The field trials that took place tested a range of different locomotive traffic densities and were preceded by laboratory testing in Gothenburg. According to Teltronic, KTZ has recognised that the complete solution, including TETRA NEBULA infrastructure and EN50155/EN45545 on board equipment, works stably on the whole back and forth track, under regular and high load signalling system traffic conditions, and meets the necessary requirements and specifications. Now that the integration is complete, the system is expected to be used for commercial operations in the future.
Teltronic asserts that the project demonstrates the viability of using TETRA for ETCS signalling data, along with voice and operational data (location, alarm and event management) over the same infrastructure. The company also says that this approach may be applicable to other transportation environments that use other signalling protocols such as CBTC (communications-based train control and PTC (positive train control). For example, in Northern Colombia, Teltronic states that was able to integrate its solutions with the signalling application provided by a train manufacturer and carried out a similar project for the deployment of a TETRA communications system in a mining train in Mozambique.
“TETRA is spectrally more efficient, has a greater range of functions, and is significantly cheaper than GSM-R; that’s why this technology is breaking through even in European countries, where GSM-R is the commonly deployed technology in signalling systems,” said Felipe Sanjuán, Teltronic’s transport business development director. “In other places of the world, where customers can choose the technology to support ETCS, TETRA becomes a very interesting option, especially in those countries that don’t have allocated spectrum to GSM-R for transport.”