Technology firm Huawei has introduced the Future Railway Mobile Communication System (FRMCS) solution to drive a digital shift in the railway sector.

The solution was unveiled at InnoTrans 2022 and the 9th Huawei Global Rail Summit held in Berlin, Germany.

FRMCS will enable functions that include the use of train-to-ground wireless services for train control and dispatch, railway operations and maintenance (O&M), and railway internet of things (IoT).

The solution will also help enhance train operational efficiency and safety, according to the firm.

Apart from delivering reliability and low latency for train control and dispatch, the technology will support locomotive status monitoring, train operation monitoring and visualised dispatch of O&M crews.

Based on 8T8R Smart MIMO technology, the solution provides coverage in the 1,900MHz band that is similar to GSM-R in the 900MHz band when tagged with high-power devices.

Equipped with keyboards, key network elements and wireless networks, FRMCS cuts the risk of single-point failures on networks and meets the requirements of the European Train Control System (ETCS).

Additionally, its architecture allows it to be integrated with railway industry applications.

Huawei Enterprise Wireless Domain president Li Jie said: “The railway industry is now in a critical period of digital transformation, when the requirements for train-to-ground wireless communication systems are higher than ever before.

“Huawei FRMCS can meet these requirements by integrating Huawei’s 4G and 5G technologies. It can help railway customers build high-reliability, high-bandwidth, future-oriented train-to-ground wireless broadband networks that are safe, reliable, converged, simplified, and capable of long-term evolution.”

The company is planning a large-scale commercial launch of FRMCS to promote smart railways.

Meanwhile, Huawei also displayed other smart urban rail solutions, including a Wi-Fi 6 train-to-ground communications network as well as smart station solutions, at the InnoTrans ‘Digitalisation of Rail Infrastructure’ expo.