Locating a passenger within a railway vehicle

Abstract

Locating a user within a railway vehicle The present invention relates to a method (50) for locating a user with a smartphone in a railway vehicle where each train is modular according to several configurations and comprises several cars, each having a beacon periodically emitting a signal including a train number and a car identifier, said method comprising the following steps: - receiving and processing (52) a location signal emitted by the beacon closest to said user; - generating and transmitting (54) a request, requiring an identifier of the current train configuration and a train arrangement matrix; - receiving (56) the required elements; - identifying (58) in said matrix the row associated with said current configuration, and the position of the column containing said car identifier; - restoring (60) the location of said user using said position.Figure for the abbreviation: Figure 2.

Description

Title of the invention: Locating a user within a railway vehicle

[0001] The present invention relates to a method for locating a user within a railway vehicle, the user being equipped with a smartphone, the railway vehicle comprising at least one train, each train being modular according to a plurality of distinct configurations, and comprising a plurality of cars of at least two distinct types.

[0002] The present invention also relates to a user location system within a railway vehicle, the user being equipped with a smartphone, the railway vehicle comprising at least one train, each train being modular according to a plurality of distinct configurations, and comprising a plurality of cars of at least two distinct types.

[0003] The present invention also relates to a user location aid beacon within a railway vehicle, said beacon being disposed within a car of a railway vehicle.

[0004] The invention relates to the localization of an individual within a modular space that can take on distinct configurations. More specifically, the present invention aims to be applied to passenger transport, particularly rail passenger transport, in order to assist passengers (i.e., users) in moving around.

[0005] Currently, a solution based on the use of beacons placed inside the modular rail vehicle, designed to periodically emit a location signal, is implemented in a railway station to help passengers, via a dedicated smartphone application, find their platform and train. It should be noted, however, that a railway station is a static environment where the arrangement of the beacons is also static (i.e., the position of the beacons remains constant) throughout their operation, and that the corresponding emitted signal represents this position, which remains constant throughout the operation of each beacon.

[0006] Based on this principle, the present invention aims in a different way, namely to locate itself, this time, within a railway vehicle, such as a train, often operated using a seat reservation system.

[0007] More specifically, the present invention aims to help the passenger (i.e. the user), once on board the railway vehicle, to find the railway car and the room in that railway car in which his place is reserved, a task which is currently complex when a modularity of train is implemented.

[0008] Indeed, unlike the aforementioned implementation based on a static railway station configuration, the present invention aims to be applied in a modular environment where the "organic" configuration of the railway vehicle is able to evolve according to the needs of the manager of said railway vehicle, while the passenger only knows the commercial number of the railway vehicle, the railway car and the seat he has reserved.

[0009] In other words, the existing solution based on a plurality of beacons implemented within a static environment is not suitable for the modularity of trainsets, because the use of beacons within modular railway vehicles by allowing them only to periodically emit the same signal as that emitted for the solution currently implemented within a static environment, such as that of a railway station, is likely to "lose" the user in the event of a change in train configuration by changing position, deleting or adding a car within the railway vehicle, by transmitting erroneous location information to the user.

[0010] Indeed, currently in the event of a change in configuration (i.e. of the order of the railway cars, with or without modification of their number within the train by adding or removing railway cars), no beacon is notified of this change in configuration because there is generally no communication interface between beacons and railway vehicles.

[0011] The beacon placed within a railway car will therefore, in the event of a change of configuration, emit incorrect information because the information emitted by the beacon will remain constantly representative of its position in a starting configuration while the configuration of the railway car will have evolved during the modularity of the train consisting of moving from a previous configuration to a current configuration, with a change of position of at least one railway car within the train or even the deletion or addition of a railway car.

[0012] The aim of the invention is then to propose a solution for locating a user within a railway vehicle having at least one modular train (i.e. whose configuration in terms of number or position of cars is likely to be modified over time).

[0013] To this end, the invention relates to a method for locating a user within a railway vehicle, the user being equipped with a smartphone, the railway vehicle comprising at least one trainset, each trainset being modular according to a plurality of distinct configurations, and comprising a plurality of passenger cars of at least two distinct types, at least one user location aid beacon being disposed within each passenger car, each beacon being capable of periodically emitting a location signal comprising at least two pieces of information specific to each beacon, respectively specifying:

[0014] - a train number in which said beacon is disposed;

[0015] - an identifier of the passenger car in which said beacon is disposed, said passenger car identifier being constant and comprising a code representative of the type of said car and, where said railway vehicle comprises several cars of the same type, a distinct number from one car of the same type to another;

[0016] said passenger car identifier having been previously allocated to said tag using a reference configuration of said train;

[0017] said method comprising the following steps implemented by said smartphone:

[0018] - reception and processing of a location signal emitted by the nearest beacon of said user carrying said smartphone;

[0019] - generation and sending of a request to at least one server of data from the manager of said railway vehicle, requiring at least two elements:

[0020] - an identifier of the current configuration of said train associated with said number of oar;

[0021] - a row arrangement matrix, said matrix comprising a plurality of lines each associated with a distinct train configuration from one line to another, each configuration corresponding to a set of ordered columns, a part of which is dedicated to passenger car columns, each passenger car column comprising a passenger car identifier of said train, distinct from one passenger car column to another;

[0022] - receipt of the required elements;

[0023] - based on the information from said location signal and said required elements, identification in said matrix of the line associated with said current configuration, and, within the part dedicated to passenger car columns, of said line associated with said current configuration, the position of the passenger column containing said passenger car identifier received within said signal;

[0024] - restoring the location of said user using said column position.

