Innovation Award 2015 for "Intelligence on Wheels"
October 28, 2015 | More safety in rail transport
Innovation Award 2015 for "Intelligence on Wheels"
Auszeichnung für "Intelligence on Wheels"
Dr. Andreas Lehner (Mitte) und Dr. Thomas Strang (rechts) wurden für ihr Projekt "Intelligence on Wheels" mit dem Manfred-Fuchs-Innovationspreis 2015 der Gesellschaft von Freunden des DLR (GvF) ausgezeichnet. Die feierliche Zeremonie erfolgte durch GvF-Vorstand Horst Rauck (links) am 27. Oktober 2015 am DLR in Köln.
Im Rahmen des Wissenschaftlichen Kolloquiums am DLR in Köln präsentierte Dr. Thomas Strang, Geschäftsführer von "Intelligence on Wheels", das anschließend mit dem Manfred-Fuchs-Preis 2015 ausgezeichnete Projekt.
Dr. Thomas Strang and Dr. Andreas Lehner, DLR scientists and founders of the company "Intelligence on Wheels (IoW)", were awarded the Manfred Fuchs Innovation Prize in Cologne on 27 October 2015. With this award, the GvF - Gesellschaft von Freunden des DLR e.V.. (GvF) recognizes the exemplary cooperation between the German Aerospace Center (DLR) and industry. The GvF, which has been promoting DLR's scientific work for more than 30 years, honors the innovative thinking and entrepreneurial actions of the award winners in a special way.
More safety in rail transport
Based on the Railway Collision Avoidance System (RCAS) research project, Strang and Lehner developed a new type of collision avoidance system for trains at the DLR Institute for Communication and Navigation in Oberpfaffenhofen. At the heart of the development are its communication and positioning components, which are installed in the driver's cab of the train and function independently of any railroad infrastructure. The rail vehicles equipped with the system exchange information such as position, direction of travel and speed at regular intervals. The train driver is informed of the current traffic situation based on the data and is warned of dangers, such as collisions, in good time.
The independence from infrastructure allows cost-effective implementation, which can be introduced and put into operation train by train. The safety of the equipped vehicles is immediately increased. Vehicles that are not initially equipped remain at the current security standard.
Exemplary technology transfer
Strang and Lehner founded their spin-off "Intelligence on Wheels" (IoW) in 2012 to introduce the new technology to the market. The spin-off's other objectives are the development, distribution and maintenance of solutions to increase safety, efficiency and comfort in transportation, particularly in rail traffic.
The cooperation between IoW and DLR focuses on technology transfer: DLR develops and licenses technologies and solutions that are industrialized and marketed by the spin-offs. This gives new technological achievements access to the market. IoW also develops its own approaches and plans to award research contracts to DLR in this context.
The IoW collision avoidance system has been used in daily regular operation by two steam locomotives of the Harzer Schmalspurbahnen (HSB) since the beginning of 2014 and is to be extended to the entire HSB fleet in the near future. The team is currently in negotiations with other national and international industrial partners.
