Toshiba: Transforming railway sector in India

by Shuichi Ito, Managing Director, Toshiba India

Indian Railways: Modernising for the future
Indian Railways, the backbone of India's transport infrastructure, is undergoing a transformative overhaul. High-speed trains, upgraded stations, advanced signalling, and projects like dedicated freight corridors are enhancing efficiency and capacity. Backed by a Rs. 3 lakh crore modernisation budget, initiatives include 100% electrification, 300-400 Vande Bharat trains, 40,000 upgraded coaches, and the "Mission Zero Accidents" safety drive, prioritizing passenger experience and sustainability.

Toshiba: A century of innovation in rail technology
For over 120 years, Toshiba has led rail technology innovation, starting in 1899 with traction motors and propulsion systems. In 1923, it advanced Japan's railway electrification by producing the first electric locomotive, marking its global expansion. Toshiba’s connection with India began in 1965 with the supply of electric locomotives, fostering collaboration in India's railway modernization. With a legacy of innovation and deep industry expertise, Toshiba’s innovative solutions meet the requirement for India's railway modernization, focusing on safety, efficiency, and reliability.

Revolutionising Railways: Innovative technologies by Toshiba

Toshiba power supply systems with advanced technology
Toshiba provides advanced, energy-efficient power supply systems that ensure stability and reliability for modern rail networks, continuously innovating to meet the evolving demands of railway infrastructure. Toshiba provides advanced, energy-efficient power supply systems that ensure stability and reliability for modern rail networks, continuously innovating to meet the evolving demands of railway infrastructure.

TESS with SCiBTM captures regenerative energy from train braking, storing it to reduce power waste, stabilize line voltage, and support peak demand. It reduces overall power consumption significantly and a field test shows the achievement of 9 to 14% daily traction energy consumption reduction. Other field test shows TESS enabling emergency train operations for 2.4 km distance which includes a section with steep gradient of up to +33‰.

Furthermore, Toshiba's traction battery systems applying SCiBTM rechargeable lithium-ion battery is key to next-generation railway systems, offering long life, safety, and eco-friendliness. It stores energy regenerated from trains and would serve as an emergency power source for evacuation during power outages. SCiBTM rechargeable battery also powers hybrid rolling stock, reducing total energy consumption compared to conventional systems.

Advanced Power Supply Systems for High Speed Rail, Mainline and Metro trains: Toshiba’s AC Electrification System ensures stable power delivery to electric rolling stock with critical components like Scott transformers (eg: 220/27.5 x 2 kV, 132/27.5 x 2 kV) and Gas Insulated Switchgear for reliable and long-term operations. Similarly, Toshiba’s DC Electrification System provides reliable DC power with rectifier transformers (up to 6 MW rectifier) and package-type substations (up to 2 MW), optimizing power distribution for seamless railway operations. Toshiba has extensive experience in supply of equipment’s like Control Relay Panel, Changeover Switch (42 kV) and other major electrical equipment in substation systems for High Speed Rail (Shinkansen) in Japan.

Toshiba SCADA (Supervisory Control and Data Acquisition) system: Toshiba's SCADA system ensures efficient power management for railways with redundancy for uninterrupted monitoring, flexible operations, and high-security measures for reliable performance.

Toshiba’s rolling stock systems

Toshiba propulsion systems provide tractive effort for train acceleration and regenerative braking, ensuring energy efficiency and high performance. For AC electrified lines, Toshiba offers compact, lightweight, low-noise systems with energy-saving designs, featuring reliable main converters (Converter Inverter, CI) for easy maintenance. For DC electrified lines, Toshiba provides quiet, energy-efficient solutions with high-efficiency components like fully enclosed Permanent Magnet Synchronous Motor (PMSM), and VVVF inverters, ensuring optimal performance in DC feed sections.

Toshiba's auxiliary power supply systems feature high transient response, stable control, compactness, low weight, and low noise. They include a 2-level SIV (70-260 kVA), high-efficiency 3-level SIV, redundancy-enabled standby dual SIV, and dual-mode SIV, which switches from the traction motor inverter to APU during SIV failure.

Train Information System / Train Safety System: Toshiba’s train information control systems integrate high-speed transmission and reliable CPUs to ensure efficient equipment control, safe operations, and passenger notifications.

Locomotives: Toshiba employs advanced technologies like water-cooled main converters, high-power induction motors, PMSMs, and high-performance multiple unit controls to produce electric locomotives (EL), diesel-electric locomotives (DEL), and hybrid locomotives. Toshiba has delivered numerous locomotives and electrical equipment to domestic and international customers.

Toshiba railways information systems

Toshiba integrates advanced control and information systems for train operations, scheduling, rolling stock and crew management, facility management, and signalling, using cutting-edge communication technologies and railway expertise. Its solutions enhance operational efficiency through systems like TrueLine for transportation scheduling, which optimizes timetabling, maintenance, and crew scheduling. The Automatic Train Supervision System boosts efficiency with features like train tracking, route control, and disruption management, supported by AI and IoT. Toshiba’s IoT solutions connect devices across control centers, stations, substations, depots, and crew offices, creating an integrated railway system.