[0025] Thus, the present invention proposes a solution based on a beacon signal which, at each change of configuration of the railway vehicle (i.e. arrangement of railway cars within the train), while remaining constant from one configuration to another, is advantageously combined with the train arrangement matrix and an identifier of the current configuration.

[0026] If a beacon is replaced, particularly due to malfunction, the signal emitted by the replacement beacon will remain the same because the replacement beacon will be placed in the same location within the same car, which retains a unique identifier throughout its service life. The signal generated by each beacon is therefore unique and deterministic, as it is necessarily associated with a specific location within a specific train.

[0027] Such a combination using the triplet formed by the beacon signal, the train arrangement matrix and the current configuration identifier, makes it possible to locate with precision, reliability and relevance the location of the beacon emitting the signal captured by the user's smartphone, and thus to specify the location of the user himself.

[0028] According to other advantageous aspects of the invention, the method for locating a user within a railway vehicle comprises one or more of the following features, taken individually or in all technically possible combinations:

[0029] - said restitution is vocal and / or by display on a screen of said smartphone;

[0030] - the passenger car type belongs to the group comprising at least:

[0031] - an end car;

[0032] - an intermediate car;

[0033] - a bar car;

[0034] - a key car;

[0035] - which said location signal also includes, when said vehicle railway presents several levels, an identification information of the level in which said beacon is located;

[0036] - said location signal also includes identification information of a location zone for said beacon within the car in which said beacon is placed;

[0037] - when said smartphone receives several signals substantially simultaneously location signals emitted by separate beacons, said method further includes, by measuring the power of each of said signals, a step of selecting the location signal emitted by the beacon closest to said user carrying said smartphone, said selected signal having the highest power level;

[0038] - said method includes a phase of updating said location of said user, said update phase consisting of repeating at least said identification and restitution steps as soon as the location signal received at a current time differs from the location signal received at the time preceding said current time.

[0039] The invention also relates to a computer program comprising software instructions which, when executed by a computer, implement the processing, generation, identification and restitution steps of the aforementioned localization method.

[0040] The invention also relates to a system for locating a user within a railway vehicle, the user being equipped with a smartphone, the railway vehicle comprising at least one trainset, each trainset being modular according to a plurality of distinct configurations, and comprising a plurality of cars of at least two distinct types, with at least one user location aid beacon being placed within each passenger car, each beacon being capable of periodically emitting a location signal comprising at least two pieces of information specific to each beacon, specifying respectively:

[0041] - a train number in which said beacon is disposed;

[0042] - an identifier of the passenger car in which said beacon is disposed, said passenger car identifier being constant and comprising a code representative of the type of said car and, where said railway vehicle comprises several cars of the same type, a number distinct from one car of the same type to another;

[0043] said passenger car identifier having been previously allocated to said tag using a reference configuration of said train;

[0044] said system comprising the plurality of beacons arranged within the cars of said railway vehicle, at least one data server for the manager of said railway vehicle and said smartphone,

[0045] said smartphone comprising:

[0046] - a first receiving and processing module configured to receive and process of a location signal emitted by the nearest beacon of said user carrying said smartphone;

[0047] - a generation and transmission module configured to generate and transmit a request to said at least one data server of the manager of said railway vehicle, requiring at least two elements:

[0048] - an identifier of the current configuration of said train associated with said number of oar;

[0049] - a row arrangement matrix, said matrix comprising a plurality of lines each associated with a distinct train configuration from one line to another, each configuration corresponding to a set of ordered columns, a part of which is dedicated to passenger car columns, each passenger car column comprising a passenger car identifier of said train, distinct from one passenger car column to another.

[0050] - a second receiving and processing module configured to receive said required elements;

[0051] - an identification module configured to identify, from the information said location signal and said required elements:

[0052] - in said matrix, the row associated with said current configuration, and

[0053] - within the part dedicated to passenger car columns, said associated line to the said current configuration, the position of the passenger column containing the said passenger car identifier received within the said signal;

[0054] - a rendering module configured to render the location of said user in using said column position

[0055] According to other advantageous aspects of the invention, the system for locating a user within a railway vehicle comprises one or more of the following features, taken individually or in all technically possible combinations:

[0056] -each tag is a Bluetooth Low Energy BLE tag;

[0057] - the passenger car type belongs to the group comprising at least:

[0058] - an end car;

[0059] - an intermediate car;

[0060] - a bar car;

[0061] - a key car;

[0062] - a plurality of beacons are arranged within each passenger car, the number of beacons per car depending on the type of said car;

[0063] - four beacons are arranged in a bar car and five beacons are arranged in a passenger car of a completely different type than the bar car type.

