JR East’s R&D Strategy: what suppliers need to know
24 April, 2015 Kenichiro Hirose
Senior Manager East Japan Railway Brussels Branch
1 Contents
JR East’s R&D Strategies
Case studies: Presentation of past R&D projects with suppliers
2 JR East’s R&D Strategies
3 JR East’s priority R&D fields
As our business environment always evolves, we constantly need to innovate in the way we work. JR East focuses its R&D efforts on the fields requiring most technological innovations.
Pursuing “extreme safety levels” ―Building a railway capable of withstanding natural disasters
Establishing energy and environmental strategies
Utilizing ICT
Operating Shinkansen at faster speeds
4 JR East’s priority R&D fields
With these 4 priority fields in mind, JR East promotes its R&D to solve issues such as improvement of reliability and accuracy, laborsaving, prolonged life, reducing initial costs and running costs, and increasing user friendliness.
Safety Energy ICT Speedup
Improvement of reliability
Laborsaving
Prolonged life JR East’s R&D needs
Cost reduction
User friendliness
5 JR East’s priority R&D fields
Pursuing “extreme safety levels” ―Building a railway capable of withstanding natural disasters
Establishing energy and environmental strategies
Utilizing ICT
Operating Shinkansen at faster speeds
6 Against natural disasters - Local heavy rains Local heavy rains countermeasures
With local heavy rains, the amounts of Sometimes rain gauges By using wide-area rainfall information rainfall sometimes largely vary with a fail to detect local heavy from weather radars, we are considering difference in a distance of a few km. rains. methods to detect local heavy rains.
Flooded Takao Station premise Analyzed rainfall by meteorological The comparison of rainfall at the measurement points by of Chuo line radars rain gauges and at the flooded location.
Disasters before train operation restrictions
Disasters with train operation restrictions
Disasters in ：Better predictions of local heavy rains to prevent disasters by using meteorological radars for train operation restrictions
Comparison of hourly rain fall between the disasters and rain gauge locations 7 Against natural disasters – Major earthquakes
Cooperation with Railway Emergency Train Stop for Earthquakes (Sea- Technical Research Institute bed seismometers)
Coast line
【Wayside】 Epicenter Threshold 【Sea bed】 40gal 【Coast】 Threshold Threshold (In consideration) 120gal ② Threshold: thresholds vary ③ Noise: noise of sea-bed depending on distance seismometers 8 JR East’s priority R&D fields
Pursuing “extreme safety levels” ―Building a railway capable of withstanding natural disasters
Establishing energy and environmental strategies
Utilizing ICT
Operating Shinkansen at faster speeds
9 Establishing energy and environmental strategies JR East intends to become world leader in advanced energy management, by using its ability to control both power generation and consumption.
High performance Use of regenerated energy Introduction of renewable energy 回生電力活用 storage batteries Storing and using the regenerated electricity at other locations energy saving運転
Power generation Storing energy Power generation #2: Improvement of power Decentralized Zero emission building power generation generation efficiency (ZEB) Storing energy (storing power and heat) Power generation Solar power generation Using energy Power generation #1: Power plants Energy saving
Train operation Aiming to achieve smart Thermal Hydroelectric grid, an integrated system to power plant power plant control both supply and Station Building consumption * Smart meter: Reduction of power transmission loss 10 Establishing energy and environmental strategies Development and introduction of storage-battery-driven electric car systems
Mc Mc’
Mc M’c Type EV-E301 EV-E300
Load (Person) 134 131 Start of services (including non-electrified railway sections) from March 15, 2014 Car weight (t) 40 40 Max. speed 100km/h Lithium ion Lithium ion Storage device battery battery Non-electrified section (20.4km) 630V-95kWh 630V-95kWh Tohoku main line (DC1500V) Hoshakuji Ogane Karasuyama
Utsunomiya
11 JR East’s priority R&D fields
Pursuing “extreme safety levels” ―Building a railway capable of withstanding natural disasters
Establishing energy and environmental strategies
Utilizing ICT
Operating Shinkansen at faster speeds
12 Making the best use of ICT (Use of big data)
Railways already possess a large amount of data.
