Future of Railway Engineering and Operations

The Digital and Cyber Railway Engineering and Operations Center (DCREOC) supports fundamental research, applied research, and education aimed at improving the efficiency and safety of rail systems through the use of advanced technologies.

DCREOC is a focal point for this new era of railway transportation

From data storage to supply chain management, digital and cyber technologies are shaping the future of rail transportation. Meanwhile, cyber attacks have the potential to cause costly and in some cases catastrophic disruptions. Research expertise is needed to guide the industry’s transformation and help build the railway networks of the future.

Capabilities

DCREOC is based at the University of Maryland, College Park, MD. The University has authoritative programs in transportation engineering and artificial intelligence, and is home to more than a dozen centers in quantum computing.

Fundamental Research

Math algorithms/machine learning
Big data/cybersecurity
Quantum information/human technology
Safety
Society
Mobility

Applied Research

Track engineering
Railway operations (including ticketing)
Safety and security
Blockchain in railway operations
Quantum information

Education and Outreach

Training of students and railway professionals in digital and cyber issues
Short courses in digital and cyber railway issues

Current and Past Projects

Blockchain applications in track geometry modeling
Covariate-Shift Generative Adversarial Network (COGAN) and Railway Track Images Analysis
Hybrid reduction technique with covariate shift optimization in high dimensional track geometry
Approximate Bayesian computation for railway track geometry parameter estimation