Railway Control Center Integration With Shared UX/UI Standards
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Solution Overview
Problem
The integration of various applications in a railway control center, originating from different manufacturers and added gradually, is technically complex and cost-intensive due to their independence.
Innovation Solution
A control center device with a central computing instance, display device, computer-aided integration module, and UX/UI database that integrates applications by exchanging process data and workflow information while adhering to cross-application UX/UI specifications, ensuring a uniform display and integration without requiring significant adaptation of existing applications.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Adaptability or versatility
If multiple independent applications from different manufacturers are integrated into a control center system, then the system can provide comprehensive railway operations control functionality, but the integration becomes technically complex and cost-intensive
Solution Approach 1:
The system is segmented into independent applications that each handle specific railway control functions (train control, signaling, scheduling, etc.). Each application operates autonomously while communicating through standardized interfaces, allowing comprehensive functionality without requiring deep integration of internal processes.
Solution Approach 2:
A universal UX/UI framework and common database structure are implemented across all applications. This provides consistent user interaction patterns, standardized data formats, and unified display conventions, enabling applications from different manufacturers to integrate seamlessly while maintaining their specialized functionalities.
2Ease of operation
If applications are integrated with centralized UX/UI specifications, then a uniform display and consistent user experience are achieved, but the applications require adaptation to comply with specifications
Solution Approach 1:
UX/UI specifications, display conventions, and data format standards are defined and established before applications are developed or integrated. This preliminary framework allows applications to be built or adapted with consistent interfaces from the outset, reducing later modification requirements while ensuring uniform user experience.
Solution Approach 2:
Applications adapt to centralized UX/UI specifications by adjusting display parameters, data formatting, and interface conventions rather than changing their core functional logic. This allows maintaining application independence while achieving visual and interaction consistency through parameter standardization.
Data Source
AI summary
The invention relates to a control center device (1) for a railway system, comprising a plurality of computer-aided and essentially independent applications (2), each designed to create and output application-related image data (11), at least one central computing instance (3) designed to receive the application-related image data (11), at least one display device (6) connected to the computing instance (3) for displaying the application-related image data (11), at least one computer-aided integration module (4) connected both to the computing instance (3) and to the plurality of applications (2) and designed for exchanging process data (12) and/or workflow information (13) between the applications (2), and at least one UX/UI database (10) in which cross-application UX/UI specifications (15), such as colors, fonts or icons,for the image data (11) to be displayed on the display device (6), wherein the applications (2) are each designed to take into account the cross-application UX/UI specifications (15) stored in the UX/UI database (10) when creating the application-related image data (11). The invention has the advantage that a uniform design of the various applications (2) can be achieved on the display device (6). The invention also relates to a method for operating a railway system.