Telematics: Vision system for locomotives

The main articles are:

• Unmanned trains
• Video analytics (terms, applications, technologies)
• Computer vision (machine vision)

2022: Vision System Presentation for Locomotives

Unmanned shunting locomotives equipped with vision systems may appear at Russian railway marshalling yards in the next few years. The corresponding technology has already been tested and is ready for production, the press service of the Telematics concern (formerly National Telematics Systems) reported on July 1, 2022.

In 2022, together with the parent industry Research Institute for Informatization, Automation and Communications in Railway Transport (NIIAS, part of Russian Railways), tests of the vision system were carried out, and we are at the stage of obtaining an opinion for the possibility of implementation. Technology integrated into shunting locomotive systems analyzes the processes along the road and issues appropriate warnings. Domestic technologies for unmanned locomotive control in Russia are and are successfully developing, - said Alexander Ovlashenko, General Director of Trans-Telematics (part of the Telematics concern).

The vision system that assists the driver is the first step for an unmanned locomotive. The development, in addition to issuing warnings to the driver, can independently stop the locomotive in the presence of obstacles to the path and not only.

In the future, with the development of the interaction of technical vision with control systems, it will be possible to lay a certain work schedule for the locomotive, and without the participation of a person, it will be able to work independently within the station. The emergence of automated shunting locomotives operating at stations is a prospect for the coming years.