Smart Railway Solutions for energy-efficient infrastructure
THE requirements on components for railway infrastructure are stringent. They are used in safety-relevant applications and safeguard the availability of railway operations.
At the same time, railway infrastructure is increasingly digital. Intelligent solutions are needed that enable remote monitoring and diagnostics, as well as cloud services. Products and solutions from Phoenix Contact satisfy the stringent requirements and, at the same time, provide digital interfaces in order to realise smart infrastructure for railways.
In today’s world, energy shortage is one of the major concerns. As a consumer of electrical energy, the electric railway system, due to trains, stations, and commercial users, consumes an enormous amount of electricity. Increasing greenhouse gases and CO2 emissions, in addition, have drawn the attention of world leaders as one of the biggest threats at present; based on research in this field, the transportation sector contributes significantly to this pollution.
Carl Kleynhans, General Manager of Phoenix Contact in South Africa, says, “Keeping in line with our vision of Empowering the All Electric Society, the primary energy requirement must be reduced through efficiency measures, and intelligent and networked systems.”
Phoenix Contact provides the ideal portfolio for the digitalisation of railway technologies: reliable installation, secure signal transmission, and real-time data communication, as well as cloud services, make it possible to digitalise railway infrastructure.
Researchers have been trying to reduce the daily operational costs of smart railway stations, mitigating power quality issues, considering the traction uncertainties and stochastic behaviour of Renewable Energy Resources and Energy Storage Systems, which have a significant impact on total operational cost.
Railway Energy Management Systems (REMS) are a modern green solution that not only tackle these problems but also enable electricity to be sold to the grid market.
Improving railway transportation energy efficiency requires that efficiency be measured first. This task is quite straightforward for diesel-fuelled vehicles, but electric vehicles draw power from the catenary and unless measuring devices are mounted onboard, the only information available is via substation measurement.
Measuring or calculating energy consumption in itself does not save energy. However, a better knowledge of energy consumption will provide valuable data to identify potential for optimisation as far as regenerative braking, energy-efficient driving or stopping patterns are concerned.
Energy meters in railway transportation are crucial for monitoring and managing energy consumption. These devices help railway operators track the energy usage of trains, which is essential for optimising efficiency and reducing costs.
In order to continue operating an entire railway and signal technology system, it is often necessary to replace individual components. With components available in series that can be seamlessly integrated into existing systems, Phoenix Contact allows you to modernise your railway infrastructure safely and cost-effectively.
