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rail transport
Vilant – RFID tracking
and database system
Railways and RFID systems? Not a typical combination? The opposite is true. RFID
monitoring, along with the Turck Vilant software system, provides new approaches
and solutions to many applications in the rail transport sector.
Automated monitoring of the movement of rolling stock
The demand for fast and flexible production while cutting production costs is gradually increasing across the industry, regardless of the specific sector a company
is involved in. RFID technology then helps
to ensure reliable tracking of all components of production, storage, loading and
dispatch, not only within the production
area, but also in the area of heavy freight
transport, including rail.
RFID database system
Vilant's dedicated database server can
continuously receive data from various
RFID units and store it in a database. The
received data can be sorted by the preset
parameters based on location, time of reading or code types. It then provides the
results to the parent system either for statistical evaluation for management purposes, ERP enterprise information systems,
Read and write gateway
MES manufacturing information systems
or WMS warehouse management, or for
direct automatic/robotic control of warehouse or logistics operations via industrial
computers or PLCs. Supported communication: TCP/IP, HTTP/XML, OPC, SQL
and REST. One of the standard software
functions is Vilant Visibility Manager. This
allows continuous monitoring of the movement of materials and components
through the production process or control
of the receipt, dispatch and transport of
products or various returnable packaging
or parts, i.e. virtually any object. Of course, there is the possibility of remote management and setting of RFID units and the
possibility of building in special functions
according to the wishes of each customer
and operation.
RFID sensing
The Vilant system does not only provide
the software area of tracking, but also the
complete supply of various types of RFID
reading and display devices, including
the service of expert selection of types for
a given specific design of a suitable location and subsequent installation. The range
includes not only mobile handheld reading devices with display for immediate
evaluation, but also units for fixed installation on traffic routes or complete
walk-through gates. This enables automatic capture and reading of all passing
products in individual and bulk packaging in boxes, crates, whether they are
moved or transported by hand, on pallet
T+T T e c h n i k a a t r h 5/ 2 0 2 3
trucks or transported by forklift trucks,
or even containers or wagons. It is also
possible to detect the direction of movement and thus to distinguish between loading and balancing of products or materials. The data is then transferred to the
central Vilant server via wired LAN or wireless WiFi, GPRS, 4G/5G communication.
Tracking of carriages, cargo
and maintenance operations
Turck offers the Vilant RFID system to ensure more efficient management of rail
transport, wagons and their maintenance,
repair and to meet transport and safety
needs. The use can be divided into several
specific areas:
• real-time vehicle location tracking,
• monitoring of railway lines,
• vehicle lifecycle management,
• CARGO tracking.
Real-time RFID monitoring of rolling
stock also enables precise tracking and
identification of traffic (all wagons and locomotives) through a network of RFID detectors installed along the tracks on the line and in the depot. Many therefore use it
to automate fleet management, load tracking and control maintenance operations,
for example at marshalling yards. The database and sharing of data with the operators who own the trains also enables
more efficient management and use of
the carriages or helps to assign various
maintenance and service tasks.
Vilant's solution also includes the supply
from individual RFID chips down to software