In a strange twist of events, Indian Railways has decided to partner with Apple in order to increase their train’s speed. We know Apple makes excellent hardware and software for mobiles, we know Apple loves to create mind-blowing designs and user interfaces.
But analysts and experts are baffled over this new development. Exactly how can Apple help Indian Railways to increase trains’ speed? That too almost 6 times to 600 km/hr?
Is this something related to automatic and self-driving cars, connected with IoT?
We explore…
Rail Minister: Apple Will Help Indian Rail To Increase Speed of Trains
In a press conference, Railways Minister Suresh Prabhu stated that Govt. think-tank Niti Ayog has already approved a budget of Rs 18,000 crore to increase the speed of various trains, which includes Gatimaan Express between New Delhi and Mumbai.
As per the Minister, ‘technology’ has been roped in to enable trains to move faster, and maybe cross 600 km/hr barrier.
He said, “You can yourself imagine how much travelling time this will save. We are already working with companies like Apple…”
As per the statement issued during the Assocham Event, Minister Prabhu said that they will be developing the technology right inside India, rather than importing it.
While Gatimaan Express trains will be enabled and upgraded to run at 200 km/hr between Delhi-Mumbai and Delhi-Kolkata, other trains would now run at 600 km/hr, with the help of technology developed by Apple.
6 months back, tech experts from these companies have already visited them, and the proposal has been sent.
Besides, self-propelled coaches would be soon introduced, which can detect rail fractures via ultrasonic technology.
But.. How Will This Happen?
In last few years, Apple hasn’t showcased any earth shattering technology or concept which can enable trains to run at 600 km/hr, which is almost 6 times of what India’s fastest trains run right now.
One probability is that Apple may introduce their auto-driving module into the trains. Last month, Tim Cook, Apple CEO described their self-driving car experiment as ‘mother of all IoT projects’. Although Apple has not revealed what exactly this is all about, it seems a major push towards autonomous driving.
But still, it doesn’t fit with the notion of increasing speed of trains, in India, where the main problem is not technology per se, but the ground realities such as quality of tracks, infrastructure and the signalling systems.
In case you have any information, as to how Apple can help increase speed of Indian trains, then do let us know by commenting right here!