An Efficient Move-Blocking MPC Approach for Coordinated Control of Multiple Power Units of High-Speed Trains

An Efficient Move-Blocking MPC Approach for Coordinated Control of Multiple Power Units of High-Speed Trains | Research Square window.SnipcartSettings = { analytics: { enabled: false } }; (function() { var accessVector = localStorage.getItem('access_vector') || ''; window.dataLayer = window.dataLayer || []; if (accessVector) { window.dataLayer.push({ user: { profile: { profileInfo: { snid: accessVector } } } }); } })(); (function(w,d,s,l,i){w[l]=w[l]||[];w[l].push({'gtm.start':new Date().getTime(),event:'gtm.js'});var f=d.getElementsByTagName(s)[0],j=d.createElement(s),dl=l!='dataLayer'?'&l='+l:'';j.async=true;j.src='https://www.googletagmanager.com/gtm.js?id='+i+dl;f.parentNode.insertBefore(j,f);})(window,document,'script','dataLayer','GTM-K279D39R'); Browse Preprints In Review Journals COVID-19 Preprints AJE Video Bytes Research Tools Research Promotion AJE Professional Editing AJE Rubriq About Preprint Platform In Review Editorial Policies Our Team Advisory Board Help Center Sign In Submit a Preprint Cite Share Download PDF Research Article An Efficient Move-Blocking MPC Approach for Coordinated Control of Multiple Power Units of High-Speed Trains Zixuan Zhang, Yuan Cao, zhongbei tian, Shuai Su This is a preprint; it has not been peer reviewed by a journal. https://doi.org/ 10.21203/rs.3.rs-7274892/v1 This work is licensed under a CC BY 4.0 License Status: Under Review Version 1 posted 11 You are reading this latest preprint version Abstract Integrating train operation control with the coordination of multiple power units in high-speed trains (HSTs) presents both conceptual interest and technical challenges. This paper proposes an efficient coordinated control strategy for multiple power units in HSTs.The designed controller rapidly and intelligently allocates control forces among the power units, thereby enhancing control precision and ensuring smooth train operation. To accurately capture the dynamic behavior of the train, a multi-particle dynamic model is developed, incorporating traction and braking forces, nonlinear resistance, and inter-units coupler forces. A comprehensive cost function is formulated to simultaneously minimize tracking errors, energy consumption, and coupler forces. To address the optimal control problem under the constraint of limited onboard computational resources, a move-blocking strategy is embedded within the model predictive control (MPC) framework. This approach not only enables effective coordination among multiple power units but also significantly improves computational efficiency. Finally, a series of case studies based on operational data from the Beijing–Shanghai high-speed railway are conducted. The results demonstrate that the proposed approach successfully achieves coordinated control of multiple power units, with a 91.57% reduction in speed tracking error and a 95.41% reduction in coupler force, highlighting its effectiveness and practical applicability. High-speed trains (HSTs) Model predictive control (MPC) Coordinated control Multiple power units Full Text Additional Declarations No competing interests reported. Cite Share Download PDF Status: Under Review Version 1 posted Editorial decision: Revision requested 08 Dec, 2025 Reviews received at journal 03 Dec, 2025 Reviews received at journal 24 Nov, 2025 Reviewers agreed at journal 08 Nov, 2025 Reviews received at journal 25 Oct, 2025 Reviewers agreed at journal 20 Oct, 2025 Reviewers agreed at journal 31 Aug, 2025 Reviewers invited by journal 12 Aug, 2025 Editor assigned by journal 11 Aug, 2025 Submission checks completed at journal 06 Aug, 2025 First submitted to journal 01 Aug, 2025 You are reading this latest preprint version Research Square lets you share your work early, gain feedback from the community, and start making changes to your manuscript prior to peer review in a journal. As a division of Research Square Company, we’re committed to making research communication faster, fairer, and more useful. We do this by developing innovative software and high quality services for the global research community. 