Leipzig relies on Depot Management System by initperdis

Therefore, it was a logical step to install the Wireless Location System (WLS) of Agilion in the Lindenau depot. initperdis was acting as the general contractor.

Together with the LVB, initperdis developed a system design specification where all procedures as well as the type and scope of the required hardware and software were specified. The depot has historical buildings which have a certain charm, but also posed specific challenges for the installation of the new technology. There’s space for a total of about 135 vehicles. Now the vehicles are all running in one direction. Parking is organised in lanes, “First in – First out”.

The WLS has a radio controlled communication infrastructure consisting of antennas at known locations, mobile transmitters on buses, as well as management software and data interfaces to the DMS. Localisation is done through run-time based distance measurements for all vehicles in the covered area. Their locations can be determined exactly up to 0.5 m.

In order to cover the tracking requirements, 53 antennas were installed (27 anchors and 26 gateways with WLAN connection to transmit the data). In the exterior area, some anchors were equipped with solar panels to save cabling.

The installation work had to be adjusted to accommodate LVB’s daily operations schedule, this is why it was provided by the customer itself. The system was designed for high availability and a localisation reliability of more than 99%.

However, it is guaranteed that the dispatcher can always see whether these stations are occupied or available. It is possible to locate the buses’ exact parking spot in the parking areas because here the installed localisation equipment covers the whole area. The areas are mapped which allows for the vehicles to be located and visualised at their exact parking spot. The LVB buses are 12 m and 18 m long so the parking lots are divided up in units of 6 m to present the vehicle capacity at a realistic length.

Depending on where a vehicle is located, various functions can be triggered. Entries and exits are matched with current blocks and are displayed to the dispatcher in entry and exit lists. In case a vehicle is located in the fueling station, the vehicle tank can be reset to “full”. The remaining tank filling can be cross-checked against the kilometres to be driven in the assigned blocks. In case washing cycles are set up, the system can relay the request and schedule a passing through the washing bay.

At the fuel station, the attendant instructs the driver whether or not to wash the vehicle and where to park it. With the future installation of information boards this could also be displayed, for instance, directly at the entry. It would also be possible to display this on the onboard computer via an interface. Outside the working hours of the fueling station attendant, the fueling station is the handover station and the vehicles are parked by the repair shop staff.

For block assignments the system features an automatism that incorporates all current vehicle locations – in addition to parameters like vehicle type and qualification. The dispatcher can also dispatch manually, either with reference to blocks or parking spots.

MOBILE-DMS is offered as a module integrated into the overall solution MOBILE, but also as a stand-alone solution – and the international interest is huge.