Application of fuzzy theory for identifying the required availability of an autonomous localization unit in European Train Control System

Abstract

According to the evolution tendency of the control decision process from a trackside to a train-borne system, various autonomous localization units for railway vehicles were developed. As recommended in railway standards, the design process of each system, here the autonomous localization units (LU), follows the V-model whose first step is to define its availability requirement in order to satisfy the global ETCS system requirements. The classical approach for assigning the subsystem availability is based on the assumption that failure parameters of other units are precisely known. This assumption is too restricted in reality due to the lack of information. In this paper, we propose a new approach that allows taking into account uncertainties in the dependability parameters of the ETCS components for identifying the upper threshold of the LU unavailability to reach ETCS availability requirements. Using fuzzy fault trees, the fuzzy unavailability of the ETCS without the autonomous LU is evaluated. Then, based on its membership function, we assess the satisfaction rate that an advanced ETCS with the autonomous LU can satisfy the ETCS availability target.