Hitachi Rail, the European rolling stock and rail infrastructure division of the Japanese multi-sector firm, has announced its new “AI solution” in partnership with NVIDIA.
The “HMAX” (Hyper Mobility Asset Expert) suite of “digital asset management solutions” will cover the rail chain from rolling stock, signalling, and physical infrastructure.
All the products will be “powered” by NVIDIA’s IGX artificial intelligence platform.
The tools are said to build on the existing technology Hitachi Rail currently uses to remotely assess its assets and make improvements. “The HMAX platform offers a leap forward as live data collection is combined with powerful AI technology to dramatically enhance the speed, ease and depth of analysis,” the company explained.
Described as an “edge to cloud” ecosystems, Hitachi Rail’s customers will be able to remotely access HMAX’s insights into their entire rail network via a single online portal.
NVIDIA said the technology would allow operational engineers on-site to leverage insights in real time, thanks to its XGX programme and Holoscan “sensor processing platform”. This means data will be processed and analysed onboard trains, or at signalling centres, rather than being relayed to data or operations centres, thus cutting down time and expenses related to engineering analysis.
“This enables an unprecedented improvement in the speed that actionable insights reach transport operators, as previously it could take up to ten days for data to be processed in maintenance locations,” the partners explained.
Yogesh Agrawal, vice president of data centre business at NVIDIA, said: “The railway is at the forefront of the latest paradigm shift toward a digital transformation with AI. Hitachi Rail’s HMAX solution, powered by NVIDIA IGX and Holoscan, will offer the real-time computing capabilities needed to help boost the manageability, safety and availability of rail systems to meet the needs of operators and today’s travellers.”
Hitachi Rail CEO, Giuseppe Marino, added: “At Hitachi Rail, we believe AI has immediate and very impactful applications that will make the railways run more efficiently. Our AI-enabled digital asset management is a solution for optimizing customers’ rail services and enhancing railway performance. We are delighted by our collaboration with NVIDIA, which will combine the power of AI with advanced Hitachi Rail technologies to enhance railway outcomes for operators.”
