Advantech, in partnership with railway operators and integrators worldwide, has dedicated resources to design and develop new products for reliable and cost-effective railway systems. These products support rolling stock, automatic train supervision, signalling, backbone networks and more. The company’s mission is to enable intelligent railway systems, a goal which simultaneously helps fulfil the Advantech vision of creating and delivering smart technologies.

Rolling stock, for example, is a major area of application when it comes to railway intelligence, embracing smart systems for passenger information, passenger infotainment, in-train surveillance and vehicle monitoring.

Passenger information systems (PIS) make use of different panel types and must function clearly in various lighting environments. Effective redundancy is also necessary to ensure reliable and uninterrupted operation. Advantech is a popular choice in these applications thanks to solutions like its ITA-5831 on-board modular PIDS controller and ARS-P2800 28” fan-less display panel PC.

Among recent takers is Australia's New South Wales Railway (NSW TrainLink), where two ITA-5831s now support the PIS in each train. The system connects to the strip displays and adopts a dual-host automatic back-up mechanism. When one host fails, the system automatically enables the back-up host, thereby ensuring continuous information display.

Passenger infotainment systems also take advantage of this technology. Here, Advantech collaborates with proven partners, delivering rugged-design Wi-Fi connectivity and interactive multimedia solution-ready packages. Advantech’s enterprise-wide strategy of co-creation provides both a platform and an ecosystem that facilitates the convergence of the expertise and technologies needed to enable fully functioning, end-to-end rail sector solutions.

Advantech's fan-less system and managed Ethernet switches are capable of processing large amounts of data for on-board infotainment and providing high-speed wireless network services. This high-performance solution ensures the smooth transmission of images, sound, data and control commands, as the Polish intercity railway can testify.

Advantech provided the Polish intercity railway with two products to meet the multimedia services needs of the project: a fan-less ITA-5831 and an EKI-9516 managed Ethernet switch. The ITA-5831 – an on-board infotainment system and wireless network module embedded in each carriage – delivers multimedia content and offers a Wi-Fi app for internet access through a connected EKI-9516. When the train returns to the depot, it is possible to download all data to the control centre for statistical analysis, enabling the operator to discover new services or marketing solutions suitable for passengers.

Another key rolling stock application is in-train surveillance, which entails the use of systems that record both driver and passenger areas at the same time in high resolution. Advantech’s ITA-5231S on-board storage controller is for CCTV applications that need to meet high-capacity storage requirements, facilitating 24-hour full-HD camera video recording.

Vehicle monitoring systems (VMS) can also benefit from Advantech technology in their mission to collect status and failure data from vehicle sub-systems and components, and display information. Advantech provides the ITA-8100 driver-machine interface and ITA-5512 compact controller to create a reliable VMS, facilitating the transmission of control commands to optimise driver performance.

Beyond rolling stock, automatic supervision is another segment of the rail sector that can gain hugely from greater intelligence, particularly regarding solutions for automated fare collection, in-station incident detection and centralised traffic control.

The requirements of automated fare collection (AFC) systems include a rugged and reliable computer platform for accurately processing ticketing information and transmitting the data to clearing systems and back-end servers. Such a solution also needs multiple I/O interfaces to meet the diverse demands of different rail transport systems.

Advantech has developed a dedicated controller for AFC solutions, ITA-1711. Designed for gate applications, all ports are all on the same side and in a separate area, while the areas for USB or COM ports make installation and maintenance convenient for technicians.

In addition to hardware, Advantech can offer WISE-DeviceOn to enable remote monitoring and equipment management. For example, there are more than 100 AFC machines in stations of the Shanghai Metro in China. During peak hours, all ticket-vending machines activate quickly to handle a large number of passengers, while during off-peak hours, managers can switch some machines to energy-saving mode. Furthermore, if equipment fails, managers can remotely see which parts are faulty, and determine whether to despatch a maintenance technician. WISE-DeviceON therefore not only saves system development time but also helps to upgrade management processes and reduce operating costs.

“Rolling stock, is a major area of application when it comes to railway intelligence, embracing smart systems for passenger information, passenger infotainment, in-train surveillance and vehicle monitoring.”

Backbone network systems

To meet the demands of the backbone network system, Advantech's total network solution for the rail market is composed of both wired and wireless connectivity. The system is specifically for various rail applications, such as rolling stock, trackside, station, transportation hub and control centres, providing a reliable network service through its rugged, high ECM duration hardware, not forgetting its software management and redundancy functionality for high communication quality.

Product solutions include managed Ethernet switches, trackside management switches, industrial 10G Ethernet switches for high traffic data exchange and two-wire long-reach Ethernet extenders. Moreover, on-board communications benefit from Advantech’s industrial serial device servers, while for Wi-Fi and cellular interconnectivity roaming, the company can provide a range of proven routers, access points, bridges and gateways.

As a professional salesperson, Alicja Strzemieczna is focusing on the infrastructure sector leading European key account Sector development for Advantech. Within the company, the Infrastructure sector contains four main streams: transportation with rail, roads and ITS, Energy and environment, Connectivity and Smart City applications.

Alicja joined Advantech in 2009 and has contributed to the CEE region growth and its development as one of the biggest region in Advantech Europe. Making the Advantech brand more recognizable and reliable as an industrial partner is something she has prioritised in her 12-year career with the company.