• In memoriam: Short-line entrepreneur Jack Haley (7/7/2011)

9/23/2015

Leroy Automation: SATURN controller and remote I/O platform

Leroy Automation has partnered with CLEARSY to develop and market SATURN, a SIL2/SIL4 fail-safe controller and remote I/O platform for train control, propulsion and rail signaling system architectures.

SATURN is a commercial-off-the-shelf (COTS) platform designed to boost transit rail-car projects without incurring the elevated costs and greater risks of an independent safety assessment process, the company says.

The SATURN platform supports mixed heterogeneous configurations of SIL0, SIL2, and SIL4 modules on the same unique copper cable or fiber optic-based communication network. SATURN allows system engineers to design fully integrated I/O management systems for train operations with both safety-critical and non-safety-critical equipment on the same data network, the company says. The SATURN platform can be expanded by adding self-contained or custom I/O modules to match any on-board application requirements.

It is based on a "state-of-the-art" dual, redundant ring communication network, and an open safety protocol fully compliant with EN 50159-2 standard, the company says.

Each SIL2 SATURN module and the full SATURN platform have been independently tested and certified to meet the SIL2 requirements of the EN 50129:2003 standard, and the SSIL2 requirements of the EN 50128:2011 standard. These certifications have been performed by CERTIFER. Examination certificates along with their appendices, issued by CERTIFER, are available and can be consulted upon request.

The SATURN platform is available as a size-3U rack-mountable solution or as a standalone distributed, modular, and scalable system.

The following certified SATURN modules are available off-the-shelf:
    •    The SIL2 gateway module, which supervises the system, and acts as a dual 10/100T-BASE Ethernet-based communication gateway. It also supports the implementation of logical algorithms and Boolean tasks;
    •    The two SI2 and SO2 remote I/O modules, which respectively feature 4 SIL2 digital inputs, and 4 SIL2 relay outputs;
    •    The SIO0 remote I/O module, which features 4 SIL0 static outputs and 12 SIL0 channels, each configurable as a digital input or output;
    •    The 72Vdc power supply module, which is compliant with DC-direct train battery voltage line, without the need of any DC-DC converters. Its main function is to power all the modules connected to the SATURN system.

The SATURN product line also integrates real-time diagnostics that can be utilized as interpretative data for predictive maintenance activities.

SIL4 modules are currently undergoing certification testing, and will soon be integrated into the SATURN solution product line.

Typical rail applications include on-board train control and monitoring systems (TCMS) for passenger rail systems, including light-rail transit, subways, commuter-rail, inter-city rail and high-speed rail; computer-based train control (CBTC) for automated driverless metros; and wayside signaling equipment such as automated platform screen doors (PSD).