Wi-Fi For Passenger Rail
description
Transcript of Wi-Fi For Passenger Rail
Wi-Fi for Passenger RailJim Baker
Muniwireless MeetUp, June 29th 2010Hosted by
About the presenter
‣ Jim Baker, Managing Partner @ Xenventure
‣ Market Strategy, Human Capital, Private Equity
‣ Background in wireless & video streaming technology
‣ Chief Marketing Officer @ Icomera until June 2010
‣ Founder & CEO @ Moovera, designer of cellular gateways
‣ Founder & CEO @ Telabria, pre-WiMAX ISP in the UK
‣ VP Services @ Media 100, Inc (NASDAQ:MDEA)
‣ Columnist/commentator for Muniwireless, MassTransit.com
‣ Member, Joint Council for Transit Wireless Communications
Twitter@jnb65
LinkedIn http://www.linkedin.com/in/jnb65
Rail Transport – Leading Markets
#1Western Europe
#2NAFTA
#3Asia/Pacific
APAC to surpass NAFTA by 2016
Mass Transit – Facts & Figures
‣ Rail and Bus passenger transport is a growing sector
‣ Ridership in the US has grown 32% since 1995
‣ 34 million trips each day, >175,000 vehicles in service
‣ $6.9 billion committed to equip new transport projects
‣ $8 billion for passenger intercity rail projects
‣ Congressionally-mandated rail safety measures by 2015
‣ Passenger expectation for always-on connectivity
‣ Operator demand for ‘connected’ fleet is increasing
Application-Driven Demand
Moving from Narrowband to Broadband
‣ Bandwidth-intensive applications driving move to broadband‣ Aggregation & seamless switching between multiple networks‣ Striving for always-on connectivity
Anatomy of the Connected Train
WAN Antenna Main + GPS
WAN Antenna (Diversity)
Train Power Supply
Wi-Fi HotspotAntenna
Protected PSU
Car BridgeAntenna
Train Power Supply
Wi-Fi HotspotAntenna
Brain CarPassengerCar
PoESwitch
2.4GHz Access Point
5GHz Access Point
Master EBA
GPS
WiMAX
EV-D
O
HSPA
Ethernet
Cellular Gateway
Antenna Multiplexerand AmplicationDual Mode WLAN
2.4GHzAP
5GHzClient
Slave EBA
Prot
ecte
d PS
U
‣ Cellular Gateway – manages multiple network connections‣ Antenna Array – amplification and multiplexing‣ Bridging Network – connects carriages together, wired or wireless‣ Ethernet Network – connects on-board systems‣ Wi-Fi Network – connects passengers and staff
Anatomy of the Connected Train
WAN Antenna Main + GPS
WAN Antenna (Diversity)
Train Power Supply
Wi-Fi HotspotAntenna
Protected PSU
Car BridgeAntenna
Train Power Supply
Wi-Fi HotspotAntenna
Brain CarPassengerCar
PoESwitch
2.4GHz Access Point
5GHz Access Point
Master EBA
GPS
WiMAX
EV-D
O
HSPA
Ethernet
Cellular Gateway
Antenna Multiplexerand AmplicationDual Mode WLAN
2.4GHzAP
5GHzClient
Slave EBA
Prot
ecte
d PS
U
Anatomy of the Connected Train
WAN Antenna Main + GPS
WAN Antenna (Diversity)
Train Power Supply
Wi-Fi HotspotAntenna
Protected PSU
Car BridgeAntenna
Train Power Supply
Wi-Fi HotspotAntenna
Brain CarPassengerCar
PoESwitch
2.4GHz Access Point
5GHz Access Point
Master EBA
GPS
WiMAX
EV-D
O
HSPA
Ethernet
Cellular Gateway
Antenna Multiplexerand AmplicationDual Mode WLAN
2.4GHzAP
5GHzClient
Slave EBA
Prot
ecte
d PS
U
Bandwidth needed by trains, 2018
11%89%
OperationalInternet Access and Infotainment
Source: BWCS, May 2010
‣ Bandwidth demand by 2018 will be huge
‣ Priority for meeting demand is in rural areas where backhaul networks are scarce and/or lack adequate provisioning
Evolution to IP-based Networks
Clearwire & Sprint boost M2M apps
Case Study – Amtrak Acela
‣ Solution designed by Nomad Rail and GBS‣ Four concurrent 3G carriers; aggregation/switching‣ 3-3.5Mbps DL available for FREE passenger Wi-Fi‣ 500Kbps – 1Mbps UL‣ Total aggregate throughput of up to 7Mbps observed‣ Typically 200ms latency‣ WiMAX on roadmap for service enhancement
802.11n used by Nomadfor inter-car links
on some deployments
Case Study – Amtrak Acela
‣ Active marketing following launch‣ Seat back card with instructions
Case Study – Amtrak Acela
‣ Clarity regarding on-train connectivity‣ Published coverage maps
‣ Active marketing following launch‣ Seat back card with instructions
Case Study – Amtrak Acela
‣ Clarity regarding on-train connectivity‣ Published coverage maps
‣ Active marketing following launch‣ Seat back card with instructions
‣ Portal splash page with branding
