Superior technology of Japanese railways

SGGP 11/07/2023 11:43

Japan has long been famous for its technological advancements, and the country’s railway industry is no exception. Many AI (artificial intelligence) technology applications have been created to enhance the superiority of the railway system in the land of the rising sun.

Superior technology of Japanese railways

Japan's Kyushu Railway Company has developed a new track inspection train called Big Eye (pictured) that is packed with technology to improve maintenance efficiency. The Big Eye is equipped with laser sensors and cameras to detect deformations on the rails, and uses the vast amounts of data it collects to make assessments. The new train can operate more efficiently because it can drive itself without a locomotive.

Using sensors, Big Eye can collect data on the track’s direction and measure the distance between the track and infrastructure, including poles, tunnels, platforms, and traffic lights. Continuous imaging from onboard cameras can be used to check the condition of metal fittings that hold the rails together. The collected data is sent to the company’s system for remote analysis, reducing on-site manpower. AI analyzes camera images and automatically detects areas that need maintenance.

Kyushu Railway Company plans to conduct a test run of the Big Eye train from now until March next year in southwestern Japan, before its official launch, to evaluate the durability of the equipment, the accuracy of data measurement, and to build a data analysis system.

Meanwhile, West Japan Railway Company (JR West) has been testing a railway repair robot. The robot has a head that closely resembles the upper body of a human, attached to a hydraulic crane that runs on a specially made rail system.

According to JR West, the main task of the robots is to perform difficult and high-risk jobs. It can lift heavy equipment to high places and perform many other tasks such as maintaining and cleaning power lines... Currently, all robot operations require a VR virtual reality control system performed directly by an employee. The operator will wear VR glasses to track movements through a camera system installed on the robot's body and use a handle to control the robot's arms and hands.

JR West has also developed an AI system to assess the amount of snow that has accumulated on Hokuriki Shinkansen trains running through Niigata, Toyama, and Ishikawa prefectures to help reduce damage from natural disasters. Meanwhile, Central Japan Railway Co., which operates the Tokyo-Osaka Shinkansen, has installed cameras underneath some train cars to check for snow accumulation and study its correlation with weather conditions and snow accumulation on the tracks.

Japan's railway industry is also using technology to attract foreign tourists. The VoiceBiz translation window system, which supports communication between foreign tourists and station staff, has been deployed by Seibu Railway at some stations. VoiceBiz allows tourists to talk to station staff via microphone, while the screen displays the corresponding translation in Japanese and one of 11 other languages such as English, French, Chinese, Spanish, etc.

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