2003 – November – Aitken, Lehrbaum and Owen – GSM – R – Advanced, Available, Approved and Applicable Part 1 – Advanced

JOHN AITKEN, AITKEN & PARTNERSMARTIN LEHRBAUM, NORTEL NETWORKSGLYN OWEN, SIEMENS GSM-R, the railway extension of GSM telephony, has been designed specifically to satisfy railway radio communication requirements. In this three-part paper we describe the Advanced features of GSM-R that set it apart as a railway system and demonstrate that it is available technology, ready for use today. We explain how GSM-R has been approved by international standards organisations and has a Notified Body process for type and system approval. Finally, we show that GSM-R is applicable to Australia, providing an effective solution to many of the communication problems of Australian railways. Part 1 outlines the advanced and railway specific features of GSM-R.