Engg students put model on track

Updated on: Friday, September 03, 2010

A gadget developed by students of a private engineering college may hold the answer to the problems posed by unmanned railway crossings, thus bringing down the number of accidents and deaths caused at these. Pre-final year students of the electronics and communication department of MCKV Institute of Engineering (MCKVIE), Howrah, have built and tested an ‘Automatic Railway Gate Management System’ to alert engine drivers of infringement on tracks, while also cautioning motorists and pedestrians of approaching trains.


“Swapan Kumar Shaw, Madhu Mangal Kumar, Bibhuti Mishra and Amarendra Kumar developed this system in their project laboratory. The model won the first innovation prize in 2010 at the Eastern India Science and Technology Fair organized by the Birla Institute of Technology and Museum. Since then, many new features have been incorporated to make the system more robust. We are now in a position to try it out at a real unmanned level crossing. We will be talking to the railways soon for permission,” said MCKVIE viceprincipal Tirthankar Datta.

As on April 1, 2010, there were 15,993 unmanned level crossings across the country. In 2009, as many as 321 people were killed in 67 accidents at these. In 2009-10 alone, the railways spent Rs 901 crore to convert unmanned crossings to manned, build road underbridges or subways. If the system developed by the students is practicable, the ministry of railways would actually save a lot of money and people would not be inconvenienced.
 

In this model, even an unmanned level crossing needs a gate. A sensor placed along the tracks, some distance away from the crossing, picks up the movement of a train. An electronic signal is conveyed to the crossing and the gate drops automatically. The train receives a green signal to proceed towards the crossing. Another sensor picks up the movement of the train after it has left the crossing and the gate lifts, allowing vehicles and pedestrians to get across.
  

Conversely, when another sensor picks up a vehicle on the tracks at the crossing, the gate won’t drop. The train driver will find a red signal on the approach and control the speed accordingly.
  

“The crossings may not require gates even. A red signal and a constant beep can warn motorists and pedestrians against crossing over,” Datta said. 

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