Functional testing of a passenger train: the case of the Donizetti regional rolling stock - A Systems Engineering approach and a base for remote prognostics

The aim of this Master’s thesis is presenting two of the main phases of the lifecycle of a passenger regional train, namely post-production testing operations and maintenance. The first of the two processes is analysed from the point of view of an important industrial company acting in the field, Alstom Ferroviaria S.p.A, with a detailed overview of all the different steps constituting this crucial lifecycle phase. The second process, instead, is briefly introduced and a base for an algorithm for future predictive maintenance application is proposed. In particular, the first part of this work is intended to analyse the functional testing process of the Smart Coradia operated by Ferrovie Nord, named Donizetti, a high-performance, medium capacity regional train. Alstom’s Italian production site is placed in Savigliano (CN) and it is an example of industry 4.0, where it is possible to follow the assembly processes of different types of trains, from regional to high-speed ones. In order to analyse the testing process, a comparison has been made with the POP, the Smart Coradia operated by Trenitalia, highlighting the customization gaps between the two trains. The processes and tools necessary for testing the train have been therefore adapted and the risks that could emerge during the process have been considered and investigated. For this purpose, reasoning in a top-down perspective, the P-FMEA model has been applied and this allowed to take action against the main failures that can be encountered. Starting from the testing phases, a variable of relevant importance for the operation of all trains has been selected: the wear of the friction component (pad) of the brake block. Therefore, the second part of this work is, instead, a prognostic algorithm capable of detecting anomalies and of foreseeing the useful life of the braking pads of the Donizetti, using data measurable starting from the testing operation in order to set up initial parameters for the model proposed. An overview of the technologies that could be used to improve this methodology is provided. The train, as it is composed of several subsystems, is seen as a complex entity and therefore a systems engineering and its holistic vision are the Ariadne's thread along the course of this thesis.