves: the coupling/uncoupling track section 31 does not comprise a curve needing a guided vehicle brak¬ ing;
Points: the coupling/uncoupling track section 31 is free of points, or comprises at least a limited number of points, e.g. less than two points, said points being in particular locked throughout the coupling/uncoupling operation;
Maximum speed profile: the maximum speed profile defined for the coupling/uncoupling track section 31 is , ,
1 b
defined by the lowest speed restriction throughout the coupling/uncoupling track section 31;
Length of the coupling/uncoupling track section: the on-board signaling system is configured for checking that the guided vehicle has enough free track sections ahead so that each guided vehicle involved in the cou¬ pling/uncoupling operation can get coupled/uncoupled and for instance, in the case of uncoupling operation, gain enough separation to ensure normal safe operation once they are out of the uncoupling track section.
Preferentially, the on-board equipment of each guided vehicle unit is automatically informed by the on-board signaling sys¬ tem about the coupling/uncoupling operation so that they drive the guided vehicle unit according to predefined driving conditions, e.g. not driving close to the maximum speed au¬ thorized on said coupling/uncoupling track section in order to avoid the necessity of braking. A coupling/uncoupling track section according to the invention is preferentially equipped by at least one protection trackside device that may comprise a camera system, and/or a rail continuity checking device, and/or a net of sensors for protecting the cou¬ pling/uncoupling track section, and/or a mechanism to ensure that no obstacle is or comes on the track. Preferentially, the protection trackside device is able to communicate with the on-board signaling system of each guided vehicle unit ap¬ proaching the coupling/uncoupling track section 31.
If the on-board signaling system is able to find/locate a coupling/uncoupling track section and if the latter fulfills the coupling/uncoupling conditions, then the coupling/uncoupling of the guided vehicle units is automatically performed when the guided vehicle units enter said cou- pling/uncoupling track section, otherwise the guided vehicle units continue moving according to said itinerary and direc¬ tion of displacement until another coupling/uncoupling track section is located or a station wherein at least one of the guided vehicle units of the multi-unit guided vehicle has to stop is reached.
At time Tl, the on-board signaling system of guided vehicle unit Al is for example able to locate the coupling/uncoupling track section 31 and to determine if the latter satisfies the coupling/uncoupling conditions. At time T2, all guided vehicle units of the multi-unit guided vehicle are located within the coupling/uncoupling track section 31 and the on-board signaling system of guided vehicle unit Al is in particular capable of controlling the automatic uncoupling of guided ve¬ hicle unit A3 from guided vehicle unit A2. The invention pro¬ poses in particular to carry out mechanical cou¬ pling/uncoupling operations free of any intervention of an operator, i.e. the mechanical operation is carried out auto¬ matically upon a command of the on-board signaling system.
Preferentially, simultaneously to the uncoupling, the on¬ board signaling system of the uncoupled guided vehicle unit, i.e. guided vehicle unit A3 for instance, takes the lead of the guided vehicle unit it equips and controls the latter.
The same applies if a multi-unit guided vehicle is separated in two multi-unit guided vehicles: simultaneously to the un¬ coupling, an on-board signaling system of one of the guided vehicle units of the uncoupled multi-unit guided vehicles takes the lead and controls the uncoupled multi-unit guided vehicle. The on-board signaling system which controls the guided vehicle units from which a guided vehicle unit has been uncoupled is in particular configured for continuously controlling each guided vehicle unit coupled to the guided vehicle unit it equips.
At time T3, the guided vehicle unit A3 is uncoupled from guided vehicle unit A2 and moves independently from the guid¬ ed vehicle units Al and A2 composing the multi-unit guided vehicle 1. At this time T3, the guided vehicle unit A3 is for example controlled by its on-board signaling system, while the guided vehicles units Al and A2 are controlled preferen- tially by the on-board signaling system of guided vehicle unit Al .
At time T4, the guided vehicle unit A3 reaches its destina¬ tion station, i.e. the second station S2, while the multi- unit guided vehicle composed now of guided vehicle unit Al and guided vehicle unit A2 is located in a cou¬ pling/uncoupling track section 32 located between the second station S2 and the third station S3. As previously described at time T2, automatic uncoupling of the guided vehicle units A2 and Al takes place mutatis mutandis at time T4.
