LonWorks Transportation Automation Standards Update
RAIL
AMERICAN ASSOCIATION OF RAILROADS (AAR)
One reason why trains take so long to slow or stop is that their braking
systems use pneumatics (air) as both the control signaling and braking
system. Consider a mile-long freight train: How long does a wave of
pressurized air take to get from the first car to the last? In fact, for
longer trains, the rear cars' braking systems may not even engage by the
time the train reaches a stop. Instead, the rear cars' momentum continues
forward while the leading cars, from the engine car backward, sequentially
apply the brakes. Separating the signal to stop from the pneumatics can
allow braking commands to reach each car's braking system almost simultaneously,
resulting in faster, safer, and more controlled stops over shorter distances.
From a business perspective, rail companies would be able to run more
trains closer together, thus increasing the throughput capabilities
of the rail system and helping to optimize production.
In response to this and other factors, the AAR
has chosen the LonWorks system as the preferred solution for converting
over 1 million rail cars to electronically controlled pneumatic (ECP)
braking systems by adopting ANSI/EIA 709.1 (based on Echelon's LonTalk®
communication protocol). In 2001, the AAR updated its ECP
standard to include ANSI/EIA 709.3 (based on Echelon's power line signaling
technology), thereby encompassing the LonTalk protocol and PLT-22 power
line technology into the ECP standard.
LOCAL AUTHORITIES
New York Cty Transit specified a LonMark
compatible train for all its new trains. The goal was to provide a common
reference for subsystem suppliers to help ensure interoperability between
cars and components.
IEEE
The Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers (IEEE) adopted IEEE-1473-L
in 1999, achieving the organization's goal of allowing intracar
and intercar communications between products from different manufacturers.
IEEE-1473-L is widely mandated and deployed in rail vehicles throughout
the United States, including trains and subsystems for public transit,
commuter rail, railroads, and passenger rail applications.
IEEE-1473-L in Use Today
U.S. Public Transit Systems
| Light
Rail Systems |
Heavy
Rail Systems |
Automated
People Movers |
Bus/Truck |
| Los
Angeles County MTA: Door and diagnostic systems |
MTA New York City
Transit (NYCT): Propulsion control and diagnostic systems |
SFO
(San Francisco): Train control subsystem |
King County: Seattle
Metro |
| San
Francisco Municipal Railway: Passenger signs |
San Francisco Bay
Area Rapid Transit (BART): Train and brake control subsystem |
SEATAC
(Seattle-Tacoma): Train control subsystem |
|
| Hiawatha
Transit Minneapolis |
Paris Metro: Meteor
line
platform doors |
SkyTrain
(Vancouver, B.C.): Diagnostic and monitoring systems |
|
| Southeastern
Pennsylvania Transit Authority: CBTC antenna control |
WMATA: Diagnostic
systems |
AirTrain
(NY): Diagnostic and monitoring systems |
|
| Santa
Clara Valley Transit Authority: Diagnostic systems |
|
|
|
Commuter Rail Systems
- New Jersey Transit - Comet Cars
- Chicago Transit Authority (CTA) - Metro
Railroads
- AAR - Electronically controlled pneumatic
brakes
- German Federal Railroads
- Swiss National Railroads
Passenger Railroads
- Amtrak - NorthEast Corridor Acela High-Speed Train
Additional IEEE-1473-L Resources
Aircraft
The AGATE Industry Consortium,
managed by NASA, has selected the LonWorks protocol as part of one of
its standards for next-generation civilian aircraft.