[0064] The invention also relates to a beacon for locating a user within a railway vehicle, said beacon being located within a car of said railway vehicle and capable of periodically emitting a location signal comprising at least two pieces of information specific to it, respectively specifying:

[0065] - a train number in which said beacon is disposed;

[0066] - an identifier of the passenger car in which said beacon is disposed, said passenger car identifier being constant and comprising a code representative of the type of said car and, where said railway vehicle comprises several cars of the same type, a number distinct from one car of the same type to another;

[0067] said passenger car identifier having been previously allocated to said tag using a reference configuration of said train.

[0068] According to another advantageous aspect, said beacon (from the English beacon) is a Bluetooth Low Energy BLE beacon (from the English Bluetooth Low Energy).

[0069] The invention will become clearer upon reading the following description, given solely by way of non-limiting example, and made with reference to the drawings in which:

[0070] [Fig.1] Fig.1 is a schematic representation of a user location system within a railway vehicle, according to the present invention.

[0071] [Fig.2] Fig.2 is a flowchart of the main steps in a process of location of a user within a railway vehicle, according to the present invention.

[0072] Fig. 1 illustrates an embodiment of a system 10 for locating a user 12 within a railway vehicle 14.

[0073] The railway vehicle 14 comprises at least one train 18.

[0074] User 12 is equipped with a smartphone 16. In [Fig. 1], user 12, for some For reasons of simplicity, it is represented below the diagram illustrating the composition of train 18 of the railway vehicle 14, but the present invention aims to enable it to self-locate when moving on board the railway vehicle 14.

[0075] Each train 18 is modular according to a plurality of distinct configurations, and comprises a plurality of cars of at least two distinct types, each type being represented on [Fig.1] by a texture (i.e. a pattern) distinct from one type to another.

[0076] The modularity of the train is defined according to the present invention as a change of configuration by changing the arrangement of the train, such a change resulting from a change in the order of the cars within the train and / or a change in the number of cars constituting the train by adding or removing a car to form the train.

[0077] Following the example of [Fig.1], trainset 18 comprises nine passenger cars, each associated with a passenger car identifier ET1, IT1, KT, BT, IT2, IT3, IT4, IT5, ET2, and arranged between two motor cars PCI and PC2 at each end of trainset 18.

[0078] In [Fig. 1], at least one user location aid beacon 20 is placed within each passenger car ET1, IT1, KT, BT, IT2, IT3, IT4, IT5, ET2, each beacon being represented by a cross within the train 18 in [Fig. 1] and capable of periodically emitting, according to arrow Fl, a location signal comprising at least two pieces of information specific to each beacon, respectively specifying:

[0079] - a train number in which said beacon is disposed;

[0080] - an identifier of the car in which said tag is placed, said identifier The passenger car identifier is constant (from one configuration to another) and includes a code representing the type of said car and, when said railway vehicle comprises several cars of the same type, a distinct number for each car of the same type. This passenger car identifier was previously allocated to said beacon using a reference configuration of said train.

[0081] As an optional addition, the passenger car type belongs to the group comprising at least:

[0082] - an ET code end car (from the English extremity trader);

[0083] - an intermediate car with IT code (from the English intermediate trailef);

[0084] - a bar car with code BT (from the English bar trader);

[0085] - a KT code car key (from the English key trader).

[0086] For example, if we consider that the configuration of [Fig. 1] is the reference configuration (or initial, starting configuration), according to a direction of movement of the railway vehicle 14 from left to right, the PCI identifier includes the The PC code represents a motor car and the number 1 because, in this reference configuration and according to the aforementioned direction of travel of the railway vehicle, it is the first motor car. The ET1 identifier includes the ET code representing an end passenger car and the number 1 because, in this reference configuration and according to the aforementioned direction of travel of the railway vehicle, it is the first end passenger car.

[0087] Similarly, the identifier IT1 includes the IT code representing an intermediate passenger car, and the number 1 because in this reference configuration, and according to the aforementioned direction of travel of the railway vehicle, it is the first intermediate passenger car.

[0088] In the example of [Fig.1], trainset 18 comprises only one key car with code KT arranged following the intermediate passenger car IT1.

[0089] Following the key car KT, trainset 18 of the example in [Fig. 1] comprises a bar car with code BT, then four intermediate passenger cars respectively with identifiers IT2, IT3, IT4, IT5, identifier IT2 comprising the code IT representing a car of the intermediate passenger car type, and the number 2 because in this reference configuration, and according to the aforementioned direction of travel of the railway vehicle, it is the second intermediate passenger car, identifier IT3 comprising the code IT representing a car of the intermediate passenger car type, and the number 3 because in this reference configuration, and according to the aforementioned direction of travel of the railway vehicle, it is the third intermediate passenger car, identifier IT4 comprising the code IT representing a car of the intermediate passenger car type, and the number 4 because in this reference configuration,and according to the aforementioned direction of travel of the railway vehicle, it is the fourth intermediate passenger car, the identifier IT5 comprising the IT code representing a car of the intermediate passenger car type, and the number 5 because in this reference configuration, and according to the aforementioned direction of travel of the railway vehicle, it is the fifth intermediate passenger car.

