Method for activating a rail vehicle for driving a section of track

Abstract

The present invention is based on the object of specifying a method for enabling a rail vehicle to travel on a track section equipped with a standardized train protection system, which method can enable a simplified yet safe operating sequence. This object is achieved according to the invention by a method for enabling a rail vehicle to travel on a track section equipped with a standardized train protection system, which method comprises the following method steps: a) equipping the track section with an entry control associated with its entry; b) equipping the rail vehicle with a vehicle device designed as an onboard unit for bidirectional communication with the train protection system; c) upon approaching the track section, carrying out a check of the suitability of the rail vehicle for this train protection system;d) granting permission for the rail vehicle to enter the track section if it is suitable, as determined by data exchange between the train protection system and the on-board unit; e) if it is determined that the rail vehicle is not suitable for the standardised train protection system, notifying a supervisory authority to request that the rail vehicle, which is not suitable for the train protection system, be released for use on that track section;and f) if at least one predefined criterion is met, the rail vehicle is at least temporarily released for this track section by the control authority. In this way, a rail vehicle that was previously classified as unsuitable, for example a test vehicle that was previously classified as unsuitable, can be temporarily classified as suitable for this train protection system during the entry control (release). The particular advantage of this solution is that the functionalities of the entry control can also be used for rail vehicles that were previously classified as unsuitable, such as test vehicles that were previously classified as unsuitable. This means that both the entry into the track section, such as an ETCS L2 track section, and the automatic setting of routes can be checked and released by the entry control.

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