A new analytical approach to evaluate the critical-event probability due to wireless communication errors in train control systems

Wireless communication links tend to be employed more and more in safety-critical railway applications. Their safe use in an advanced train control system (TCS) is an issue that is addressed in this paper by characterizing the TCS service inter- ruption due to communication errors. More precisely, occurrence probabilities of single errors are first discussed. Then, we obtain probabilistic analytical expressions of several temporal conditions that lead to a TCS service interruption, here a train emergency braking (the critical event). The accuracy of this analytical ap- proach is proved when the results are compared with those given by a simulation approach with a Petri net model. Additionally, as the use case related to the “trains’ separation” is considered in this paper, an analytical evaluation process is proposed to discuss the tolerated time margins that can be fixed to limit the critical-event occurrence probability due to the wireless communication errors

Modeling and Monitoring of the Dynamic Response of Railroad Bridges using Wireless Smart Sensors

Railroad bridges form an integral part of railway infrastructure in the USA, carrying approximately 40 % of the ton-miles of freight. The US Department of Transportation (DOT) forecasts current rail tonnage to increase up to 88 % by 2035. Within the railway network, a bridge occurs every 1.4 miles of track, on average, making them critical elements. In an effort to accommodate safely the need for increased load carrying capacity, the Federal Railroad Association (FRA) announced a regulation in 2010 that the bridge owners must conduct and report annual inspection of all the bridges. The objective of this research is to develop appropriate modeling and monitoring techniques for railroad bridges toward understanding the dynamic responses under a moving train. To achieve the research objective, the following issues are considered specifically. For modeling, a simple, yet effective, model is developed to capture salient features of the bridge responses under a moving train. A new hybrid model is then proposed, which is a flexible and efficient tool for estimating bridge responses for arbitrary train configurations and speeds. For monitoring, measured field data is used to validate the performance of the numerical model. Further, interpretation of the proposed models showed that those models are efficient tools for predicting response of the bridge, such as fatigue and resonance. Finally, fundamental software, hardware, and algorithm components are developed for providing synchronized sensing for geographically distributed networks, as can be found in railroad bridges. The results of this research successfully demonstrate the potentials of using wirelessly measured data to perform model development and calibration that will lead to better understanding the dynamic responses of railroad bridges and to provide an effective tool for prediction of bridge response for arbitrary train configurations and speeds.National Science Foundation Grant No. CMS-0600433National Science Foundation Grant No. CMMI-0928886National Science Foundation Grant No. OISE-1107526National Science Foundation Grant No. CMMI- 0724172 (NEESR-SD)Federal Railroad Administration BAA 2010-1 projectOpe

On cost-effective reuse of components in the design of complex reconfigurable systems

Design strategies that benefit from the reuse of system components can reduce costs while maintaining or increasing dependability—we use the term dependability to tie together reliability and availability. D3H2 (aDaptive Dependable Design for systems with Homogeneous and Heterogeneous redundancies) is a methodology that supports the design of complex systems with a focus on reconfiguration and component reuse. D3H2 systematizes the identification of heterogeneous redundancies and optimizes the design of fault detection and reconfiguration mechanisms, by enabling the analysis of design alternatives with respect to dependability and cost. In this paper, we extend D3H2 for application to repairable systems. The method is extended with analysis capabilities allowing dependability assessment of complex reconfigurable systems. Analysed scenarios include time-dependencies between failure events and the corresponding reconfiguration actions. We demonstrate how D3H2 can support decisions about fault detection and reconfiguration that seek to improve dependability while reducing costs via application to a realistic railway case study

Optimisation of Mobile Communication Networks - OMCO NET

The mini conference “Optimisation of Mobile Communication Networks” focuses on advanced methods for search and optimisation applied to wireless communication networks. It is sponsored by Research & Enterprise Fund Southampton Solent University. The conference strives to widen knowledge on advanced search methods capable of optimisation of wireless communications networks. The aim is to provide a forum for exchange of recent knowledge, new ideas and trends in this progressive and challenging area. The conference will popularise new successful approaches on resolving hard tasks such as minimisation of transmit power, cooperative and optimal routing

A measurement-based approach to service modeling and bandwidth estimation in IEEE 802.11 wireless networks

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Extending Cyber-Physical Systems to Support Stakeholder Decisions Under Resource and User Constraints: Applications to Intelligent Infrastructure and Social Urban Systems

In recent years, rapid urbanization has imposed greater load demands on physical infrastructure while placing stressors (e.g., pollution, congestion, social inequity) on social systems. Despite these challenges, opportunities are emerging from the unprecedented proliferation of information technologies enabling ubiquitous sensing, cloud computing, and full-scale automation. Together, these advancements enable “intelligent” systems that promise to enhance the operation of the built environment. Even with these advancements, the ability of professionals to “sense for decisions” —data-driven decision processes based on sensed data that have quantifiable returns on investment—remains unrealized for an entire class of problems. In response, this dissertation builds a rigorous foundation enabling stakeholders to use sensor data to inform decisions in two applications: infrastructure asset management and community-engaged decision making. This dissertation aligns sensing strategies with decisions governing infrastructure management by extending the role of reliability methods to quantify system performance. First, the reliability index is used as a scalar measure of the safety (i.e., failure probability) that is extracted from monitoring data to assess structural condition relative to a failure limit state. As an example, long-term data collected from a wireless sensing network (WSN) installed on the Harahan Bridge (Memphis, TN) is used in a reliability framework to track the fatigue life of critical eyebar assemblies. The proposed reliability-based SHM framework is then generalized to formally and more broadly link SHM data with condition ratings (CRs) because inspector-assigned CRs remain the primary starting point for asset management decisions made in practice today. While reliability methods historically quantify safety with respect to a single failure limit state, this work demonstrates that there exist measurable reliability index values associated with “lower” limit states below failure that more richly characterize structural performance and rationally map to CR scales. Consequently, monitoring data can be used to assign CRs based on quantitative information encompassing the measurable damage domain, as opposed to relying on visual inspection. This work reflects the first-ever SHM framework to explicitly map monitoring data to actionable decisions and is validated using a WSN on the Telegraph Road Bridge (TRB) (Monroe, MI). A primary challenge faced by solar-powered WSNs is their stringent energy constraints. For decision-making processes relying on statistical estimation of performance, the utility of data should be considered to optimize the data collection process given these constraints. This dissertation proposes a novel stochastic data collection and transmission policy for WSNs that minimizes the variance of a measured process’ estimated parameters subject to constraints imposed by energy and data buffer sizes, stochastic models of energy and event arrivals, the value of measured data, and temporal death. Numerical results based on one-year of data collected from the TRB illustrate the gains achieved by implementing the optimal policy to obtain response data used to estimate the reliability index. Finally, this dissertation extends the work performed in WSN and sense-for-decision frameworks by exploring their role in community-based decision making. This work poses societal engagement as a necessary entry point to urban sensing efforts because members of under-resourced communities are vulnerable to lack of access to data and information. A novel, low-power WSN architecture is presented that functions as a user-friendly sensing solution that communities can rapidly deploy. Applying this platform, transformative work to “democratize” data is proposed in which members of vulnerable communities collect data and generate insights that inform their decision-making strategies.PHDCivil EngineeringUniversity of Michigan, Horace H. Rackham School of Graduate Studieshttp://deepblue.lib.umich.edu/bitstream/2027.42/162898/1/kaflanig_1.pd