[0090] As an optional addition, each beacon 20 is advantageously a low energy Bluetooth BLE beacon which allows low energy consumption, is low cost and has high compatibility in particular for communicating with smartphones.

[0091] As an optional complement, as illustrated by the example in [Fig.1] by crosses, a plurality of beacons 20 are arranged within each passenger car, the number of beacons per car depending on the type of said car.

[0092] According to a variant of this optional addition, four beacons 20 (represented by crosses) are arranged in a BT bar car type carriage and five beacons are arranged in a passenger car of any other type distinct from the bar car type, such that a passenger car of type end car of code ET, a passenger car of type intermediate car of code IT, a passenger car of type key car of code KT.

[0093] Each beacon 20 is for example encapsulated within a housing 22 as shown in [Fig.2], said housing being suitable for protecting said beacon while not hindering its emission.

[0094] The location system 10 therefore includes the plurality of beacons 20 arranged, as represented by the crosses, within the cars of said railway vehicle 14, and also includes at least one data server 24 for the manager of said railway vehicle 14 and said smartphone 16 of the user 12.

[0095] According to the present invention, said smartphone 16 first includes a first receiving and processing module 26 configured to receive and process a location signal emitted by the nearest beacon of said user carrying said smartphone.

[0096] Said smartphone 16 further includes a generation and transmission module 28 configured to generate and transmit, according to arrow F2, a request to said at least one data server 24 of the manager of said railway vehicle, requiring at least two elements:

[0097] - an identifier of the current configuration of said train associated with said number of oar;

[0098] - a row arrangement matrix (also called an association table), said matrix comprising a plurality of rows each associated with a train configuration distinct from one row to another, each configuration corresponding to a set of ordered columns, a part of which is dedicated to passenger car columns, each passenger car column comprising a passenger car identifier of said train, distinct from one passenger car column to another.

[0099] Said smartphone 16 further comprises a second receiving and processing module 30 configured to receive, according to arrow F3, said required elements. According to a first variant, the first receiving and processing module 26 and the second receiving and processing module 30 correspond to a single receiving and processing module (i.e., are combined into a single module). According to a second variant, the first receiving and processing module 26 and the second receiving and processing module 30 are separate and dedicated respectively to receiving the beacon signal 20 and the server signal 24.

[0100] Said smartphone 16 further includes an identification module 32 configured to identify (i.e. determine), from the information of said location signal and said required elements:

[0101] - in said matrix, the row associated with said current configuration, and

[0102] - within the part dedicated to passenger car columns, said associated line to the said current configuration, the position of the passenger column containing said passenger car identifier received within said signal.

[0103] Said smartphone 16 further includes a rendering module 32 configured to render the location of said user using said column position.

[0104] Optionally, as illustrated in dotted lines on [Fig.1], said smartphone also includes a selection module 36 and a measurement module 38 optionally used when said smartphone 16 receives substantially simultaneously (i.e. quasi-simultaneously) several location signals emitted by separate beacons, said measurement module 38 being configured to measure the power of each of said signals, and the selection module 36 being configured to select the location signal emitted by the beacon 20 closest to said user 12 carrying said smartphone 16, said selected signal having the highest power level.

[0105] Note that "approximately" is understood as a relationship of equality plus or minus 100ms, that is to say with a variation of at most 10ms between the times of reception of said several location signals, preferably also as a relationship of equality plus or minus 5ms, that is to say with a variation of at most 5ms of said several location signals.

[0106] Advantageously, the measurement module 38 thus continuously and in real time estimates how far the user is from the beacons integrated into the railway vehicle, and is optionally able to refine, by triangulation, the precise positioning of the user as soon as his smartphone receives three signals emitted by distinct beacons.

[0107] In the example of [Fig.1], the first receiving and processing module 26, the generation module 28, the second receiving and processing module 30, the identification module 32, the restitution module 34, and optionally the selection module 36 and the measurement module 38, are optionally integrated within an electronic localization device 40.

[0108] Optionally, said electronic location device 40 includes an information processing unit 42 formed for example of a memory 44 and a processor 46 associated with the memory 44.

[0109] In the example of [Fig. 1], the first module 26 for reception and processing (in terms of processing the received data and not in terms of reception as such), the generation module 28, the second module 30 for reception and processing (in terms of processing the received data and not in terms of reception as such), the identification module 32, the restitution module 34, and optionally the selection module 36 are each implemented in the form of software, or a A software component, executable by the processor 46. The memory 44 of the electronic localization device 40 is then capable of storing a first reception and processing software (in terms of processing the received data and not in terms of reception itself), a generation software, a second reception and processing software (in terms of processing the received data and not in terms of reception itself), an identification software, a rendering software, and optionally a selection software. The processor 46 is then capable of executing each of the following software components: the first reception and processing software, the generation software, the second reception and processing software, the identification software, the rendering software, and optionally the selection software.

