Prediction of the BER on the GSM-R communications provided by the EM transient disturbances in the railway environment

The interoperability of the train in Europe will be strived in notably harmonizing the communication systems between the trains and the control centers. The GSM-R will then become the communication system for data and voice transmission throughout the European Rail Network. However, the GSM-R communications can be significantly disturbed by the electromagnetic (EM) interferences produced by the railway vehicles and installations. Preliminary measurements highlighted that the EM disturbances produced when sparks occur due to the poor contact between the catenary and the pantograph radiate considerable energy in GSM-R band. This paper will then present the main characteristics of these transient disturbances and analyze the relevance of different characterization methods in order to establish their impact on the BER of the GSM-R communications.