Market Focus: Industrial Safety

www.engineersonline.nl
12th December 2006

Next Generation Radar Sensors for Tunnel

Project
Author: Robin Zander
Dutch-English translation by Google Translate and Brendan Funnell

As everything goes according to schedule, the Betuweroute will be operational on

January 1 next year.

The delivery of a 160 km long route from the port of Rotterdam to the German border
represents one of the most exciting general infrastructure projects around. It is
expected that one billion euros will be invested over the course of the project.

Safety is crucial at many levels in this project. One innovation is the application of a
new generation of radar sensors.

Figure 1. The Sophia Tunnel is 8km long, including a 4km bored section - the longest
tunnel in the Betuweroute.
Both socially and technically, the Betuweroute is a controversial project.
Together with HSL (High Speed Line), the Betuweroute is one of the first two lines in the
Netherlands with a 25kV AC overhead power supply, instead of the standard 1500V DC
used elsewhere on the Dutch Railway Network. This increased power allows longer and
heavier trains to be used.

The Betuweroute is also one of the first lines in Europe to use the European Rail Traffic
Management System (ERTMS). In conjunction with the European Train Control System
(ETCS) on the train itself, ERTMS monitors and controls the traffic on the line as a
whole.

Communication between ERTMS, ETCS, the traffic and the driver takes places through
a dedicated railway GSM network – GSM-R (Railway).

With ERTMS and ETCS in place, the positions and speeds of trains are known at all
times, meaning that maximum speeds and required braking distances are continuously
calculated, and trains can safely run closer together.

Furthermore, all crossings on the Betuweroute make use of flyovers, eliminating the risk
of collisions with other vehicles or people.

Sophiatunnel
In the route from Rotterdam - three quarters of which runs parallel to the A15 - there are
five tunnels: the Sophia, the Botlek, the Giessen, the Pannerdensch and the Zevenaar.
Part of the line that travels through the city of Barendrecht is also covered.

The Boltek tunnel was the first to be bored in the Netherlands. The Sophia tunnel
pictured here (figure 1) runs from Zwijndrecht to Papendrecht and is the longest in the
Betuweroute with a total length of 8km.

The Sophia tunnel consists of a central bored section of two tunnel tubes, 4km in length,
running between the towns of Henrik Ido Ambacht and Oud Alblas. On one side of this
bored section is an open cut tunnel, and on the other a closed cut tunnel. A tunnel
underneath the Pannerdensch canal is also a bored tunnel.
Weir
The Sophia tunnel runs underneath the reclaimed
island reserve of Sophiapolder (the tunnel’s
namesake) and also the two waterways which
encircle it - the River Noord and its parallel stream
the Reitbaan. The location of this tunnel section
alone demands particular care and consideration.

In the unlikely event of leaks on both sides of the

island, hydraulic slides can deploy in order to seal
the tunnel and prevent the island (which is below
water level) from flooding. (Figure 2,3.)

Figure 2. (left)

The Sophia tunnel (in Figure 3. One of the

red) crosses the River hydraulic sliding doors. If
Noord, the island of the water were to leak in
Sophiapolder, and the from the Noord or the
Reitbaan. Reitbaan, the doors would
close and prevent the
polder from flooding.

Disaster Scenario
Another potential disaster that will hopefully never occur is a burning train within the
tunnel. If a train were to catch fire inside the tunnel, every effort would be made to bring
the train to an exit. If that is not possible and the burning train stops, then it becomes
very important to quickly extinguish the fire. The entire tunnel is equipped with
sprinklers, but only in the event of a stationary fire are they activated, as a moving fire
would require too great a quantity of extinguishing agent to be stored.

Because only freight trains operate on the Betuweroute, the primary aim of the fire
extinguishing system is to prevent damage to the tunnel itself – damage that is most
likely if a fire is concentrated in one position.

To assist train operators in escaping a fire, cross connections between the two tunnels,
and shafts to the surface are also provided.
Detection
Before any fire can be managed or extinguished, it must first be detected. Located on
the tunnel ceiling, either side of the overhead power wires, are two multimode fiber optic
cables in a stainless steel housing. This system, which is divided into measurement
areas of 15 meters, determines if there is a fire anywhere in the tunnel by sensing
temperatures in excess of 58 degrees centigrade. However, this system is not able to
reliably distinguish between a slow moving train and one which has stopped, nor is it
able to pinpoint the exact location of the complete train within the tunnel. Tunnel builder
GTI Infra BV (now Fabricom) and technology partner Rockwell Automation Ltd have
joined forces to find a reliable way of obtaining the data required. Nevertheless, there
have been some worries about costs.

Too Slow
Initially, ultrasonic sensors were trialed. For a variety of reasons they proved to be a
less than ideal solution. The primary reason is that ultrasonic sensors can be slow. A
stated requirement for the detection system was that three distinct velocity ranges can
be reliably distinguished.

