Human-vehicle interaction is extremely important for the railway industry manufacturers. Either we are taking about the design of new driver’s cabs or the modernisation of older ones, operations will have to bear in mind the ergonomics criteria, including the redesign of the locomotive desk and renewal of the driver’s seat.
Benefiting from a complete set of interoperability standards, the new products for high-speed railway transport consider the ergonomics of the driver’s cab, which is currently built under criteria which stress the importance of safety and comfort.
Other important characteristics are the ergonomic design of the vehicle, the development of cognitive engineering technologies for effective driver-vehicle or occupant-vehicle interaction. Constructors are also considering the development of technologies for an improved cabin environment. Specialists in the area believe that a set of different technical specifications for the driver’s cabs of freight trains are necessary, as well as a set of technical specifications for those of passenger trains, knowing the fact that freight trains are more time on the way than passenger trains.
For example, the excellent ergonomics of the driver’s desk of Alstom’s Prima locomotive increases the comfort level. It has been designed in compliance with the recommendations of the EU-HDD working group , whose goal is to make it easier for drivers to learn and operate control panels, no matter what their nationality, thus keeping training costs down. And, thanks to the size of the cabin, a second seat can be installed and a two-driver arrangement offered.
The new design of the cabin involves appropriate panelling, comfortable seats, clear visibility for the operators, proper arrangement of gauges, provision of space for tools etc., for improved comfort of the operator. In addition, safety features such as increase in roof height inside the cabin, illumination of the cabin, ergonomically correct placement of various instruments, are also addressed. Development of a smart seat with sensors and feedback will increase human performance and productivity.
The latest decision of the European Union, dating back from 2008, on the technical specifications for interoperability the “rolling stock” subsystem of the Trans-European high-speed railway system regulate the fact that the main available seat of the engine driver has to be designed so as to permit the elaboration of all normal driving activities while seating. Requirements on health, safety and ergonomics are still to be debated.
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