Parallel Monitoring for the Next Generation of Train Control Systems

Railway accidents, such as collisions, conflicts, and derailments, are still happening, despite the implementation of advanced railway control systems. One of the reasons for this is the architecture employed in current systems and existing operating processes, which allow human errors to occur. This paper processes a design concept and architecture for the next generation of train control systems (NGTCS). Some key technologies, such as parallel monitoring, system-level “fail-safe”, data sharing and fusion, common-mode cause error avoidance, and the illegal or incorrect operation of alarms by railway workers, are considered. This paper also details the principle and method of parallel monitoring for some key operations such as train tracking interval, interlocking, and train speed limit protection. The NGTCS is a highly intelligent monitoring system that represents system theory, system safety, deeper integration, and data fusion between subsystems and parallel monitoring on critical subjects.