Commissioning of SIUT's Illuminated Platform Edge
Innovative, smart and dynamic guidance system nowin operation at Berlin Südkreuz Germany
Berlin, July, 21st 2022 – With the Illuminated Platform Edge from SIUT, a new era of dynamic passenger information in rail operations begins at Track 1 of Berlin Südkreuz station. On the approximately 150-meter-long platform, 244 LED lighting elements installed in the floor indicate arriving and departing S-Bahn trains with different light patterns. Waiting passengers of the Berlin S-Bahn are also warned of incoming trains as well as danger areas on the track. SIUT‘s Illuminated Platform Edge also provides information about the train length and stopping position of the vehicles. The guidance system in the floor increases attention and safety through visual warnings, helps passengers’ orientation and contributes to a reduction in train stopping times.
“The Illuminated Platform Edge is the smart solution in terms of modern passenger guidance. It not only increases safety on the platform, but also provides a wide variety of information about the incoming train and thus has an effective impact on rail operations. In the future, our platform edge will also be able to visually display the occupancy of individual carriages, thus creating even more comfort for customers,” explains SIUT founder and CEO Benjamin Westerheide.
The Illuminated Platform Edge -the smart LED guidance system
The innovative and smart LED guidance system is embedded along the entire length of the platform and is composed of 244 individual modules at Berlin Südkreuz. Together with industry leader Rinn Beton- und Naturstein GmbH & Co. KG, SIUT developed a special modular stone made of high-performance concrete that ensures optimal integration of the guidance system on the platform. The unique LED lighting elements receive data, can be controlled individually, process train and system information intelligently and display it as light signals on the platform. With different light patterns, the platform edge can show different applications: Pulsating light shows the train’s direction of travel, static red light warns of the danger zone, flashing red light signals the entry or exit of a commuter train, and green light can mean “Boarding please!”.
The guidance system also supports people with limited mobility on the platform through clear signaling, and even waiting passengers always have the clear warnings on the ground in view, even when using their cell phones. As an aesthetically innovative system, the Illuminated Platform Edge ultimately enhances the attractiveness of the station.
“We are pleased that together with Deutsche Bahn Station & Service, SIUT‘s Illuminated Platform Edge has become reality,” says SIUT founder and CEO Vincent Genz. “Our dynamic guidance system is an impressive innovation directly on the platform and immediately helps customers. Versatile visualization options offer enormous potential for further development of our smart system.”
Dirk Flege, Managing Director of the Pro-Rail Alliance, assesses SIUT‘s Illuminated Platform Edge as an innovative gain for rail and says, “In this respect, [the Illuminated Platform Edge is] a great interplay of several innovations for the mobility transition.”
The Illuminated Platform Edge is versatile, can be retrofitted at existing stations and stations for local as well as long-distance travel. It can be included individually in the planning of new construction or modernization projects. With the commissioning at Berlin Südkreuz, Deutsche Bahn in Germany is now starting a validation and testing period of approximately one year.