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Entrance to Holtet depot
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The EventViewer at Sporveien Oslo’s Holtet depot
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Yellow for a reserved route, red for a route which has already been started

VABtrack Module EventViewer

The OOEventViewer module is a further diagnostic tool in the VABtrack product range which visualises the process data logged by the communication server. It can be used for signalling installations, point controllers, point heaters and level crossings, and has been specially designed for HANNING & KAHL controllers. Visualisation is effected via track diagrams which also use the Operate & Observe (O&O) module.

History
The history of the EventViewer is as old as that of VAB’s Operate & Observe (O&O) module. VAB supplied a graphic EventViewer when equipping the first tram with O&O (Leipzig-Angerbrücke depot) back in 2004. The module was developed for retrospective examination of run sequences, malfunctions, transmitted commands and acknowledgement thereof, user registration, and other information from the log files. It is an indispensable tool, especially for troubleshooting, as every single change in the process data or the system can be traced step by step without any time pressure. One could also describe the EventViewer as a “synergy effect“ of the O&O product. It has many practical advantages and has proven itself multiple times in everyday operation. To date, the function scope has been extended as follows:

  • Tabular view of all reporting lines
  • Search for specific texts in alarms which have occurred
  • Tabular and graphic export of selected telegrams for export to other users who do not have an EventViewer or persons outside of the company or to be able to archive the company’s own malfunction-case processing
  • Read-in of ESP export files read-out by the VABtrack module “controllers“
  • Linkage and integration into the VABtrack system to be able to switch from other modules to the EventViewer for the selected installation
  • Start of the EventViewer for a specific point in time so that the appropriate corresponding log file is automatically read in, and the desired point in time is selected

Data origin, data content
Apart from the time stamp, the process data contains all information from the controllers designated for transmission. The information is permanently recorded by the communication server in daily log files. The EventViewer also makes operating actions transparent. Alternatively, via VABtrack’s “controller” module, data can be directly retrieved from the controllers’event recorders and visualised in the EventViewer.

Visualisation modes
The EventViewer displays the status of the track infrastructure on a track diagram. This enables follow-up of driving movements and also malfunctions. The logged sequences can be played back step-by-step chronologically or automatically. If the installations do not have track diagram representation, the logged process data can be listed in tabular form.

Using the EventViewer
Transport authority staff tasked with the service and maintenance of rail infrastructure and signalling installations use the EventViewer for trouble-shooting, malfunction analysis and evaluation.

The EventViewer is a locally-installed application. It enables error analysis where the controller process data is available, i.e. without the need for direct access to the particular controllers to be looked at. Its function can be compared to that of an accident data recorder, with the difference that its data can be centrally recorded and archived.

The results of the data evaluation can be conveniently exported in tabular form (Excel or csv) and/or graphically as a sequence of images (pdf) for further processes. For HANNING & KAHL service staff and developers, VAB regularly provides an EventViewer launcher which contains all the projects which were ever designed for HANNING & KAHL installations.

Planneddevelopments, Lookingahead
The EventViewer is being continuously updated and enhanced. The next steps are, for example, evaluation of communication errors for more precise classification. Furthermore, a new analysis function based on the tabular display is to be developed for targeted search for specific status changes.