Arrest (slower than 1 m/s)

Crawl ( 1-10 m/s)
Moving (faster than 10 m/s)

Due to the relative slowness of sound waves compared with electromagnetic radiation,
it was found that ultrasonic sensors were not able to reliably detect trains in the upper
range of speeds experienced in the tunnel (up to ~120km/h).

Reflector Undesirable
Furthermore, the use of an ultrasonic sensor demands that the sensor be aimed at a
reflective plate. Because the primary aim is protecting the tunnel, it is undesirable to
attach more objects to the tunnel wall than is strictly necessary. In addition, the
ultrasonic signal must strike the reflector at an exactly perpendicular angle. Not only is it
time consuming to install these sensors in such precise alignment, it is a challenge to
maintain the alignment with freight trains rumbling through the tunnel.

In trials, it also became apparent that the pressure wave generated by the train in the
tunnel could cause the signal to be ‘pushed.’ Thus it is possible that a train could be
detected in the wrong location, or with an inaccurate length.

Magnetic sensors can also come in for some criticism, the magnetic field of the
overhead wiring being one proven source of inaccuracies.
FMCW Radar Sensor
Ultimately, the search centered on a new
generation of radar sensors. These sensors from
Banner Engineering were in the prototype stage
last April, but are now fully developed. In The
Netherlands, these sensors are distributed by
Turck BV, working closely with ORLD Banner
Engineering.

The R-Gage is a radar vehicle detection system

that works according to the principle of
Frequency Modulated Continuous Wave (FMCW
– see Figure 4). This means that continuous
signals of different frequencies are broadcast - in
this case using the 24-24.25GHz range. The
relationship between the frequency of the
emitted and received signals determines the
distance between the sensor and the detected
object. Important additional benefits of this radar Figure 4. Important additional
technique are a relative immunity to dust, soot benefits of the radar sensor
and pollution, the lack of requirement for a are an insensitivity to dust and
companion reflector, and the simple ‘teaching’ soot, the lack of requirement
procedure required. for a reflector card, and the
quick, easy ‘teaching’
procedure.

Stationary Objects
Unlike Doppler radar sensors, FMCW radar sensors are capable of detecting stationary
objects. A Doppler radar sensor works with a single frequency signal. Incoming and
outgoing objects create reflections of slightly higher or lower frequencies, and my
measuring these discrepancies a velocity and direction may be measured. However,
with a stationary object, the frequency does not change, and it is therefore impossible
for a Doppler mode radar sensor to distinguish between a stationary object and no
object at all.

Another common technique is to use pulsed radar. Pulsed radars measure the time
between when a radar pulse is sent and when it is received. This technique is mainly
used for level measurements. However, even with fast pulses it is possible that a pulse
could pass between two moving wagons, resulting in an unreliable signal. It must also
be taken into account that a typical pulse radar does not measure continuously, but
about once per second.
SCADA – Supervisory Control and Data Acquisition
With the R-Gage, GTI Infra management obtained a state of the art FMCW radar sensor
that satisfies their specific requirements. In the tunnel, radars are installed at a rate of
one every 30 meters. An exception to this is beneath the two waterproof doors, where
double sensors are used to ensure that a train is not present before the doors are
closed. In each tunnel, there are 202x R-Gage sensors in total.

The signals from the sensors are transmitted via remote I/O over fiber to the PLC
(Programmable Logic Controller). On the parent RSView SE SCADA system – like any
applied PLC system from GTI Infra partner Rockwell – the various inputs are combined
and monitored. In conjunction with a GTI Infra developed algorithm, the speed, length
and current position of each train is derived. Notably, the system is capable of detecting
and managing up to simultaneous two fire events per tunnel. This means that even in
the event that a burning train becomes separated, the system is ready to respond.

Figure 5. A passing train, seen here in the

Botlek tunnel.
In the RSView SE SCADA system from Rockwell,
the speed, direction and length of trains are
derived from the signals from the sensors.

Green lights show where a train is detected.

Four Million Liters
When excessive temperature is observed, and the radar sensors confirm that the
burning train is stationary, the system will engage and fight the fire. The automatic
sprinkler system is able to draw from up to four million liters of water, plus an
appropriate amount of foaming agent. Sprinklers activate along a 120m stretch, directly
above the fire, pouring down water and foam.

As a secondary measure, large fans can also be activated if a fire is seen to be

spreading. Extra sprinklers will activate upwind of the fire, creating a dense
extinguishing mist that is then blown onto it. This system not only assists with fighting
the fire, but also helps to cool the tunnel wall and limit or prevent any damage to the
tunnel itself.

Availability
The R-Gage sensors, in combination with the
operating system designed by GTI Infra, make an
important contribution to the safety of the tunnel.
With the implementation of these sensors in the
Betuweroute, GTI Infra are clearly setting a new
standard.

Figure 6. Michel Koning, Turck-

Banner product specialist and
Siem Vriend, commissioning
engineer for GTI Infra are the
driving forces for
implementing the latest
generation of FMCW Radar
Sensors.