[0110] In an alternative not shown, the first module 26 for receiving and processing (in terms of processing the received data and not in terms of receiving as such), the generation module 28, the second module 30 for receiving and processing (in terms of processing the received data and not in terms of receiving as such), the identification module 32, the restitution module 34, and optionally the selection module 36, are each implemented as a programmable logic component, such as an FPGA (Field Programmable Gate Array), or an integrated circuit, such as an ASIC (Application Specified Integrated Circuit).

[0111] When the electronic location device 40 is implemented in the form of one or more software programs, that is, in the form of a computer program, also called a computer program product, or hereinafter referred to as a "user location application," it is also capable of being stored on a computer-readable medium, not shown. The computer-readable medium is, for example, a medium capable of storing electronic instructions and being connected to a bus of a computer system. By way of example, the readable medium is an optical disc, a magneto-optical disc, ROM, RAM, any type of non-volatile memory (for example, FLASH or NVRAM), or a magnetic card. A computer program comprising software instructions is then stored on the readable medium.

[0112] An example of an embodiment of the operation, according to the present invention, of a system 10 as described above is described below in relation to [Fig.2].

[0113] More specifically, the method 50 for locating a user within a railway vehicle 14, as described above, comprises a plurality of steps implemented by said smartphone 16, and firstly a first step 52 of receiving and processing R_T a location signal emitted by the nearest beacon 20 of said user 12 carrying said smartphone 16, said location signal comprising at less two pieces of information specific to each beacon, respectively specifying: the train number in which said beacon is located and the identifier of the passenger car in which said beacon is located, said passenger car identifier being constant and comprising a code representative of the type of said car and, when said railway vehicle comprises several cars of the same type, a number distinct from one car of the same type to another, said passenger car identifier having been allocated beforehand to said beacon using a reference configuration of said train.

[0114] According to a second step, the method 50 includes a step 54 of generating and issuing G_R a request to at least one data server of the manager of said railway vehicle, requiring at least two elements: an identifier of the current configuration of said trainset associated with said trainset number and a trainset arrangement matrix, said matrix comprising a plurality of rows each associated with a trainset configuration distinct from one row to another, each configuration corresponding to a set of ordered columns, a part of which is dedicated to passenger car columns, each passenger car column comprising a passenger car identifier of said trainset, distinct from one passenger car column to another.

[0115] An example of such a matrix is ​​illustrated by the table below:

[0116] [Tables 1] 1 9VBT3KT 4 943 PCI ET1 IT1 BT KT IT2 IT3 IT4 IT5 ET2 PC2 2 9VBT4KT 3 934 PCI ET1 IT1 KT BT IT2 IT3 IT4 IT5 ET2 PC2 3 9VBT2KT 4 942 PCI ET1 BT IT1 KT IT2 IT3 IT4 IT5 ET2 PC2 4 9VKT4 940 PCI ET1 IT1 IT6 KT IT2 IT3 IT4 IT5 ET2 PC2 5 8VBT4KT 3 834 PCI ET1 IT1 KT BT IT2 IT4 IT5 ET2 PC2 6 8VBT3KT 4 843 PCI ET1 IT1 BT KT IT2 IT4 IT5 ET2 PC2 7 8VKT3 830 PCI ET1 IT1 KT IT2 IT3 IT4 IT5 ET2 PC2 8 8VKT4 840 PCI ET1 IT1 IT6 KT IT2 IT4 IT5 ET2 PC2 9 7VBT4KT 3 734 PCI ET1 IT1 KT BT IT2 IT5 ET2 PC2 10 7VBT3KT 4 743 PCI ET1 IT1 BT KT IT2 IT5 ET2 PC2 11 7VKT4 740 PCI ET1 IT1 IT6 KT IT2 IT5 ET2 PC2 12 9VBT4KT 5 954 PCI ET1 IT1 IT2 BT KT IT3 IT4 IT5 ET2 PC2 13 9VKT5 950 PCI ET1 IT1 IT2 IT6 KT IT3 IT4 IT5 ET2 PC2 14 9VBT2KT 3 932 PCI ET1 BT KT IT2 IT3 IT4 IT5 IT6 ET2 PC2 15 9VKT3 930 PCI ET1 IT1 KT IT2 IT3 IT4 IT5 IT6 ET2 PC2 16 8VBT2KT 3 832 PCI ET1 BT KT IT2 IT3 IT4 IT5 ET2 PC2 17 7VBT2KT 3 732 PCI ET1 BT KT IT2 IT4 IT5 ET2 PC2 18 7VKT3 730 PCI ET1 IT1 KT IT2 IT4 IT5 ET2 PC2

[0117] More specifically, this arrangement matrix comprises eighteen numbered rows from one to eighteen in the first column of the matrix, each associated with a distinct configuration of the same train whose commercial number is, for example, 1038. Each configuration is also associated, according to this example, with an identifying code indicated in the second column and a numerical reference indicated in the third column; the following columns of the matrix are used to represent the order of the cars of the train in the configuration considered.

