Passenger rail transport is growing rapidly, and in this context, there are a growing number of train projects offering new services to passengers in Europe. Deutsche Bahn illustrates this trend by opening a line between Amsterdam and Berlin. The aim: to build low-floor trains so that people with disabilities can board easily, and with all the comfort and communication facilities needed to offer the best services to passengers. 

The Spanish company Talgo was able to meet these requirements. In order to carry out this project, it needed external support to complement its skills, particularly with regard to the on-board software (Train Control Management System or TCMS).

Talgo entrusted SEGULA Technologies with the development of the train’s ‘brain’ (TCMS). For example, the TCMS manages the opening of the carriage doors on arrival at the station, the activation of the air-conditioning or heating, or the provision of information to passengers…

• This project is a first success for Talgo in Germany and a challenge, especially from the point of view of the normative context and the approval process.
• Talgo also wanted to develop a simulator for this new 250 km/h Regional train platform to test the software in different operational scenarios (crossing other trains, arrival at a station, etc.) in order to replace online testing and save time and money.
• The Spanish company was looking for a partner with a presence in the Iberian Peninsula to assist in the verification and validation phases of the rolling stock and to accompany it to Germany until the delivery of the train.

•  Clarification and expression of the needs of the operator Deutsche Bahn. The specifications initially presented 800 functional requirements. SEGULA Technologies, thanks to its expertise, helped Talgo clarify the ambiguities, specify the end client’s functional needs in detail, and specify more than 6,000 technical requirements for the proper development of the onboard software.   The contribution of SEGULA’s systems engineering skills and the transfer of knowledge to Talgo helped to circumscribe the project’s risk, as well as enabling its controlled implementation. 
• Management of requirements and configurations in line with the operational changes desired by the end client. In addition to the objective of taking into account the standards and approval processes in force in Germany, it was also necessary to adapt to the changes desired by the end customer during the project. For example, changes in the type of locomotive or communication protocols. SEGULA reacted with agility by reorganizing priorities while respecting the initial project objectives. 
• Optimized code implementation. SEGULA Technologies’ specialist engineers wrote the Software Requirement Specification (SRS) in a clever way to minimize programming errors. The methodology and experience applied, audited and recognized by the end client, enabled the delivery of “bug free” versions, i.e. without errors, giving rise to congratulations from the client. 
• 24-hour software verification and validation. SEGULA Technologies, with the help of its partners, successfully completed the creation of a simulator and automated test generation procedures. The mobilization and coordination of SEGULA’s international teams in Spain, Italy and India enabled the simulator to be used 24 hours a day, thereby accelerating the testing phases.

Ramp-up within 3 months from 10 to 40 employees involved: an increase in the number of employees as the project progresses

6,000 requirements identified by SEGULA Technologies

23 trains and a framework contract for 100 trains.

Project duration: two years

• The pooling of complementary systems engineering know-how on both the SEGULA Technologies and TALGO sides, at the Train, Systems and Subsystems levels: a cooperation that contributed greatly to the success of the project. 
• Time was also saved by automating the verification and validation tests in a project-specific software environment. SEGULA Technologies designed and developed an automaton to instantly translate the client’s requirements and write them into code.
• The building of verification and validation capital with the creation and development of the simulator for Talgo’s fast regional train platform, which not only avoids numerous costly online tests, and makes it more independent of outside actors: it allows the customers to acquire maturity for this project and for the others to come. 
• A real relationship of trust, both tonic and frank, between the Talgo and SEGULA Technologies teams, which can be continued on new businesses.
•  International support from SEGULA Technologies, from the country of manufacture to the country where the train is used, with teams available 24 hours a day to speed up validation tests.