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Kapsch cooperates with Sierra Wireless: Improved cab radios for railway communications
[September 19, 2014]

Kapsch cooperates with Sierra Wireless: Improved cab radios for railway communications


(ENP Newswire Via Acquire Media NewsEdge) ENP Newswire - 19 September 2014 Release date- 18092014 - Vienna - Cab radios, the multifunctional communication devices installed in railway locomotives, need to have a stable radio connection as the basis for safe operation of railway traffic.



Kapsch CarrierCom now brings two improved models on the market. The RC900 Voice & Data Cab Radio and the RD900 Data Radio are equipped with the latest Sierra Wireless radio modules called HPRM1. These ensure additional robustness against unwanted radio interference and blocking.

'The increase of unwanted interference in the GSM-R band is becoming a major challenge for the operation of railway communication systems. Until now we have solved these problems with external filters. Thanks to the new Sierra Wireless technology we now can offer cab radios to our customers with built-in filter technology that solves the majority of interference cases resulting from public 3G and 4G networks, and this without any external filter', explains Thomas Schopf, COO Kapsch CarrierCom.


'As network operators shift capacity towards 3G and 4G networks, reliable radio filtering technology on GSM-R products has become a critical factor in minimizing interference and ensuring uninterrupted connectivity,' said Charles Derivaux, Vice President, Sierra Wireless. 'This technology has been incorporated into our newest GSM-R products, and the HPRM1 has been ranked number one in benchmark and performance tests by third-party organizations in the railway industry.' Radio connection is an essential requirement for railway operation A stable radio connection is an essential requirement for the railway system. Due to the growing networks of public operators, more and more interference is affecting the communication within GSM-R networks (GSM for railways). This can result in a loss of radio communications, denial of ETCS-Services (European Train Control System) and dropped Railway Emergency Calls (REC). The Sierra Wireless HPRM1 radio modules used in the new Kapsch cab radios have improved receiver parameters which are compliant to the latest versions of ETSI (European Telecommunications Standards Institute) specifications.

Internal filters for voice and data devices Kapsch is offering two devices designed and certified for railways which have Sierra Wireless HPRM1 on board. The RC900 is a cab radio for voice and data, which offers numerous additional features and turns the cab radio into a type of smart phone for locomotives. It additionally supports ER-GSM band and has an inbuilt WiFi module for over-the-air configuration as well as a GPS receiver, paving the way for location-based applications. The RD900 is a data radio supporting the latest generation of mobile technologies like ETCS over GPRS.

The video about the Kapsch Cab Radio can be viewed here: http://kapsch.net/kcc/Portfolio/portfolio_railways/terminals/gsm-r_cabradio (c) 2014 Electronic News Publishing -

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