[0118] The arrangement matrix also includes fourteen columns, the first three columns being dedicated to different identifiers of the same configuration, the following columns being dedicated to each containing a unique railway vehicle car identifier (i.e. the identifier being attached to the same railway car regardless of the configuration).

[0119] For example, the first configuration shown in the first row of the matrix above is identified by the code 9VBT3KT4, which serves as the identifier for said first configuration and means that this first configuration comprises, in order between each power car PCI and PC2, nine passenger cars arranged in the order ET1, IT1, BT, KT, IT2, IT3, IT4, IT5, and ET2, with the bar car BT being in the third passenger car position, considering that car ET1 is the first passenger car (i.e., the power car PCI not being a passenger car), and the key car KT being in the fourth position. In the third column, the numerical reference is 943, the 9 corresponding to the number of passenger cars, the 4 corresponding to the position of the key car KT in the ordered set of passenger cars, the 3 corresponding to the position of the bar car BT.

[0120] It should be noted that the configuration illustrated by [Fig. 1] is that of the second line identified by the code 9VBT4KT3 which is the identifier of said sixth configuration and means that this second configuration includes in an ordered manner between each driving car PCI and PC2, nine passenger cars ordered according to the order ET1, IT1, KT, BT, IT2, IT3, IT4, IT5 and ET2, the bar car BT being this time in the fourth position of passenger car considering that the car ET1 is the first passenger car, (i.e. the driving car PCI not being a passenger car), the key car KT being in the third position.In the third column, the numerical reference is 934 and also serves as the identifier of said second configuration, the 9 corresponding to the number of passenger cars, the 3 corresponding to the position of the key car KT in the ordered set of passenger cars, the 4 corresponding to the position of the bar car BT, and so on line by line of said arrangement matrix.

[0121] Similarly, the sixth configuration in the sixth row of the matrix above is identified by the code 8VBT3KT4, which serves as the identifier for said sixth configuration and signifies that this sixth configuration comprises, in an ordered manner, eight passenger cars: ET1, IT1, BT, KT, IT2, IT4, IT5, and ET2. The bar car BT is in the third passenger car position, considering that car ET1 is the first passenger car (i.e., the power car PCI is not a passenger car), and the key car KT is in the fourth position. In the third column, the numerical reference is 843 and also serves as the identifier for said sixth configuration. The 8 corresponds to the number of passenger cars, the 4 to the position of the key car KT in the ordered set of passenger cars, and the 3 to the position of the bar car BT.

[0122] Similarly, the eighteenth configuration in the eighteenth row of the matrix above is identified by the code 7VKT3, which serves as the identifier for said eighteenth configuration and signifies that this configuration comprises, in an ordered manner, seven passenger cars: ET1, IT1, KT, IT2, IT4, IT5, and ET2, with the key car KT in the third position. In the third column, the numerical reference is 730 and also serves as the identifier for said eighteenth configuration, with 7 corresponding to the number of passenger cars, 3 to the position of the key car KT in the ordered set of passenger cars, and 0 indicating that there is no bar car BT.

[0123] From the four preceding detailed descriptions, the arrangement of the other configurations of the matrix is ​​easily deduced.

[0124] It should be noted that the part dedicated to the passenger car columns varies in composition and / or size from one configuration to another. For example, for For nine-passenger car configurations, namely the first through fourth configurations and the twelfth through fifteenth configurations, this section comprises columns from the fifth to the thirteenth column. For eight-passenger car configurations, namely the fifth through eighth configurations and the sixth configuration, this section comprises columns from the fifth to the twelfth column. For eight-passenger car configurations, namely the ninth through eleventh configurations and the seventeenth and eighteenth configurations, this section comprises columns from the fifth to the eleventh column. Empty cells in the matrix indicate that there is no railcar in that column position.

[0125] According to a third step 56, said smartphone 16 implements the reception R_E_R of the required elements.

[0126] According to a fourth step 58, said smartphone 16 implements, from the information of said location signal and said required elements, the identification I_P_C, in said matrix, of the line associated with said current configuration, and within the part dedicated to passenger car columns, said line associated with said current configuration, the position of the passenger column containing said passenger car identifier received within said signal emitted by the nearest beacon 20.

[0127] According to a fifth step 60, said smartphone 16 implements REST restitution of the location of said user using said column position.

[0128] Several optional alternatives to the aforementioned steps are described below.

[0129] Indeed, as an optional addition, when the railway vehicle has several levels, the location signal also includes information identifying the level (from the English word "deck") on which the beacon is located. For example, when the railway vehicle has two levels, this information takes the form NI to designate the first level and N2 to designate the second level, or alternatively N0 to designate the first level, corresponding for example to the ground floor, and NI to designate the second level, corresponding to the first floor, etc.

[0130] According to another optional supplement, said location signal also includes information identifying a location zone of said beacon within the car in which said beacon is placed. For example, this information is "platform" or "lower room" or "upper room", etc.

