An automated railway system : railway network automation for Bangladesh railway

Abstract

While trains are convenient for travel and for transporting goods, they have become a riskier mode of transport over recent years. At present time, a large number of accidents have occurred due to railway mishaps in Bangladesh. Mismanaged railway crossings and faulty rail lines are the principle reasons behind the accidents. Moreover, Bangladesh Railway has attributed a huge sector of those losses to massive manpower and maintenance expenses it engulfs. Both the problems can be resolved by an intelligent unmanned railway introduced in this paper, which will not only reduce the risk of human lives but also a huge amount of public property. The total system is an integration of a few stand-alone sub-systems powered by micro-controllers which perform simultaneously by synchronizing the data to improve the safety and efficiency of the railway transport in different sectors. A part of the system is a completely unmanned crossing system, which ensures the safe crossing of a train in the busy city areas. Sensing the flaws in the railway tracks is also included in this system. This research depends on microcontroller based subsystems to reduce the complexity, uncertainty and cost. Total system is monitored and visualized in custom (Google maps) map which shows the train’s position, operation mode and safety status in the authority unit. The system uses modern communication (i.e. GSM, GPRS) and navigation techniques (i.e. GPS) to create a safer and financially efficient system.