ORIGINAL ARTICLE

Comparison and Optimization Analysis of Control Logic for

Automatic Station Notification of Subway Trains
Xiang-Ming Liu
Guangdong Huizhou Industrial Transportation Engineering College

Abstract: Train Passenger Information Display System (PIDS) is one of the vehicle systems that directly contact
passengers. Its Performance Reflects the Level of Train Operation Service. Passenger Information Display System
including 3 subsystems: Broadcasting System, Video Monitoring System and Media Display System. This article only
discusses the broadcasting system. First,the function of broadcasting system is introduced. Second, explain the control
logic of automatic station reporting of the broadcasting system, and put forward optimization suggestions for problems
occurring in the subway operation process. Finally, compare and analyze 2 kinds of automatic station reporting modes.
Keywords: Subway; Broadcasting System; Station Reporting Mode; Comparative Analysis

1. Overview of Train Broadcasting System Functions

Broadcasting system is one of the most basic and important systems of the PIDS system, which provides
convenience for passengers to get on and off[1]. It mainly including broadcasting station, two-end cab intercom,
passenger emergency alarm intercom, cab emergency broadcast cycle play, cab broadcast volume auto-adjust according
to noise level and other functions[2]. This paper mainly studies the function of broadcasting and reporting stations in
train broadcasting system, and makes comparative analysis[3].
Broadcast station reporting mode is usually divided into 3 types: manual station reporting, semi-automatic station
reporting and fully automatic station reporting. Manual station reporting is the station reporting information
triggered by the driver manually clicking on the broadcast control box; Semi-automatic station announcement triggers
pre-arrival/ arrival broadcasting based on specific signals; Fully automatic station reporting is to trigger pre-arrival/
arrival Station broadcasting[4] after forwarding the station information given by the signals of Automatic Train Control
( ATC) to the broadcast system through the train control and monitoring system ( TCMS).

2. Semi-automatic Station Broadcast Control Logic

When the vehicle has no ATC signal, requires the broadcasting system can realize the semi-automatic station
reporting function of the train. according to TCMS starting station, next station, station information of the
terminal, broadcasting control logic through semi-automatic station reporting, set on the screen or broadcast control box.
Semi-automatic station announcement broadcast control logic includes 2 aspect: trigger logic of
pre-arrival/arrival broadcast and site code addition logic (plus station control logic). At present, there are two kinds of
pre-arrival/ arrival broadcast trigger logic used by domestic metro trains, one is triggered by train speed signal, the other
is triggered by distance signal between train and platform.

Copyright © 2014 Xiang-Ming Liu

doi: 10.18686/mt.v3i1.1364
This is an open-access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution Unported License
(http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc/4.0/), which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original
work is properly cited.

Modern Transportation Volume 3 Issue 1 | 2014 | 1

Qingdao Metro Line 11 requires setting station notification mode, starting station, next station and terminal information
on TCMS Screen. The PIDS system controls the central processor of the host computer to receive the real-time speed
information of the train forwarded from the TCMS system, then calculates the distance by itself, triggers the pre-arrival/
arrival broadcast according to the distance signal of the train from the platform, and completes the automatic station
reporting process by adding stations. The control logic is briefly described as follows:
(1) Known distance between all stations.
(2) Assuming that the train is parked at Station A and is ready to leave the departure platform for Station B, the
system detects the train speed in real time and carries out cumulative calculation on the time to calculate the distance
that has left Station A in real time, namely the starting distance. Then the distance from the next station B is
calculated by the distance between stations A and B, that is, the target distance.
(3) When the starting distance reaches 10m, the pre-arrival broadcasting begins; When the target distance is 200m,
the arrival station broadcast starts.
(4) At present, the station is added according to the signal of switch door and the distance from the station. That is,
when the action of switch door is detected and the distance from the station is 10m, the ID of the next station is
automatically increased by 1. The door opening and closing signal is the passenger compartment door closing signal, so
as to prevent the driver in the main line from opening and closing the driver’s compartment door and causing the station
reporting error.

3. Full-automatic Station Broadcasting Control Logic

In the full-automatic station reporting mode of Qingdao metro line 11, station information is completely rovided by
ATC signals, and the central processor of the PIDS system control host receives ATC related signals forwarded by the
TCMS system and broadcasts them, as shown in Figure 1.

(1) Forecast station signal: 8s before the train arrives, signal is true; train entry station, signal is false.
(2) Arrival signal: when the train entering platform, signal is true; after train stopping, signal is false.
(3) Departure signal: when the train leaves the platform, signal is true; when the tail leaves the platform, signal is
false.
(4) Current station ID: the train enters the platform to send the current station ID, and the current station ID is
canceled after the tail leaves the platform.
(5) Next station ID: Train continues to send next station ID information after departing from previous station, the
train updates next station ID+1 information. after Current Station Stops.

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 (6) on the door opening side: the signal sent by the train entering the platform is true, and the signal sent by the
rear of the train leaving the platform is false; ATC signals only send signals on side A or side B. The left side of vehicle
1 will always be side A and the right side of vehicle 1 will always be side B. The judgment of the opening side of train A
and B is shown in Figure 2.

