Systems Engineering Framework for Railway Control & Safety Systems
Total Page:16
File Type:pdf, Size:1020Kb
Systems Engineering Framework for Railway Control & Safety Systems Karl Michael King A Thesis Submitted for the Degree of Master of Science by Research January 2018 Department of Electronic, Electrical and Systems Engineering University of Birmingham University of Birmingham Research Archive e-theses repository This unpublished thesis/dissertation is copyright of the author and/or third parties. The intellectual property rights of the author or third parties in respect of this work are as defined by The Copyright Designs and Patents Act 1988 or as modified by any successor legislation. Any use made of information contained in this thesis/dissertation must be in accordance with that legislation and must be properly acknowledged. Further distribution or reproduction in any format is prohibited without the permission of the copyright holder. EXECUTIVE SUMMARY AND ABSTRACT In this report I detail how I have investigated the feasibility of producing a systems engineering framework that can be applied to all forms of Railway Control & Safety (RCS) systems in order to simplify their development, delivery and implementation. Based on this research, I propose two simple models that can be used to model conventional signalling, ERTMS, CBTC and PTC systems; a functional model and a physical model. I have looked into how these models can be utilised to model specific systems and how this can then be used to identify the high-level functionality and interfaces of individual sub-systems across different physical locations and organisations. I go on to propose a simple method to keep track of individual sub- system locations and their high-level functionality. I also propose how the functional model can be represented as a negative-feedback control system. I then examined the development and implementation of RCS systems and propose that these systems go through two unique V-cycles, a generic product development V-cycle (by suppliers) and a specific application V-cycle (by operators). I propose that this results in the whole system lifecycle being covered by a closed-loop W-cycle that shows the complete development and procurement process for most metro railway RCS systems. I go on to propose that a more complex process is often required on mainline railways where there are often multiple sub-systems that are procured from separate suppliers and must be integrated into a single system. I conclude with a study of different project delivery structures for RCS upgrade programmes and recommend a balanced system-centric structure. My conclusions are that RCS systems are critical to both the safety and performance of the railway and are complex systems of systems. They have clearly defined functional sub-systems that contribute to these two key criteria. Based on my findings, I suggest that a systematic approach to the development, as well as the deployment, of RCS is therefore vital in order to ensure successful development, delivery and integration of modern RCS systems, such as ERTMS, TMS & DAS. ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS I would like to thank: My supervisors, Professor Clive Roberts and Professor Felix Schmid of University of Birmingham, for their guidance and support during the production of this thesis; Jeremy Gill for showing me the value and importance of systems engineering as well as stimulating my love of the subject; Mariana Somasundaram for encouraging me to undertake the programme of research that this thesis documents; Patrick Williamson for teaching me the importance of the interactions between People, Process and System, as well as acting as a sounding-board for many of my ideas for this research. It is my opinion that this research could not have been carried out solely by desktop literature review. I am, therefore, extremely grateful to my many contacts within the rail industry who listened to my ideas and were willing to give me their valuable time to provide their views and discuss proposals. Finally I would like to express my thanks to members of my family. I must thank my mother and father, Maureen and Geoffrey, the most supportive of parents, for always encouraging me in my pursuit of this research. Also, my thanks to my wife, Moira, who has encouraged and fully supported me throughout this research and the production of this report, even though this work coincided with the arrival of both of our beloved children, daughter Lucy and son Matthew. NOTE TO THE READER The section ‘Executive summary and Abstract’ along with Chapters 1, 3, 4 and 8 of this thesis have been narrowly paraphrased from the following papers written by myself during this research: ‘Systems Engineering Framework for Railway Control and Safety Systems’ IRSE News Issue 218, 2016 ‘Systems Engineering Framework for Railway Control and Safety Systems’ 2016 IEEE International Conference on Intelligent Rail Transportation (ICIRT), 2016 ‘Event Report on Systems Engineering for Train Control and Communications’ IRSE News Issue 224, 2016 ‘A Systems Engineering Framework for Railway Control & Safety System: The Mainline Challenge’ Stephenson Conference, 2017 ‘Systematic Approach to Command Control Signalling CBTC Projects,’ Systems Engineering Community Newsletter, Mott MacDonald, November 2012 ‘Delivering ERTMS Systems,’ Systems Engineering Community Newsletter, Mott MacDonald, March 2013 Sections that are narrowly paraphrased from these papers have been highlighted by italics as well as being indented with reference to the relevant paper. Parts of Chapters 1, 3, 4, 5 and 6 have also been narrowly paraphrased for a paper entitled ‘Railway Control & Safety Systems as a Closed Loop Negative Feedback Control System’ that has been submitted for the IET International Conference on Railway Engineering (ICRE) 2018. Contents List of Figures ................................................................................................................................................ 4 List of Tables ................................................................................................................................................. 6 Glossary of Terms.......................................................................................................................................... 7 List of Abbreviations ................................................................................................................................... 11 1. Introduction ........................................................................................................................................ 14 1.1 Overview of Thesis ...................................................................................................................... 15 1.2 Reason for Research ................................................................................................................... 15 1.3 Academic Questions ................................................................................................................... 15 1.4 Research Methodology ............................................................................................................... 16 1.5 Scope of Research ....................................................................................................................... 16 1.6 Requirements for RCS Systems ................................................................................................... 18 1.7 Types of RCS Systems .................................................................................................................. 19 1.7.1 Conventional Signalling ....................................................................................................... 19 1 1.7.2 CBTC .................................................................................................................................... 20 1.7.3 ERTMS ................................................................................................................................. 23 1.7.4 PTC ...................................................................................................................................... 25 1.7.5 Other Systems ..................................................................................................................... 28 2. Literature Review ................................................................................................................................ 31 2.1 Systems of Systems ..................................................................................................................... 32 2.2 Railway Systems .......................................................................................................................... 34 2.3 Systems Engineering for Railways ............................................................................................... 35 2.4 History of the Development of RCS Systems .............................................................................. 36 2.4.1 Development of Railways ................................................................................................... 36 2.4.2 Development of Signalling .................................................................................................. 37 2.4.3 Development of Train Protection ....................................................................................... 38 2.4.4 Development of Automation .............................................................................................. 39 2.5 Modern Systems ........................................................................................................................