[0131] Thus, taking up again the example of the arrangement matrix reproduced above, if on the one hand the location signal includes, for example, the following information according to which the beacon closest to the user indicates that it is in train 1038, in a car whose identifier (unique and constant for any configuration) is IT4, at level N2, and within the platform, and if on the other hand the required elements data from the rail vehicle manager's data server indicate that the current configuration has the numerical reference 843, it is identified during step 58 using the layout matrix and in particular the sixth line associated with the configuration whose numerical reference is 843 that the passenger (i.e. the user) is located near the beacon located at level N2 and within the platform of the car whose unique identifier IT4 is in the sixth column of the part dedicated to the passenger car columns.

[0132] Taking up this example again, it is then returned to the user 60 that he is in the sixth car, which allows him to advantageously locate himself.

[0133] As illustrated by the example embodiment of [Fig.2], according to another optional addition where said smartphone receives substantially simultaneously several location signals emitted by separate beacons, said method 50 further includes a step 62 of selecting the location signal emitted by the beacon closest to said user carrying said smartphone, by measuring 64 the power of each of said signals, said selected signal having the highest power level.

[0134] According to another optional supplement, said rendering 60 is vocal V via step 66 in particular via the speaker of said smartphone, and / or by display A via step 68 on a screen of said smartphone 16. For example, the display consists of positioning with certainty the user's position marker on a diagram (i.e. a plan, a schematic) of the railway train in which he is mounted.

[0135] As an optional addition, process 50 further includes a phase for updating said location of said user, said update phase consisting of repeating at least said identification and restitution steps as soon as the location signal received at a current time differs from the location signal received at the time preceding said current time.

[0136] This update phase is illustrated by references 70, 72, 74 and 76 of [Fig.2]. Indeed, the arrow 70 at the output of the restitution step 60 returns for updating, at a current time i, to the input of the reception step 52 and then exits it in order to test, according to step 72, whether the location signal Si received at the current time i differs or not from the location signal Sm received at the time i-1 preceding said current time i.

[0137] If so (i.e., in the event of a change in the received location signal), as indicated by arrow 76, steps 58 (identification) and 60 (retrieval) are repeated, as this corresponds to the case where the beacon closest to the user has changed, particularly due to the user's movement within the train. Thus, the user's position within the train will be restored to them in near real-time, which advantageously allows them to be guided to the carriage in which they have reserved a seat. For example, if they have reserved seat 21 in carriage 8, and their movement takes them to that point... By moving from car 6 to car 5 instead of from car 6 to car 7, the user understands that he has not moved in the right direction and that he must turn around.

[0138] If not, according to arrow 74 which joins arrow 70, the reception step 52 and test step 72 are repeated.

[0139] A person skilled in the art will understand that the invention is not limited to the embodiments described, nor to the particular examples of the description, the embodiments and variants mentioned above being capable of being combined with each other to generate new embodiments of the invention.

[0140] The present invention thus makes it possible to provide the user (i.e. the passenger of a railway vehicle) with a reliable means of self-locating, via his smartphone and a dedicated application, within the railway vehicle itself and this independently of the modularity of the train implemented, each railway car being associated with a unique identifier throughout its operating period (i.e. its lifespan) via a plurality of distinct train configurations which can be selected according to the operating needs of the railway vehicle manager and which can be modified for example during maintenance operations.

[0141] In other words, whatever the train configuration (i.e. the train arrangement) implemented, the present invention proposes to link, via the arrangement matrix (also called association table) between: this "organic" (i.e. the organic numbering) and current configuration of the railway vehicle and the commercial operation via the commercial seat numbering (i.e. place) used by a commercial seat reservation system.

[0142] To achieve this, according to the present invention, the signal emitted by each user location aid beacon is constantly used and processed correctly, via the identification implemented, to be representative of the exact location of the beacon within the current configuration of the railway train.

[0143] The user location solution (i.e. self-location by the user via their smartphone) thus proposed is robust in the face of the implementation of a modularity of train.

Claims

1. Demands Method (50) for locating a user within a railway vehicle, the user being equipped with a smartphone, the railway vehicle comprising at least one trainset, each trainset being modular according to a plurality of distinct configurations, and comprising a plurality of passenger cars of at least two distinct types, at least one user location aid beacon being disposed within each passenger car, each beacon being capable of periodically emitting a location signal comprising at least two pieces of information specific to each beacon, respectively specifying: - a train number in which said beacon is located; - an identifier of the passenger car in which said beacon is located, said passenger car identifier being constant and comprising a code representative of the type of said car and, where said railway vehicle comprises several cars of the same type, a number distinct from one car of the same type to another; said passenger car identifier having been allocated beforehand to said beacon using a reference configuration of said train; said method (50) comprising the following steps implemented by said smartphone: - reception and processing (52) of a location signal emitted by the nearest beacon of said user carrying said smartphone; - generation and transmission (54) of a request to at least one data server of the manager of said railway vehicle, requiring at least two elements: - an identifier of the current configuration of said train associated with said train number; - a train arrangement matrix, said matrix comprising a plurality of rows each associated with a train configuration distinct from one row to another, each configuration corresponding to a set of ordered columns, a part of which is dedicated to passenger car columns, each passenger car column comprising a passenger car identifier of said train, distinct from one passenger car column to another; - receipt (56) of the required elements; - from the information of said location signal and said required elements, identification (58) in said matrix of the line associated with said current configuration, and, within the part dedicated to passenger car columns, of said line associated with said current configuration, the position of the passenger column containing said passenger car identifier received within said signal; - restitution (60) of the location of said user using said column position.