When driver’s cab 1 is activated, based on train running forward, side A is on the left side of the train and side B is
on the right side of the train;
(2) When cab 2 is activated, based on train running forward, side A is on the right side of the train and side B is on
the left side of the train.
At present, Qingdao Metro Line 11 only has pre-arrival broadcasting and arrival broadcasting, only needs 2 kinds
of signals which are arrival signals and departure signals. When the train enters the platform, The arrival signal is valid,
and the train broadcasts the arrival broadcasting; When the train starts to leave the platform, the departure signal is valid,
and the train broadcasts the next station’s pre-arrival broadcast. The logic of adding stations for full-automatic station
reporting is to continuously send the next station ID and Information. After the train stops at the current station, update
the next station ID+1 and Information.

4. Optimization of Automatic Station Reporting Mode

4.1 Optimization of Semi-automatic Station Reporting Mode
Qingdao Metro Line 11 set semi-automatic station notification mode, starting station, next station and terminal
station on TCMS Screen. Assuming that the train stops at the current platform A, the next station is B, and the terminal
station is C, the train will start after the setup is completed. Under normal circumstances, the driver sets up a
semi-automatic station announcement information at the starting station before each departure, which can realize the
whole semi-automatic station announcement broadcasting.
It is now required that 1 sub-setting realizes full-day turn-back semi-automatic station reporting, i.e. drivers only
need to set 1 sub-semi-automatic station reporting mode and station information, the automatic report station for all-day
return can be realized without manual setting again.
When the whole line turns back, there will be two fixed turn-back points at both ends. After the key is changed at
the turn-back point, TCMS will save the previous setting information and then send it to PIDS system automatically.
According to the above information, because PIDS and system semi-automatic mode report station by distance, it
is unable to identify whether the current setting is at the platform or garage or turn-back point. Therefore, in order to

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achieve this function, the following improvements are required:
Whether the driver sets before departure from the garage or sets at the turn-back points at both ends, it is necessary
to set the starting station and the next station as the same station, i.e. starting station, ID= next station ID;
Because the system station adding logic is implemented according to the door opening and closing operation, if the
door opening and closing when not reach the station, it will lead to the error of semi-automatic station announcement.
Therefore, it is not allowed to switch doors in the guest room before arriving at the corresponding station after the
setting of the storehouse or turning point is completed.

4.2 Optimization of Full Automatic Station Reporting Mode

4.2.1 Up and Down Judgment Logic
In the trial operation phase, when the broadcasting station reporting mode is fully automatic, ATC signal triggers
accurate station information, but the broadcasting system does not report stations correctly. The download log found
that, due to the restart of the main control program of the PIDS system, it is unable to correctly judge line up and down,
resulting in the error of station reporting. The control logic to judge the upstream and downstream is to compare the
next station ID and the current station ID when they are not zero. If the next station ID is larger than the current station
ID, it will be downstream, otherwise it will be upstream. That is, the next station ID cannot be equal to the current
station ID, and when the next station ID and the current station ID are not zero, the system can confirm the current
upstream and downstream.
When the train has just entered the platform and the train has not stopped, Next Station ID is equal to current
station ID or the current station ID is 0 after the train tail leaves the platform, the system can not confirm the current
upstream and downstream, which will lead to station reporting errors. The optimization method is: to change the control
logic for judging up and down to next station ID and current station ID or next station ID and terminal station ID
comparison. When the former cannot meet the judgment conditions, the latter logic is used to judge. The control logic
of the latter is that if the next station ID is greater than the terminal ID, it is up, otherwise it is down. This can ensure the
correct judgment of the train boarding and disembarking, thus solving the problem of wrong station announcement.
4.2.2 Next Station ID Update
When fully automatic station reporting, according to the signal timing diagram, when adding stations at the next
station, ATC next station information is 0, about 3 to 4 seconds, which will lead to the error of station reporting. The
optimization method is: to shield the next station ID of 0 in the program, and update the status of the site in real time.
After optimization, the station report is correct [5].
5 Comparative Analysis and Conclusion of Station Reporting Modes
At present, the Qingdao Metro Line 11 uses the full-automatic station reporting, Table 1 is a comparative analysis
of semi-automatic reporting mode and full automatic reporting mode of Qingdao Metro Line 11. As shown in Table 1,
according to the comparative analysis of semi-automatic and full-automatic station reporting modes and the actual
operation situation, when the PIDS system control host machine abnormally restarts, due to the storage of the station
information set by TCMS system, station reporting errors will occur, and the accuracy rate of the station information
sent by ATC signal is relatively high, so it is recommended to give priority to full-automatic station reporting. The
full-automatic station reporting system not only does not need the driver to set the station ID, which can reduce the
fatigue of the driver, but also PIDS system only passively receives the station ID, which is relatively simple to process
and can improve the accuracy and stability of the station reporting.
References
1. Qi Jin. Transformation of Passenger Information Display System for Guangzhou Metro Line 4 Vehicles [J].
Electric Locomotives and Urban Rail Vehicles, 2009 (1): 43-45.
2. Lin Bin. Chengdu Subway 3 Line Broadcast System, Passenger Information System [J]. Science and Technology
Wind,2015 (22): 9.
3. Zeng Jinhao. DG6 subway train automatic broadcast system [J]. Electroacoustic Technology, 2001 (12): 24-27.
4. Ma Guicai, Xu Guihong. Research on Station Broadcast Control Logic of Passenger Information Display System

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 for Urban Rail Transit Trains [J]. Railway Technology Innovation, 2016 (6): 84-86.
5. Ou zhuofeng. Guangzhou Subway 5 Implementation and Improvement of Automatic Station Announcement
Broadcasting for Line No. [J]. Research on Urban Rail Transit, 2012,15 (7):83-85.

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