Project Phases

In Phase I, four DAC prototypes were subjected to intensive individual comparison tests. The aim was to gather sufficient findings and then present the results to the European DAC Delivery Programme (EDDP) so that this European committee, consisting of 84 partners, could make a selection decision for a coupling system.

The pilot project is intended to provide the technical data basis so that a Europe-wide migration of a DAK can be implemented. The aim of Phase II was to carry out coupling and driving tests in scenarios that correspond to regular rail freight transport (SGV) operations.

Phases III and IV were implemented as part of the first project extension from January 2023 to June 2024. The focus was on the further technical development and practical testing of the digital automatic coupling (DAC).

With the second extension of the project, the focus is once again on advancing the next steps toward a production-ready DAC and testing it in real-world operation.