Energy-Efficient Train Control in Urban Rail Transit: Multi-Train Dynamic Cooperation based on Train-to-Train Communication.

With the increasing energy consumption in urban rail transit systems, energy-efficient train operation has been paid significant attention. Considering the application of regenerative braking technology, many studies focus on offline energy-saving train trajectory optimization, in which an accelerating regime is inserted into the train trajectory when there is regenerative braking energy (RBE) that can be utilized. However, in practical operation, train states are dynamic and scheduled trajectory might be useless. This paper proposes a real-time cooperative train control method based on Train-to-Train (T2T) communication technology. According to the train states transmitted through T2T communication, whether there is a train in braking regime is judged. Besides, an accelerating regime is inserted by changing train running modes when there is another train in the braking regime. A cooperative control algorithm is developed to achieve the energy-efficient cooperative control strategy. Besides, simulations based on a real-life metro line demonstrate that the proposed cooperative control method can reduce substation energy consumption and improve the utilization of RBE.