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Also discoverable on Platform About Our Team In Review Editorial Policies Advisory Board Help Center Resources Author Services Accessibility API Access RSS feed Manage Cookie Preferences © Research Square 2026 | ISSN 2693-5015 (online) Privacy Policy Terms of Service Do Not Sell My Personal Information {"props":{"pageProps":{"initialData":{"identity":"rs-7274892","acceptedTermsAndConditions":true,"allowDirectSubmit":false,"archivedVersions":[],"articleType":"Research Article","associatedPublications":[],"authors":[{"id":501276862,"identity":"fc8761b2-cbf5-4755-a613-bd471e9ed148","order_by":0,"name":"Zixuan Zhang","email":"","orcid":"","institution":"Beijing Jiaotong University","correspondingAuthor":false,"prefix":"","firstName":"Zixuan","middleName":"","lastName":"Zhang","suffix":""},{"id":501276863,"identity":"a26be11f-c2c5-4dac-bef3-f046e9ed42e1","order_by":1,"name":"Yuan Cao","email":"","orcid":"","institution":"Beijing Jiaotong University","correspondingAuthor":false,"prefix":"","firstName":"Yuan","middleName":"","lastName":"Cao","suffix":""},{"id":501276864,"identity":"7c79efc6-9c49-41be-a055-dfd169f96682","order_by":2,"name":"zhongbei tian","email":"","orcid":"","institution":"Beijing Jiaotong University","correspondingAuthor":false,"prefix":"","firstName":"zhongbei","middleName":"","lastName":"tian","suffix":""},{"id":501276865,"identity":"a0229b9d-a764-4365-a370-1bb8c570a658","order_by":3,"name":"Shuai Su","email":"data:image/png;base64,iVBORw0KGgoAAAANSUhEUgAAAZAAAAAyAQMAAABI0h/eAAAABlBMVEX///8AAABVwtN+AAAACXBIWXMAAA7EAAAOxAGVKw4bAAAA2UlEQVRIiWNgGAWjYDACCSBOYGCQM2A4AOIyE6/F2IDhMClagCBxA0Q1EVrkZ/cYfnjw53D6dsbzxyQYKqwTG9jPHsCrxeDOGWOJxLbDuTsbDrNJMJxJT2zgyUvAr0Uix0AiseFw7oYDQC2MbYcTGyR4DPA7bEaO8Y8EoMMMwFr+EaGF4UaOmUQC2+EEiJYGIrQY3Egrs0hsSzcE+sXYIuFYunEbTw4hhyVvvvnjj7W8ucTBhzc+1FjL9rOfIeAwOJA4AI5TBjYi1QMBfwPxakfBKBgFo2BkAQD3HkdEmoGXGAAAAABJRU5ErkJggg==","orcid":"","institution":"Beijing Jiaotong University","correspondingAuthor":true,"prefix":"","firstName":"Shuai","middleName":"","lastName":"Su","suffix":""}],"badges":[],"createdAt":"2025-08-02 02:08:11","currentVersionCode":1,"declarations":"","doi":"10.21203/rs.3.rs-7274892/v1","doiUrl":"https://doi.org/10.21203/rs.3.rs-7274892/v1","draftVersion":[],"editorialEvents":[],"editorialNote":"","failedWorkflow":false,"files":[{"id":89445956,"identity":"a373d2f0-7acb-4e9d-9edf-26deedcf9881","added_by":"auto","created_at":"2025-08-20 05:05:59","extension":"pdf","order_by":1,"title":"","display":"","copyAsset":false,"role":"manuscript-pdf","size":1373988,"visible":true,"origin":"","legend":"","description":"","filename":"manuscript.pdf","url":"https://assets-eu.researchsquare.com/files/rs-7274892/v1_covered_2c109264-87f7-4c54-8096-70322e898296.pdf"}],"financialInterests":"No competing interests reported.","formattedTitle":"An Efficient Move-Blocking MPC Approach for Coordinated Control of Multiple Power Units of High-Speed Trains","fulltext":[],"fulltextSource":"","fullText":"","funders":[],"hasAdminPriorityOnWorkflow":false,"hasManuscriptDocX":false,"hasOptedInToPreprint":true,"hasPassedJournalQc":"","hasAnyPriority":false,"hideJournal":false,"highlight":"","institution":"","isAcceptedByJournal":true,"isAuthorSuppliedPdf":true,"isDeskRejected":"","isHiddenFromSearch":false,"isInQc":false,"isInWorkflow":false,"isPdf":true,"isPdfUpToDate":true,"isWithdrawnOrRetracted":false,"journal":{"display":true,"email":"[email protected]","identity":"nonlinear-dynamics","isNatureJournal":false,"hasQc":true,"allowDirectSubmit":false,"externalIdentity":"nody","sideBox":"Learn more about [Nonlinear Dynamics](https://www.springer.com/journal/11071)","snPcode":"11071","submissionUrl":"https://submission.nature.com/new-submission/11071/3","title":"Nonlinear Dynamics","twitterHandle":"","acdcEnabled":true,"dfaEnabled":true,"editorialSystem":"stoa","reportingPortfolio":"Springer Hybrid","inReviewEnabled":true,"inReviewRevisionsEnabled":false},"keywords":"High-speed trains (HSTs), Model predictive control (MPC), Coordinated control, Multiple power units","lastPublishedDoi":"10.21203/rs.3.rs-7274892/v1","lastPublishedDoiUrl":"https://doi.org/10.21203/rs.3.rs-7274892/v1","license":{"name":"CC BY 4.0","url":"https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/"},"manuscriptAbstract":"Integrating train operation control with the coordination of multiple power units in high-speed trains (HSTs) presents both conceptual interest and technical challenges. 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