Innovative obstacle detection technology can help make complex light rail networks safer and more efficient. Bombardier Transportation says its Obstacle Detection Assistance System presents significant opportunities for such improvements in cities like Melbourne.
Bombardier will feature at the ARA’s Light Rail Conference in Melbourne in March 2019, with an update on the work being done at its Vienna Centre of Excellence for light rail. The company’s Obstacle Detection Assistance System (ODAS) is one example of the kind of technology being developed at the Vienna Centre.
A joint development with the Austrian Institute of Technology, Bombardier’s ODAS uses an array of stereovision cameras focused on the area on in front of the light rail vehicle, and highly advanced software algorithms which evaluate the vehicle envelope in real time along the track.
As soon as the system detects a considerable risk in front of the vehicle, it can alert the driver using visual and
aural alerts.
Globally, collisions with third parties are the most common accident scenarios for light rail vehicles. This, along with the more stringent requirements often applied to rail operators, and the availability of safety systems technologies developed in other industries, led Bombardier to develop ODAS, with work beginning in 2013.
The system was tested and eventually implemented by the Frankfurt Transport Company on its 74 bi-directional FLEXITY
trams, but Bombardier has designed the system to be implementable on any tram fleet.
“Bombardier is ready, willing and able to bring this tram technology to cities like Melbourne and other tram networks across Australia,” a spokesperson told Rail Express.
“Light rail networks like the one in Melbourne, where there is significant road/rail share, are ideal places to adopt the system, which can significantly increase the active safety of a complete fleet of vehicles.”
ODAS is designed to be easy to upgrade, and switch in and out, thanks to its decentralised design featuring three separate components.
The first component is the camera unit. Three identical stereo cameras are housed within the unit, which is mounted onto the inside of the windscreen. The cameras provide the high-resolution imagery and depth perception needed to provide accurate visual data for analysis.
That analysis is carried out in the second component of ODAS, the control unit. The unit is responsible for picture processing and interpretation, as well as additional routines which can provide further functionality.
The third component of the system is called the sync box, and is responsible for energy supply to the cameras, managing inputs and outputs, and providing a watchdog function to the controller. The sync box also acts as the liaison between the system and the tram, taking in vehicle information and delivering hazard warnings when needed.
The high quality of visual and depth data, coupled with the advanced algorithms developed by Bombardier and the Austrian Institute of Technology, allow the system to establish whether any pedestrians or other obstacles are in front of the vehicle. It can then assess the nature of those obstacles – whether they are close enough to be within the structure envelope, whether the driver is already slowing down enough to respond to them, and therefore whether an alert needs to be issued.
Bombardier says the system can benefit operators threefold: through safety improvements, cost reductions, and advanced functionality.
ODAS improves safety by supporting the driver through critical situations, improving the active safety of the driver, passengers and other road users.
Cost reductions come through avoided accidents, and the subsequent increases in operational availability of vehicles in the fleet. The system is also designed to be simple and quick to retrofit, and to be selfcalibrating, further reducing cost.
Functionality benefits include the existing functionality of the unit – which was first homologated for passenger service in Germany in 2015 – along with the potential developments mapped out by Bombardier, including potentially allowing the system to apply moderate braking in certain scenarios, and eventually developing further sensor capabilities for longer distances, higher speed, and live inspection of infrastructure like the track or catenary.
As Bombardier continues to innovate and improve the performance and functionalities of its vehicles for operators, drivers and passengers, it says ODAS is the ideal next step to enhance existing and new light rail fleets across Australia.