IoT can improve the passenger experience and operational efficiency for railways, according to Xiang Xi, Huawei vice president, in a keynote speech at last month’s Asia Pacific Rail event in Bangkok.

“With 20 years of experience in the rail industry, particularly in our recent focus on digital transformation, Huawei has clearly defined our mission in this industry, that is to reshape connections, reconstruct platforms and enable intelligence,” said Xi.

The rail industry is undergoing rapid digital transformation in recent years, and Xi said Huawei was committed to enhancing safety and efficiency in rail operations and maintenance with its ICT technology. Leveraging on digital technologies including data capture and analysis, autonomous systems, artificial intelligence (AI), machine learning, Future Railway Mobile Communication System (FRMCS), MSN, station network, storage, and IoT, Huawei aims to transform how transport systems are managed, used and reimagined. Technology advancements are centrally focused on seamless integration of various modes of transport as well as integration with other aspects of society.

“Smart station is an innovation to improve the experience of passengers and efficiency of operation, ” said Steven Xiong, CTO at Huawei. “It can consolidate all the data and information from all the applications in the station. The new ICT infrastructure is the foundation for smart stations. We should replace the siloed ICT like server, storage and network, even the data, by cloud-powered digital platforms.”

Huawei showed several best practices and technology during the event, such as an optical communication backbone, which can form the skeleton of future railway systems, the FRMCS and Wifi 6, which gives wireless broadband connection between train and ground. Intelligent IT brings collaboration experience and advance storage with Huawei’s technology to fight ransomware, and the smart station optimises operations, maintenance and the passenger experience.

Huawei has established an aviation and rail business unit that explores industry digitalisation and technological innovation. The Chinese company serves over 130 airports and airlines worldwide, more than 300 urban rail lines across over 70 cities, and more than 150,000km of railways.