Multimodal Transportation Supervision Infrastructure
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Solution Overview
Problem
In multimodal land transportation networks, users face challenges in minimizing travel time due to independent management of monomodal networks, leading to extended wait times and suboptimal service quality, especially during transfers between different public transportation services.
Innovation Solution
A supervision infrastructure that interfaces with existing operating systems of monomodal networks to provide a global view of traffic, dynamically adjust timetables, and implement synchronization mechanisms at transfer stations, using a decentralized and centralized module structure to optimize operations and manage traffic dynamically.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Ease of operation
If monomodal networks are managed independently by different operators, then each network can maintain its own operational simplicity, but the overall multimodal network experiences extended wait times and suboptimal service quality at transfer stations
Solution Approach 1:
The patent merges independent monomodal network management systems into a unified multimodal supervision infrastructure that coordinates multiple transportation services (subway, bus, tram, train) across different operators. This allows synchronized scheduling at transfer stations while preserving the operational independence of individual monomodal networks, thereby reducing wait times without compromising operational simplicity.
Solution Approach 2:
The supervision infrastructure acts as an intermediary layer between independent monomodal network operators. It collects operational data from various operators, performs centralized coordination and optimization, then returns adjusted schedules to the respective operators. This mediator approach enables cooperative optimization across the multimodal network while maintaining the simplicity of individual operator systems.
2Ease of manufacture
If theoretical schedules are used for trip planning, then users can plan their trips in advance, but the schedules are difficult to respect leading to missed transfers and extended travel duration
Solution Approach 1:
The system transitions from static theoretical schedules to dynamic real-time schedule adjustment. The supervision infrastructure continuously monitors actual vehicle positions, delays, and operational conditions, then dynamically updates timetables for all monomodal networks. This allows the system to adapt to real-time conditions, ensuring schedule adherence even when disruptions occur, while maintaining the ability for users to plan trips in advance.
Solution Approach 2:
The supervision infrastructure implements continuous feedback loops where actual operational data from vehicles and stations is collected, compared against theoretical schedules, and used to generate corrective adjustments. This feedback mechanism ensures that schedules are not only planned in advance but also actively maintained through real-time monitoring and adjustment, preventing missed transfers.
3Reliability
If a centralized system supervises the entire multimodal network, then coordination between different services improves, but the system complexity increases
Solution Approach 1:
The supervision infrastructure is segmented into modular functional components that interface with each monomodal network operator independently. Each module handles specific tasks (data collection, schedule optimization, communication) and can operate semi-autonomously. This segmentation reduces overall system complexity by breaking down the centralized supervision function into manageable, reusable components while maintaining effective coordination across the entire multimodal network.
Data Source
AI summary
This infrastructure is characterized in that the multimodal network grouping together a plurality of monomodal networks, each monomodal network being equipped with an individual operating system, the supervision infrastructure includes a plurality of local supervision modules, each local supervision module being associated with a transfer station providing an interconnection between at least two of the monomodal networks and being able to perform a real-time synthesis of the traffic at the associated transfer station and continuously execute a plurality of operating rules by using operating data from the traffic synthesis so as to generate at least one setpoint, and to send the setpoint to at least one operating system of one monomodal network from among the monomodal networks interconnected to the associated transfer station.