Case Study – Amtrak Acela
‣ Clarity regarding on-train connectivity‣ Published coverage maps
‣ Active marketing following launch‣ Seat back card with instructions
‣ Portal splash page with branding
‣ Portal landing page with content
Very positive response from customers with 35% uptake
Case Study – Amtrak Acela
Case Study – Amtrak Acela
Acela – Challenges & Lessons Learned
Challenges Pre-Launch
! Restricted to wireless car-to-car and intra-car links
! Limited external mounting space for antennas
! Availability of trains not guaranteed
! Long equipment lead times
Challenges Post-Launch
! Spotty cellular coverage in rural areas and tunnels
! Too many customers logging in following boarding process
! Striking the right content filtering balance between too restrictive and too loose
! Availability of sufficient data to correlate user experience with actual system performance
Lessons Learned
! Educate and deploy on-board staff to support the launch
! Minimize content filtering to the extent possible
! Augment available backhaul by using Wi-Fi at the stations
! Block streaming video and large file downloads to conserve bandwidth
! Work with cellular providers during design and test phases to better understand connectivity issues
! FREE service is appreciated, but performance is degraded
! Long project development lead-times means upgrades may be required; plan and budget for it
Western Europe – Example Metrics
‣ 52 electric Pendolino trains, 9 carriages per train set
‣ 21 Super Voyager trains, 4-5 carriages
‣ Carries 70,000 passengers per day
‣ London to Scotland, Liverpool, Manchester, Birmingham
‣ Wi-Fi free to First Class, standard T-Mobile rates to Standard
‣ Over 100,000 sessions per month, 80/20 First Class vs Standard
‣ Average session length 70-80 minutes
‣ Average traffic 18-20MB per session
‣ Future network use for CCTV, OTMR, infotainment
Western Europe – Example Metrics
‣ State-owned railway in Sweden
‣ Conducts 90% of passenger rail service in the country
‣ Carries 110,000 passengers per day
‣ Wi-Fi free to First Class, Pay-Per-Use in Standard
‣ Over 80,000 users per month
‣ Average session length 90 minutes
‣ Average traffic 39MB per user
‣ Move to 4TB on-train media servers, in-station syncing
Western Europe – Example Metrics
‣ Fleet of 26 trains serving Paris, Brussels, Amsterdam & Cologne
‣ 600,000 users since launch in October 2008
‣ Uses combination of two-way satellite and cellular
‣ New €40m project with NTV Italy launches in September 2011
‣ 25 new Alstom trains expected to serve 10m customers/year
‣ Running from Salerno to Venice and Turin
‣ Wi-Fi and systems communications pre-installed at factory
India – Internet for Trains
‣ Metrics for mobile phone use dwarf the West
‣ Installed base of over 600,000,000 users
‣ Growing by 20 million per month
‣ Aging GSM networks unsuitable for data
‣ Mobile Internet usage less than 12 million in 2009
‣ 3G and WiMAX auctions ended in 2010
‣ Wireless broadband coming in 2011
‣ Indian Ministry of Railways is world’s largest operator
‣ 14,000 trains per day
‣ Target to install Wi-Fi on short-haul trains by end 2011
Vendor Opportunities
‣ Intelligent Cellular Gateways• Aggregate and switch between different networks
• Industrial grade, ruggedized and compliant
• Technology-agnostic for plug and play
‣ Mesh Access Points• Trackside/Platform and On-Train/Inter-Carriage networks
• Future inclusion of cellular/M2M modules
‣ Advertising Capability for Revenue Generation‣ Within Wi-Fi hotspot and PIS displays
Application Opportunities
Source: Nokia Siemens Networks
$10 billion cost by 2015
Challenges
‣ Make passengers passionate about using mass transit
• Enhance perceived value with useful amenities
‣ Availability of suitable spectrum in sufficient bandwidth
‣ Unification of standards for global use
• Roadmap to LTE-R using GSM-R as model
• Collaboration with leading telcoms suppliers e.g. Alcatel Lucent
• Liaison between vendors and transit operators
‣ Education throughout the value chain
• Create blueprint for transit industry with ‘best practice’ guide
• Maintain constant dialog between key stakeholders
Thank you.