JSC «NC Kazakhstan Temir Zholy» (KTZ), the national operator of the main railway network of the Republic of Kazakhstan, plans to fully adopt TETRA digital radio communications as a standard.
To optimize the deployment of TETRA, Rtel Group adopted Hytera’s low power consumption DIB-R5 Outdoor TETRA BS and Sinclair omnidirectional antennas, and developed a series of ways to deploy the system, such as a mobile “crown” with communication equipment, a removable drive to ensure the raising and lowering of the crown (equipment), and a cone-type mast with connection structures requiring no additional fasteners. This design removed the unnecessary passive AV units that reduce the output power of the base station. It also increased the safety of maintenance by minimizing the working at heights, as well as made the deployment 7 times quicker than before.
Hytera offered a comprehensive solution based on the TETRA radio channels to prepare a data transmission environment and the centralized information processed from mobile (locomotives, SSPS, wagons) to stationary (depot stations) railway facilities. Besides, AMC Smartower with the mobile crown was developed specifically for Hytera DIB-R5 outdoor base station to improve workers’ safety and ensure the fast deployment of signal coverage.
Meanwhile, Hytera’s dual-mode rugged radio PTC680, running on Android, has replaced various tech solutions by developing applications such as instrument and inventory control, personnel tracking, train approach notification, etc., while the Cybe-RR ecosystem expanded the technical capabilities of the digital infrastructure by solving security problems and worked as a single return center for information from all different sub-systems.
The KTZ project has proven that TETRA is a reliable solution for both voice and data transmission for railway operations. TETRA is the possibility of using a radio channel for transmitting data from the interval control system of trains while ensuring voice communications and increasing the throughput of railway sections, especially single-track ones; the distance between trains can be adjusted according to their actual speed relative to each other. And it is an excellent example of a large-area railway operation adopting TETRA technology to solve its business-critical and mission-critical communication requirements. Compared to GSM-R, the Hytera TETRA solution provides better spectrum efficiency, more extensive coverage, and more mission-critical features. TETRA technology is also a significant budget saving for the railway operator.
Hytera’s TETRA coverage deployment along the railway tracks was started in 2013. To date, about 20% of Kazakhstan’s railways are covered by Hytera TETRA infrastructure, including 72 TETRA base stations, over 2,500 TETRA devices, and over 80 TETRA<E multi-mode devices, over 450 train-borne terminals, and over 1,100 stationary and mobile terminals. Hytera is proud of and dedicated to innovating more cutting-edge technologies and empowering both mission-critical and business-critical users to achieve a safer and faster communication network.