Telefónica has joined the company CAF (Construcciones y Auxiliar de Ferrocarriles), dedicated to the manufacture and supply of transportation systems, to launch the first B2B pilot in Europe that incorporates edge computing and 5G capabilities applied to the railway sector. The deployment, which has been carried out in Bilbao, is an advance in the digital transformation of heavy industry.
CAF has implemented a solution that allows the occupancy of the train to be automatically detected, as well as the presence of suspicious objects in its carriages, which improves both safety and operational efficiency. To do this, the project has an artificial vision system based on AI and designed to analyze video streams in real time.
This is possible thanks to the combination of 5G with edge and network slicing, which allow data to be processed in real time very close to the point where it is produced. The use of network slicing over Telefónica’s 5G public network also allows the data captured by the artificial vision systems to be transmitted to the node safely, and through a prioritized channel.
To this we must add the processing of this data, which is carried out entirely in the Bilbao edge node. It is therefore a technology that brings the data processing closer to the origin, which guarantees ultra-low latency and total data sovereignty, given that the information never leaves the region or area in which it is generated.
With this data collection and processing model, railway operators can avoid having to install complex and expensive hardware inside trains, since centralizing intelligence at the edge reduces maintenance costs, while improving flexibility.
The implementation is based on Telefónica Empresas’ Operator Platform (Smart Edge) solution, which facilitates the deployment of applications and the interoperability and integration of edge services with other architectures in the EU. The pilot, on the other hand, is part of the European IPCEI-CIS initiative coordinated by the European Commission. Different member countries have participated with their proposals.
Telefónica Spain’s proposal was presented to the IPCEI in 2021, and once it received approval from the European Commission, it was launched with financing from the Recovery, Transformation and Resilience Plan of the Government of Spain.
Leonor Ostos, Innovation Manager at Telefónica Spainhas highlighted that «With this project, Telefónica and CAF consolidate themselves as pioneers in the technological combination of 5G, Edge and Network Slicing. This collaboration not only improves the technical and economic competitiveness of both companies in the face of the new demands of the railway market, but also promotes progress towards industry 4.0.«.
Igor Lopez Orbe, Head of the CAF Communications and Cybersecurity Center of Excellencehas also pointed out that «5G technology is allowing vehicles to be increasingly connected. Edge technology in turn allows us to process information outside the train in real time. The combination of both technologies makes it possible to implement advanced functions, including in some cases security, without losing focus on the cost and long-term sustainability of the service. This project is part of a long history of collaboration in innovation between Telefónica and CAF, with support from European institutions, which we hope to maintain and strengthen in the future.«.
