Seamless connectivity for urban infrastructure

In today's transit sector, including railway companies, urban transit systems, and emergency services, reliable, modern, and efficient IoT solutions are essential. Today's blog post discusses innovative connectivity solutions to meet the demands in this sector.

Residents of metropolitan areas demand a punctual and reliable public transportation system. To ensure this, transportation officials need to be able to adjust capacities flexibly on-site and quickly redirect them as needed. Additionally, they must be able to respond quickly to unforeseen incidents and failures.

However, existing networks do not provide adequate security or coverage to ensure smooth communication with passengers. This is where IoT solutions come into play. They have been designed to meet the specific requirements of the transit sector. IoT solutions enable reliable and secure real-time communication. They ensure seamless adaptability to constantly changing conditions and help make operations more efficient and effective.

Avoiding collisions, derailments, or switching errors

Compliance with Positive Train Control (PTC) regulations presents a challenge for some railways, particularly due to system complexity, capital investments, and frequency allocation. The communication network contributes to the complexity as it requires integration of fiber backbone, mobile, and 220 MHz, and resolving interoperability issues in the 220 MHz band. The communication network is considered a safety-critical component of the PTC system. In the event of a failure, the train can only operate at reduced speed if other signaling systems are operational.

To expedite PTC compliance, comprehensive communication connection solutions specifically designed for the railway industry are being deployed. Transport Cellular Routers (such as Digi TX54) can be mounted onboard locomotives and rail vehicles. They must meet all railway certification requirements. For PTC message routing and wireless communication, a Mobile Communications Package (MCP) is used. The cellular router serves as a central communication node in locomotives and rail vehicles, enabling the forwarding of data messages over the 220 MHz radio to and from waysides. Additionally, it facilitates system maintenance, configuration, and network management via a cellular connection.

Today, transportation companies can leverage existing LTE, LTE-Advanced, and emerging international 5G standards to deliver mission-critical applications and services over commercial cellular networks. These services can build on protocols and mechanisms that prioritize and allocate resources for voice, video, and data to meet the requirements of the First Responder Network Authority (FirstNet).

Maximum passenger safety

In emergencies and in providing public transportation and transit systems, mobile access routers play a crucial role as secure network gateways. These devices must ensure reliability, robustness, and security and ensure they can also meet future public safety requirements.

Mission-critical services are being phased in and already leverage existing network technologies that enable prioritized transmission of voice, video, and data. By allocating bandwidth in shared or dedicated spectrum, transit agencies can utilize available services and efficiently integrate future features such as group video calls with simple firmware upgrades.

Most buses already have integrated mobile routers that serve as communication gateways, enabling communication between various systems. This requires a fail-safe communication network as central dispatchers need to coordinate the bus fleet through location and voice communication. Implementing IP technologies like Voice over IP (VoIP) or Voice over LTE (VoLTE) ensures mission-critical voice communication.

Passenger safety is a top priority for transit agencies. In this area, few onboard systems are more important than the Mobile Access Router - the communication method that connects the entire command chain. Recent standard developments are just enabling the deployment of mobile access routers that offer forward compatibility with the many new services intended for mission-critical applications. Reliable communication for all onboard systems ensures a secure environment and immediate notification of authorities about incidents.

The new standard for dual redundant communication

Passengers today demand a seamless internet experience onboard. And with so many transportation options available, transit organizations must provide seamless Wi-Fi to maintain and expand their ridership. Meanwhile, agencies must also be able to integrate vehicle data from engines, logistics programs, fare collection, security cameras, and even digital signage - all while ensuring the highest level of security and reliability with a range of cybersecurity features: Digi TrustFence®, Data Privacy, and Device Security Framework, IPSec VPNs, and two simultaneous cellular connections.

Digi's Cellular Router for transportation meets these simultaneous complex requirements with cellular modules and high-speed Wi-Fi radios, allowing transit agencies to securely segregate private data from public data and provide an internet experience that keeps riders coming back. Driver internet access is managed separately without impacting onboard communication systems.

The future of transit belongs to agencies, operators, and authorities that can harness intelligent, secure, and cost-effective connectivity to enhance the rider’s experience, reduce costs, and improve safety and performance. With cellular routers, companies can consolidate remote connectivity and simplify their infrastructures.