At time T5, guided vehicle unit A2 and guided vehicle unit Al are moving independently since their uncoupling, guided vehi¬ cle unit Al having passed the third station S3 without stop- ping.
At time T6, the guided vehicle unit A2 stops at the third station S3, while guided vehicle unit Al continues moving in direction of its destination station, namely the fourth sta- tion S4.
Figure 2 shows in more details the coupling/uncoupling sec¬ tion 31 and the uncoupling operations taking place between the time T2 and a time T2', wherein T2 < T2' < T3. During the whole uncoupling operations, the on-board signaling system of each uncoupled guided vehicle unit, e.g. the guided vehicle unit A3 according to the preferred embodiment of Fig. 2, is configured for calculating an uncoupling deceleration (or braking) curve 41 in function of the speed of guided vehicle unit to which it was previously coupled, i.e. in function of guided vehicle unit A2 according to Figure 2, and based on the assumption that the guided vehicle unit to which it was previously coupled does not brake. Figure 2 also shows the uncoupling braking/deceleration curve 42 for the guided vehicle units Al and A2 composing the multi-unit guided vehicle 1. Dotted rectangles represent the position of the guided ve¬ hicles units A3, A2 and Al in case of emergency braking at time T2' .
To summarize, the present invention proposes a method and system for automatically coupling/uncoupling a guided vehicle unit to/from one or several other guided vehicle units com- posing a multi-unit guided vehicle, wherein the guided vehi¬ cle units is configured for coupling/uncoupling in motion during service operation, for example leaving behind at least one guided vehicle unit that has been uncoupled and that is configured for serving a station at which the multi-unit guided vehicle does not stop.
The present invention has in particular the following main advantage compared to prior art techniques: it allows reduc¬ ing the travelling time between a first station SI and a third station S3. Indeed a guided vehicle unit Al coupled to a guided vehicle unit A2, wherein guided vehicle unit Al is in front of guided vehicle unit A2 compared to a direction of displacement of the multi-unit guided vehicle 1, runs faster from the first station SI to the third station S3 since the guided vehicle units Al and A2 might be uncoupled during move, i.e. without stopping the guided vehicle unit Al, while serving nevertheless a second station S2 by means of the guided vehicle unit A2, the latter stopping at said second station S2 between first station SI and third station S3 while guided vehicle unit Al may keep moving until reaching the third station S3.

Claims

Method for coupling/uncoupling a guided vehicle unit A2 to/from a guided vehicle unit Al while said guided vehi¬ cle units Al and A2 are operating and moving on a track (2) according to a predefined itinerary, the guided ve¬ hicle unit Al being located ahead the guided vehicle unit A2, the method comprising:
- a reception by at least one of the guided vehicle units of a command for coupling/uncoupling the guided vehicles units Al and A2 ;
- checking coupling/uncoupling conditions;
- locating a coupling/uncoupling track section (31, 32) on the itinerary of the guided vehicle units Al and A2, wherein the coupling/uncoupling track section (31, 32) is a track section fulfilling criteria defined for ensuring safe coupling/uncoupling operation;
- if a coupling/uncoupling track section has been located and the coupling/uncoupling conditions are fulfilled, then automatically performing the cou¬ pling/uncoupling of the guided vehicle units Al and A2 when the guided vehicle units Al and A2 enter said coupling/uncoupling track section (31, 32), otherwise moving the coupled/uncoupled guided vehi¬ cles units Al and A2 according to said itinerary until a coupling/uncoupling track section (31, 32) is located or a station (SI, S2, S3) reached.
Method according to claim 1, wherein the coupling/uncoupling conditions are at least one of the fol¬ lowing :
- a track profile condition and a speed limitation condition; - a first set of redundancy conditions, wherein said first set of redundancy conditions depends on an on-board signaling system;
- a second set of redundancy conditions, wherein said second set of redundancy conditions depends on a rolling stock system.
Method according to claim 1 or 2, wherein the coupling/uncoupling conditions are all of the following conditions :
- a track profile condition and a speed limitation condition;
- a first set of redundancy conditions, wherein said first set of redundancy conditions depends on an on-board signaling system;
- a second set of redundancy conditions, wherein said second set of redundancy conditions depends on a rolling stock system.
