Standardising APIs to improve train operation
Siemens has identified a hundred software application programming interfaces (APIs) to standardise for railway systems.
Siemens Xcelerator is aiming to develop an open ecosystem for seamless digital collaboration in train systems and is showing the first dozen APIs.
One of the biggest barriers to a full-hearted adoption of digitalization, however, is vast quantities of data locked in closed systems. The answer lies in accessing these data via standardized APIs (APIs) and connecting them with AI-driven analysis and evaluation tools.
Siemens Mobility has identified around 100 APIs within the rail ecosystem and says it has already fully developed a dozen of them. These are being shown at the InnoTrans 2024 exhibition.
“InnoTrans 2024 is the next chapter in our digitalization journey that began in 2018,” said Michael Peter, CEO of Siemens Mobility.
“We will bring connectivity to the next level by making software more modular, using standardized APIs, and move software modules into the cloud for digital solutions that deliver for our customers, passengers and our planet.”
Siemens Mobility is working with Munich’s regional train operator, S-Bahn Munich, on functions like fleet control, on-train applications, remote train wake-up & software updates, AI-based maintenance systems with Railigent X. The standardized APIs allow data from different sources to be integrated with some of the technologies on the new Munich S-Bahn are provided by Siemens Mobility directly, while others developed by the operator themselves or even competitors.
This can also be integrated with cloud-based 5G digital signalling. The cloud infrastructure, with its possibility of virtualization and georedundancy of various hardware components such as interlocking and ETCS systems, significantly contributes to reducing maintenance and operating costs. Furthermore, digital train control systems, combined with Automatic Train Operation (ATO) over ETCS, not only increase capacity by up to 30 percent but also reduce power consumption in the network by up to 30 percent.
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