Construction of database
Integrating various data into Train operation Maintenance Maintenance database data data (facilities) data (rolling Customers’ stock) opinions
DB
Sales data such Retail data Customer as tickets information Used to * Data includes not only traditional structural data, but also ・design making data for unstructured data (still image, audio, texts for videos). facilities / rolling stock Traffic maintenance Utilization of Meteorological information ・ external data and weather of other SNS Improving customer data transport data services modes
13 Making the best use of ICT( Maintenance Innovation )
TBM (Time based maintenance) CBM (Condition based maintenance) Present Future
・Exclusive track inspection car runs Utilization of frequent data obtained by monitoring 4 times/year. ・Daily monitoring of material condition inspections ・ Visual inspection of material conditions by track measurement and image data sent from commercial trains.
・Track displacement data ・Image data Conducted with uniform rules Use of the decision making support system for individual conditions
Displacement
Displacement 変 変 位 位 量 量
Engineer 1Jan.月 Apr.4月 Jul.7月 Jan. Apr. Jul. 1月 4月 7月 Decision making Frequently obtained data support system Inspection data Engineer Uniform rules 【Monitor runs for track facility monitoring systems】 Keihin Tohoku line(May 2013～) 14 Best use of ICT (Maintenance Innovation)
Monitoring by commercial trains Based on status monitoring of rolling stock and ground facilities by commercial trains and data analysis, daily maintenance and renewals of facilities are optimized.
Wireless tag
Automatic tensioner Measurement equipment for Overhead contact line status compressed parts for feeders monitoring system
Monitoring of on- board equipment
Track irregularity measurement Track material monitoring Equipment to confirm equipment equipment movements of beacons
15 JR East’s priority R&D fields
Pursuing “extreme safety levels” ―Building a railway capable of withstanding natural disasters
Establishing energy and environmental strategies
Utilizing ICT
Operating Shinkansen at faster speeds
16 Operating Shinkansen at faster speeds History of the Shinkansen speed increase
1988-1991 1991-1998 2002-2009
FASTECH360 High speed exclusive test train STAR21 ・ Shortening of traveling time High speed exclusive test train ・ Highest reliability and comfort ・ Max. speed record: ・ Harmony with environment 425km/h 400 Series (Yamagata Shinkansen Tsubasa-type) Max. speed record: 345.8km/h
* FASTECH: a coined short name for FASt TECHnology (high-speed technology), 360 signifies the speed goal of the technology development.
17 Technologies introduced for the commercial operations at 320km/h (Series E5) ・ Bogie ・ Smooth ・ Low noise ・Pantograph noise ・ Long-nose-shaped covers covers between pantograph insulation panels end cars cars
Improved running performance and assurance of reliability ・ Main circuit system ・ Brake system
・Improved passenger riding comfort with new-type full active suspension for all cars Car body ・ Car body tilting system to improve Control unit Oscillation Oscillation absorption with detector riding comfort new-type actuator through curves Sensor
Bogie
18 Case studies: Presentation of past R&D projects with suppliers
19 Open Innovation
Not all issues can be solved by our internal R&D.
Therefore we constantly seek innovations from third parties, be they domestic or abroad, based Open- Innovation.
As we look for products and technologies to solve specific issues, we often cooperate with suppliers to make sure we get the most adapted end product.
In these cases, an open and comprehensive dialogue is started with suppliers.
20 Brake system of Knorr-Bremse
【Issue】 In increasing the speed of Shinkansen, the development of a brake system, an key component in high speed train operations, was an issue. As a result of technical research, we became interested in the brake system of Knorr-Bremse. As results of driving tests, we understood that the brake performance was higher than conventional products.
【Modifications through R＆D】 To suppress noise from cooling fans, the shape of the fans was modified. 21 Pandrol's Rail Fastening
【Issues】 Since JR East’s existing rail fastening systems (plate-typed spring) required considerable effort and cost to maintain, we were searching for a solution. In 1987, our research team was dispatched to Europe in search of superior technologies and high-quality, low-cost products. They became interested in Pandrol’s screwless rail fastening system during the visit. 【Improvement by R＆D】 Changes in holder force, height adjustment(Height/gauge adjustment clip), ease to install to rails(fast clip), etc. 22 Thank you for your kind attention.
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