Kapsch CarrierCom achieves functional addressing for railway communications

Kapsch CarrierCom’s Vienna lab has successfully carried out the first functional addressing call utilising SIP signalling based on the IP multimedia subsystem (IMS). The functional addressing service, also called ‘follow Me’, is one of the key operational features in railway communication networks and is the process of placing a call using a number that refers to the function which a user is performing at a certain time, as opposed to simply identifying the terminal equipment used. The achievement com
June 10, 2016 Read time: 2 mins
81 Kapsch CarrierCom’s Vienna lab has successfully carried out the first functional addressing call utilising SIP signalling based on the IP multimedia subsystem (IMS).

The functional addressing service, also called ‘follow Me’, is one of the key operational features in railway communication networks and is the process of placing a call using a number that refers to the function which a user is performing at a certain time, as opposed to simply identifying the terminal equipment used.

The achievement combines soft phone-based user equipment, IMS capabilities and the service logic hosted within the Service Control Point release 5 (SCP5) application server. Kapsch’s new SCP5 uses standard commercial off-the-shelf hardware and is a convergent Service Delivery Platform (SDP). It enables service centralisation, functional transparency against the underlying network architecture and a smooth transition between current networks and the future full-IP system and is fully enabled for virtualisation, allowing flexible and cost-efficient deployment in railway data centres.

Overall, the system used for the demonstration of functional calls is aligned with the concepts discussed in the ETSI TC RT working group NG2R and the vision outlined in the user requirements and system architecture defined by the UIC project, Future Railway Mobile Communication System (FRMCS).

It acts as a building block for the additional activities planned within the European SHIFT2RAIL project. The proposed transition of the Global System for Mobile Communications – Railway (GSM-R) core systems to IP-based systems offers a number of benefits. It is primarily targeted to be radio technology-independent and offers multi-bearer support. In addition, it will increase reliability and availability, improve safety and reduce costs.

Within the next few years, European railway operators are expected to start to migrate to IP-infrastructure by adopting new technologies and prepare for the migration towards the future railway communication system.

In December 2015, Kapsch became associated member of SHIFT2RAIL and undertook responsibility for carrying out the analysis, specification and implementation of a prototype for a future communication system emergency call under the Innovation Programme 2.

For more information on companies in this article

Related Content

  • Nairobi looks to ITS to ease travel problems
    March 6, 2018
    Shem Oirere looks at plans to tackle chronic congestion in the Kenyan capital - where commuters can typically expect it to take up to two hours to complete a 15km journey. Traffic jams in the Kenyan capital, Nairobi, are estimated to cost the country $360 million a year in terms of lost man-hours, fuel and pollution. According to Wilfred Oginga, an engineer with the Kenya Urban Roads Authority (KURA), the congestion has been exacerbated by poor regulation and enforcement of traffic rules, absence of
    Read More
  • Nairobi looks to ITS to ease travel problems
    March 6, 2018
    Shem Oirere looks at plans to tackle chronic congestion in the Kenyan capital - where commuters can typically expect it to take up to two hours to complete a 15km journey. Traffic jams in the Kenyan capital, Nairobi, are estimated to cost the country $360 million a year in terms of lost man-hours, fuel and pollution. According to Wilfred Oginga, an engineer with the Kenya Urban Roads Authority (KURA), the congestion has been exacerbated by poor regulation and enforcement of traffic rules, absence of
    Read More
  • Nairobi looks to ITS to ease travel problems
    March 6, 2018
    Shem Oirere looks at plans to tackle chronic congestion in the Kenyan capital - where commuters can typically expect it to take up to two hours to complete a 15km journey. Traffic jams in the Kenyan capital, Nairobi, are estimated to cost the country $360 million a year in terms of lost man-hours, fuel and pollution. According to Wilfred Oginga, an engineer with the Kenya Urban Roads Authority (KURA), the congestion has been exacerbated by poor regulation and enforcement of traffic rules, absence of
    Read More
  • Evidence growing for distance-based charging
    January 18, 2012
    The case is growing for an alternative to fuel taxation for funding highway infrastructure. A more sustainable system of mileage-based charging can be established in a way that is acceptable to the travelling public, writes Jack Opiola. Fuel tax - the lifeblood relied on for 80 years to maintain and improve roads and transit systems - is now in considerable jeopardy in the United States. Increased vehicle fuel efficiency and a poor economy already hamper generation of fuel tax revenue; now a recent federal
    Read More

Highlighted Content