Kontron announced today that the railway company Thalys is using their TRACe LoRa-MQTT, the first EN50155-certified IoT LoRa gateway.
Bernard Féaux, Business Development Manager at Kontron: “What convinced Thalys was the modularity of our platforms (TRACe), combined with a private, train-accompanying LoRa communication network. A simple 10 cm antenna allows coverage of up to ten railcars. Traditional communication systems with a ground-based LoRa infrastructure would only work inside stations, whereas the LoRa network created by Kontron is not dependent on the train’s location, its speed or the positioning of the sensors.”
The TRACe LoRa-MQTT combines a secure LoRa network server with an IoT gateway streaming MQTT to the Cloud, enabling data collection from different sensors as well as remote analysis. It is part of Kontron’s TRACe portfolio and is designed specifically for the transport sector, specializing in excellent stability in challenging environments.
EN50155 certification enables Kontron to guarantee the resistance to temperature, shock, and vibration required by Thalys.
At the end of a successful 18 months pilot phase, Thalys is highly satisfied with their initial experience of Kontron’s IoT gateway, especially with regard to the link-up with maintenance sensors as well as with Skiply client satisfaction terminals (https://www.skiply.eu/) used for large-scale collection of client feedback. The Franco-Belgian corporation is considering additional functionality for monitoring both temperature and sanding system, which would allow huge savings in train maintenance. According to Thalys, Kontron’s support was efficient and on schedule during every phase of the pilot project.
TRACe LoRa-MQTT has numerous potential applications within the railroad industry. Systems for real-time detection of seats occupied or the current number of visitors in the dining car are two examples that would enable railway companies to provide a better passenger service.
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