Innovation is not the monopoly of tech giants and startups. Like the RATP, the SNCF intends to demonstrate this at the VivaTech show, which will open its doors this week.
Industrial 3D or automation solutions, AI and data, 3D printing, online marketplace… The transport group is thinking big. During the four days of the Paris meeting, he promises “more than 100 innovative projects and demos presented. »
Real-time diagnosis in augmented reality
The SNCF assures it however: it is not a question of a simple technological display. And thus claim a common thread designed for the responsible digital era. “Tech for people, by people” is thus a “Tech useful on a daily basis, a Tech with impact, a Tech at the service of a society in motion, united and sustainable. »
More concretely, these are in particular projects focused on industry and its operational activities. In this sector, the SNCF specifies using technologies from Web3, but also virtual reality and predictive maintenance.
On maintenance, the group is also betting on 3D printing, the uses of which are being developed within the Additive4Rail consortium. The goal here is to design mechanical parts. For maintenance operations, its Equipment branch has also developed a digital quality control tool based on computer vision.
Regarding the industrial metaverse, the SNCF relies on its Fab AR/VR, which is developing an augmented reality solution for remote diagnosis. Experiments have been carried out in SNCF Voyageurs Technicentres.
AI developed to improve the traveler experience
Using an AR headset, field agents can interact with experts from the Equipment Department to access expert skills remotely and in real time. The promise: faster breakdown repairs.
On its industrial activities, the SNCF also highlights its use of drones for the performance of certain tasks which would have required human intervention at height. Examples include counting parts in racks or inspecting the roof of a train.
With regard to the traveler experience, the company specifies that artificial intelligence occupies “a place of choice. AI is notably at the heart of a chatbot called TOUTOUI and whose function is to direct Internet users to the right service.
With the Transformer, SNCF Réseau has an AI designed to predict traffic delays and produce a forecast. Here, AI must contribute to “improving both the operational management of traffic and the information transmitted to travellers. »
MINERVE: a digital twin with multiple uses
SNCF also pools its network infrastructure of 28,000 kilometers of fiber optic cables for maintenance and operation uses. How ? By “turning them into vibration sensors. »
Ecological transition obliges, the industrialist will dedicate a day, June 16, to projects focused on decarbonization and digital trust. In this sector, the group is piloting a project called ‘La grande collection’ aimed at giving a second life to computers. It also leads multiple initiatives around the hydrogen train.
SNCF is also interested in the potential of digital twins through the MINERVE project, funded by the France 2030 recovery program. Its ambition here is to digitize the entire life cycle of railway infrastructure.
“From maintenance assistance to the use of 3D data, the use of digital twins has many uses for businesses, to reduce the mental load of agents and help operational excellence and the reduction of costs”, underlines the industrialist.