Ansaldo - Railway Signalling Systems

The Ansaldo STS group designs, produces, distributes and manages systems and components for signalling and monitoring railways and underground transit systems.

Concerning underground transit systems, Ansaldo provides both traditional and automatic driverless networks with signalling systems, while in the area of railway transit systems the group’s signalling systems range from conventional to high-speed networks.

RAILWAY SIGNALLING SYSTEMS

Signalling systems are designed to ensure the safety and reliability of railway and underground transport, as well as optimising the efficiency and productivity of these infrastructures.

Effective signalling systems allow operators to augment the speed and efficiency of railway transport in compliance with safety regulations, and to reduce the minimum distance between carriages.

AN INTERFACE BETWEEN TRAINS, TRACKS AND STATIONS

Ansaldo’s signalling systems involve:

• Line equipment (signals, track circuits and marshalling boxes)
• Station equipment (electronic systems, electromechanical systems and control stands)
• On-board equipment (automatic speed control systems)
• Central controls (electronic management systems for railway transit) and telecommunications systems for connecting different equipment

Ansaldo’s signalling systems create an interface between trains, tracks and stations through on-board, wayside and in-station software and hardware.

EUROPEAN RAIL TRAFFIC MANAGEMENT SYSTEM

Ansaldo has adopted the European Rail Traffic Management System (ERTMS), a European line system that permits trains to travel throughout the inter-operating European network without changing engine / drivers or rolling stock at the borders.

At the same time, the safety and management of traffic are improved.

COMMUNICATION-BASED TRAFFIC CONTROL

The Ansaldo STS group has developed Communication-Based Traffic Control (CBTC) technology, which is compliant with international standards. This CBTC will be completed in order to guarantee full inter-operability on underground lines, a standard similar to the ERTMS for underground systems.

The Ansaldo group has installed these technologies on three lines of the Paris underground.

MANAGING TRANSIT AND RAILWAY MOBILITY

The Optimized Traffic Planner (OTP) system is an innovative system for managing transit and railway mobility. It allows for the re-channelling of traffic in real time in order to increase transit speed, optimize vehicle mobility, and identify the briefest and most efficient routes for those trains running in particular times of the year.

The OTP system permits a considerable increase in network capacity, reducing operational costs at the same time.

AUTOMATIC CONTROL OF TRAIN SPEED

The Automatic Train Control (ATC) and Automatic Train Protection (ATP) systems are designed to facilitate the automatic control of train speed. These systems permit the speed of a train on railway and underground tracks to be monitored. They can also ensure that trains are observing speed limits and maintaining safety distances.

The systems have adopted ERTMS standards, permitting trains to travel along the entire inter-operating European network without changing engine-drivers or rolling stock at the borders. Safety is increased for domestic and international transit and management of passenger and goods traffic is improved.

Ansaldo STS applies ERTMS standards to signalling systems for high-speed tracks in Italy, France and Spain, as well as countries such as India, China and Czech Republic.