Cruising Control Approach for Virtually Coupled Train Set Based on Model Predictive Control
Jiangfeng She, Kaicheng Li, Lei Yuan, Yang Zhou, Shuai Su
Abstract
The zooming demand for rail transportation capacity promoted the development of virtual coupling (VC), which is a new concept to further shorten the inter-train distance. This paper proposes a cruising control approach for virtually coupled train set (VCTS) based on Model Predictive Control (MPC). optimization goals and constraints of the MPC controller are proposed to make inter-train distance maintained at a small value under the premise of safety. The stability of the controller is verified by the Lyapunov stability theory. Three scenarios, i.e., normal, disrupted and emergency scenarios, are analyzed via simulation, whose result indicates that the proposed controller is empirically stable and can regulate trains position differences. Further, compared with currently widely applied moving block system, the result shows that the train tracking interval under VC is shorter.