Radio train control system and radio train control method

Patent metadata

Field	Value
Publication number	US-11117601-B2
Application number	US-201616318438-A
Country	US
Kind code	B2
Filing date	Aug 4, 2016
Priority date	Aug 4, 2016
Publication date	Sep 14, 2021
Grant date	Sep 14, 2021

Abstract

A radio train control system controls the trains on tracks on which track circuits are built, and includes: ground radio devices performing radio communication with the trains and acquiring position information of the trains; field devices acquiring track circuit state information indicating whether the track circuit is ON or OFF; ground base devices receiving the position information and the track circuit state information and transmitting control information to the trains; and an on-track vehicle control device receiving the position information and the track circuit state information and managing on-track information. The ground radio devices and the field devices have transmission paths connected with the on-track vehicle control device without the ground base devices, and the on-track vehicle control device can transmit the control information to the trains through the transmission paths when the ground base device is out of order.

First claim

The invention claimed is:

1. A radio train control system that controls a train on a track on which a track circuit is built, the radio train control system comprising:
a ground radio device to perform radio communication with the train and acquire position information of the train;
a field device to acquire track circuit state information indicating whether the track circuit is ON or OFF;
a ground base device to receive the position information and the track circuit state information and transmit control information to the train; and
an on-track vehicle control device to manage on-track information including either of the position information or the track circuit state information,
wherein the ground radio device and the field device have a transmission path connected with the on-track vehicle control device without using the ground base device, and the on-track vehicle control device is capable of transmitting the control information to the train through the transmission path when the ground base device is out of order.

2. The radio train control system according to claim 1 , further wherein the on-track vehicle control device receives the track circuit state information through the transmission path when the ground radio device is out of order.

3. The radio train control system according to claim 1 , further wherein when the ground base device is out of order, the on-track vehicle control device refers to the on-track information and evacuates the train to a control area of another ground base device that is operating normally.

4. The radio train control system according to claim 1 , further comprising an interlocking device that is provided between the on-track vehicle control device and the ground radio device, and is capable of controlling a point machine on the track.

5. A radio train control method for an on-track vehicle control device to perform evacuation operation of evacuating a train from a control area controlled by a ground base device when the ground base device is out of order, the radio train control method comprising:
selecting, by the on-track vehicle control device, an on-track block in which a front position of the train is present;
acquiring, by the on-track vehicle control device, a connected block connected with the on-track block, the connected block being present in a traveling direction of the train;
determining, by the on-track vehicle control device, that evacuation operation of the train cannot be performed when no connected block connected with the on-track block is present and no connected block is acquired;
determining, by the on-track vehicle control device, whether or not another train is present in the control area of the ground base device;
determining, by the on-track vehicle control device, that evacuation operation of the train cannot be performed when another train is present in the control area;
determining, by the on-track vehicle control device, that evacuation can be performed when the train is present in a control area of a ground base device that is operating normally; and
advancing selection, by the on-track vehicle control device, of an on-track block by one block in the traveling direction of the train when the train is not present in a control area of a ground base device that is operating normally.

Assignees

• Mitsubishi Electric Corp

Inventors

• Tsuchida Katsunori
• Takami Atsushi
• Onishi Tomohiro

Classifications

• B61L27/33

  Backup systems, e.g. switching when failures occur · CPC title

• B61L27/20 Primary

  Trackside control of safe travel of vehicle or train, e.g. braking curve calculation · CPC title

• B61L27/16

  Trackside optimisation of vehicle or train operation · CPC title

• B61L27/70

  Details of trackside communication · CPC title

• B61L27/40

  Handling position reports or trackside vehicle data · CPC title