Distributed IoT system for real-time monitoring and tracking of locomotives

The transport sector is one of the main contributors to a country’s carbon emissions. Among the modes of transport, there is transport by locomotives, which is a source of greenhouse gas emissions, as well as emissions of atmospheric pollutants such as NOx and PM. In addition to sustainability, fuel thefts are frequent in operating locomotives. Approximately 150 225 liters of fuel are stolen from rail transport in the Swedish market. This fuel theft of the direct impacts of fuel theft, indirect impacts are reported as: (i) delay in product delivery, (ii) need to tow the locomotive, (iii) financial losses. Fuel can account for more than 25% of a railway’s total operating cost. The Blockchain-based platform has a broad scope and aims to record and integrate data making it available to the engineering, quality, supply chain and operational teams. Thus, data recording on this platform will be done by operators from different sectors, from the locomotive driver to strategic levels.

Highlights

• The present invention has the main differentials: (i) security, (ii) immutability, (iii) transparency, (iv) integration, (iv) combines traditional security mechanisms (train control and protection, interlocking) with information technology of cutting edge, (v) fault tolerant, (vi) real-time monitoring, (vii) inhibition of fraud and theft of parts and fuel, and (viii) real-time decision making.
• The routes of a given locomotive can be determined, reserved and scheduled automatically and in real time, based on transparent intelligent contracts that guarantee the reservation of resources without conflicts.
• The proposed system is able to increase efficiency, flexibility and allows the negotiation of locomotive priorities, thus optimizing the logistics of the railway network of a company and nation.
• The system aims to reduce the number of stops and locomotive connections, mainly because these activities reduce the safety of operators and are responsible for delays in deliveries and financial loss of thousands of dollars for companies.
• The system aims to reduce the cost of transporting passengers and cargo, as well as reducing the environmental impacts of this mode of transport.
• The system will have some advantages, such as: (i) Monitoring of all parameters of the locomotive, its load and its fuel in real time, (ii) Transparency, immutability, security and allowing its auditability, (iii) prevent fraud and fuel theft, (iv) Diagnoses on the locomotive, increased energy efficiency and reduced pollutant emissions, (v) Estimation of fuel consumption and environmental impacts.