The new generation of ATC system for super high-speed operation on Shinkansen lines

The intermittent digital transmission with 64 kbit/s between wayside and train has been working in ATS-P on narrow gauged lines in Tokyo metropolitan area of East Japan Railway Company (JR-East) since 1989. A new automatic train protection (in Japan it's called automatic train control; ATC) system first using the continuous digital transmission to be applied for Shinkansen lines is presented. In this system, such messages as the distance to the preceding train or the speed limit on switches are transmitted to each train. This is done through the rail using digital codes. On-board equipment verifies it's train speed. If the speed exceeds the value of a calculated braking-pattern, the brake is applied. As the on-board equipment controls the train speed in one step from maximum speed to stop, this system can upgrade the maximum speed and shorten the train headway. It can effectively cope with a mixture of trains with different braking performances.