Method according to one of the claims 1 to 3, wherein said criteria are at least one of the following:
- non-braking criterion defined for the whole length of the coupling/uncoupling track section for the guided vehicle units;
- protection trackside device equipping the cou¬ pling/uncoupling track section;
- a determination that the coupling/uncoupling track section is free of any obstacle;
- a determination that each rail of the cou¬ pling/uncoupling track section is continuous;
- physical criteria and availability criteria. Method according to one of the claims 1 to 4, wherein said criteria are all of the following criteria:
- non-braking criterion defined for the whole length of the coupling/uncoupling track section for the guided vehicle units;
- protection trackside device equipping the cou¬ pling/uncoupling track section;
- a determination that the coupling/uncoupling track section is free of any obstacle;
- a determination that each rail of the cou¬ pling/uncoupling track section is continuous;
- physical criteria and availability criteria.
Method according to one of the claims 1-5, wherein per¬ forming the coupling/uncoupling comprises the following steps :
- a communication, during the whole coupling/uncoupling operation, from an on-board signaling system of the guided vehicle unit Al to an on-board signaling system of the guided vehicle unit A2 of information regarding a deceleration state of guided vehicle unit Al ;
- a communication, during the whole coupling/uncoupling operations, of the on-board sig¬ naling system of guided vehicle unit Al with the on-board signaling system of guided vehicle unit A2 of the position and speed of guided vehicle unit Al;
- automatically coupling/uncoupling the guided vehicles units Al and A2 by means of a coupling device, wherein the relative position of the guided vehicle units is controlled by the on-board signaling sys¬ tem of guided vehicle unit A2 according to a calcu- lated coupling/uncoupling deceleration curve and a control of the speed of guided vehicle unit A2.
Method according to one of the claims 1-6, wherein per¬ forming the coupling/uncoupling comprises measuring, during the coupling/uncoupling operations, a separation distance separating the rear end of guided vehicle unit Al from the front end of the guided vehicle unit A2 by means of a proximity sensor.
On-board signaling system configured for equipping a guided vehicle unit A2 designed for being cou¬ pled/uncoupled to/from a guided vehicle unit Al, the on board signaling system comprising:
- a connection to a source of information enabling the definition of an itinerary for the guided vehi cle unit A2 and said another guided vehicle unit Al;
- a controller configured for controlling coupling/uncoupling conditions, capable of locating a coupling/uncoupling track section (31, 32), and ca pable of controlling the guided vehicle unit A2 during coupling/uncoupling operations;
- communication means for communicating with said guided vehicle unit Al .
On-board signaling system according to claim 8, wherein coupling/uncoupling conditions are at least one of the following: a track profile condition and a speed limita tion condition; a first set of redundancy conditions; a second set of redundancy conditions. On-board signaling system according to claim 8 or 9, wherein coupling/uncoupling conditions are all the following conditions: a track profile condition and a speed limitation condition; a first set of redundancy condi¬ tions; a second set of redundancy conditions.
On-board signaling system according to one of the claims 8 to 10, wherein the controller is capable of calculat¬ ing a coupling/uncoupling deceleration curve for the guided vehicle unit A2 and of controlling the relative position of said guided vehicle unit A2 compared to said another guided vehicle unit Al, by controlling the speed of guided vehicle unit A2 according to the deceleration curve .
On-board signaling system according to one of the claims 8 to 11, wherein the communication means are configured for automatically exchanging information with a protection trackside device equipping the coupling/uncoupling track section (31, 32).
On-board signaling system according to one of the claims 8 to 12 comprising a proximity sensor.
A guided vehicle unit A2 comprising the on-board signal¬ ing system according to one of the claims 8-13.
EP15725256.0A 2015-01-30 2015-05-12 System and method for coupling/uncoupling moving guided vehicles during operation Active EP3250437B1 (en)

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PCT/EP2015/060501 WO2016119912A1 (en) 2015-01-30 2015-05-12 System and method for coupling/uncoupling moving guided vehicles during operation

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US4015804A (en) * 1974-05-15 1977-04-05 International Standard Electric Corporation System for the demand-dependent control of guided vehicles
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US7206676B2 (en) * 2002-06-04 2007-04-17 Bombardier Transportation (Technology) Germany Gmbh Automated manipulation system and method in a transit system
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