2. Method (50) according to claim 1, wherein said rendering is vocal and / or by display on a screen of said smartphone.

3. Method (50) according to claim 1 or 2, wherein the type of passenger car belongs to the group comprising at least: - an end car; - an intermediate car; - a bar car; - a key car.

4. Method (50) according to any one of the preceding claims, wherein said location signal also includes, where said railway vehicle has several levels, information identifying the level in which said beacon is disposed.

5. Method (50) according to any one of the preceding claims, wherein said location signal also includes identification information for a location zone of said beacon within the car in which said beacon is disposed.

6. A method (50) according to any one of the preceding claims, wherein, when said smartphone receives substantially simultaneously several location signals emitted by separate beacons, said method (50) further comprises, by measuring (64) the power of each of said signals, a step (62) of selecting the location signal emitted by the beacon closest to said user carrying said smartphone, said selected signal having the highest power level.

7. A method (50) according to any one of the preceding claims, comprising a phase of updating said location of said user, said update phase consisting of repeating at least said identification (58) and restitution (60) steps as soon as the location signal received at a current time differs from the location signal received at the time preceding said current time.

8. A computer program comprising software instructions which, when executed by a computer, implement the processing, generation, identification and restitution steps of the localization method according to any one of the preceding claims.

9. System (10) for locating a user (12) within a railway vehicle (14), the user (12) being equipped with a smartphone (16), the railway vehicle (14) comprising at least one trainset (18), each trainset (18) being modular according to a plurality of distinct configurations, and comprising a plurality of passenger cars of at least two distinct types, at least one beacon (20) for assisting in locating the user being disposed within each passenger car, each beacon being capable of periodically emitting a location signal comprising at least two pieces of information specific to each beacon, respectively specifying: - a trainset number in which said beacon is disposed;- an identifier of the passenger car in which said beacon is located, said passenger car identifier being constant and comprising a code representative of the type of said car and, where said railway vehicle comprises several cars of the same type, a number distinct from one car of the same type to another; said passenger car identifier having been allocated beforehand to said beacon using a reference configuration of said train; said system (10) comprising the plurality of beacons (20) located within the cars of said railway vehicle (14), at least one data server (24) for the manager of said railway vehicle (14) and said smartphone (16), said smartphone comprising: - a first receiving and processing module (26) configured to receive and process a location signal emitted by the nearest beacon of said user carrying said smartphone;- a generation and transmission module (28) configured to generate and transmit a request to said at least one data server of the manager of said railway vehicle, requiring at least two elements: - an identifier of the current configuration of said train associated with said train number; - a train arrangement matrix, said matrix comprising a plurality of rows each associated with a train configuration distinct from one row to another, each configuration corresponding to a set of ordered columns, a part of which is dedicated to passenger car columns, each passenger car column comprising a passenger car identifier of said train, distinct from one passenger car column to another.- a second receiving and processing module (30) configured to receive said required elements; - an identification module (32) configured to identify, from said location signal information and said required elements: - in said matrix, the line associated with said current configuration, and - within the part dedicated to passenger car columns, said line associated with said current configuration, the position of the passenger column containing said passenger car identifier received within said signal; - a rendering module (34) configured to render the location of said user using said column position.

10. Location system (10) according to claim 9, wherein each beacon is a low energy Bluetooth BLE beacon.

11. A location system (10) according to any one of the preceding claims, wherein the passenger car type belongs to the group comprising at least: - an end car; - an intermediate car; - a bar car; - a key car.

12. A location system (10) according to any one of the preceding claims, wherein a plurality of beacons (20) are arranged within each passenger car, the number of beacons per car depending on the type of said car.

13. Location system (10) according to claims 11 and 12 wherein four beacons are arranged in a bar car type car and wherein five beacons are arranged in a passenger car of any other type distinct from the bar car type.

14. A beacon (20) for assisting in locating a user (12) within a railway vehicle (14), said beacon being disposed within a passenger car of said railway vehicle (14), and capable of periodically emitting a location signal comprising at least two pieces of information specific to it, respectively specifying: - a train number in which said beacon is disposed; - an identifier of the passenger car in which said beacon is disposed, said passenger car identifier being constant and comprising a code representative of the type of said car and, where said railway vehicle comprises several cars of the same type, a number distinct from one car of the same type to another; said passenger car identifier having been previously allocated to said beacon using a reference configuration of said train.

15. Beacon (20) according to claim 14, wherein said beacon (20) is a Bluetooth Low Energy BLE beacon

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