The RailDriVE® road-rail vehicle can travel on both road and rail. As a lorry, it enables tests to be prepared before it is used as a rail vehicle directly on the desired test track. The vehicle can be used to test new localisation components under real conditions, detect faults in the track superstructure or help test collision avoidance systems. The RailDriVE® is also used to measure track geometries in order to generate highly accurate digital maps of the travelled area.
The department Railway Technologies develops and researches technologies for automated train operation – both on the vehicle and infrastructure side. The focus is on key areas such as sensor technology, remote operation, control and safety technology, human factors as well as testing and test environments. We always keep an eye on the issue of subsequent authorisation.
We put people at the centre of digitalisation in rail transport. Our researchers analyse the requirements of users and operators, design work processes and develop solutions for the safe, efficient and humane automation of train operations.
We research and test state-of-the-art sensor solutions for reliable environment detection in automated train operation. The aim is to research high-precision sensor concepts that are tested in simulations and then validated in practice – e.g. with RailDriVE®.
We also develop innovative test environments to reliably test hardware and software components – focussing on efficiency, automation and quality assurance. We use modern test procedures such as software-in-the-loop (SiL) and hardware-in-the-loop (HiL).
Close collaboration between a wide range of experts within the department and with partners and other specialist departments results in practical, safe and future-proof solutions for automated rail transport.
Our focal points at a glance:
Design and optimisation of remote and automated operation systems (RTO/ATO), in particular taking human factors into account
Testing of digital control and safety technology (ETCS, OCORA, EULYNX, etc.) from test concept to test case creation to test report
Simulation-based testing of sensor concepts for automated railway operation and validation of the simulation results
