Nankai Electric Railway and Hitachi Begin Development of Automated Crew and Vehicle Scheduling System

[Image: Concept of the System]

Nankai Electric Railway Co., Ltd. (President and CEO: Tomoshi Kajitani, hereinafter "Nankai") and Hitachi, Ltd. (Executive Vice President, CEO: Toshiaki Tokunaga, hereinafter "Hitachi") have begun developing a system (hereinafter "the system") that automatically creates and evaluates crew and vehicle operation plans for railways, utilizing Hitachi's proprietary CMOS annealing technology*1, which simulates quantum computing.

The system enables the automatic creation of crew deployment plans—previously reliant on expert knowledge and manual processes—and vehicle assignment and circulation plans based on train timetables, thereby improving the overall efficiency of operational planning.

CMOS annealing is Hitachi's proprietary technology applying quantum computing principles, excelling at quickly deriving optimal combinations while simultaneously considering numerous constraints. In 2025, verification tests conducted on the Nankai Line confirmed that crew scheduling tasks, which previously took several months manually, could be completed in approximately one week. Similarly, vehicle scheduling tasks, which previously took about 20 days, were reduced to just a few days.

Based on these results, both companies will expand the target lines to include the Nankai Line, Airport Line, Koya Line, and Senboku Line, advancing system development with the aim of reviewing operational processes starting from the 2027 timetable revision.

*1 CMOS Annealing: A novel computer developed by Hitachi to solve combinatorial optimization problems using the Ising model, originally devised to explain magnetic properties. It does not require the cooling equipment necessary for quantum computers, operates at room temperature, and can easily scale to large systems.

Background

Crew operation planning involves assigning drivers and conductors to hundreds of daily train services. It is a highly complex task requiring simultaneous satisfaction of numerous constraints, including labor hour regulations under flexible working hours, rest periods, meal and sleep time considerations, and coordination of commuting and lodging locations. Much of this process has traditionally relied on manual work.

Vehicle operation planning determines which vehicles are assigned to which trains and how they are circulated, based on train timetables. It requires consideration of diverse constraints such as vehicle types, formation conditions, inspection cycles, and track capacity for vehicle storage (stabling capacity), making it time-consuming.

In the railway industry, where workforce shortages and succession planning for specialized roles are growing concerns, these planning tasks heavily depend on experienced staff's expertise, posing challenges for knowledge transfer. Therefore, improvements are needed to ensure stable operations in the long term.

CMOS annealing is Hitachi's proprietary technology specialized in quickly deriving optimal combinations from vast and complex patterns while simultaneously considering multiple constraints. It has been successfully applied to complex planning tasks with numerous constraints, such as call center shift scheduling, solving large-scale combinatorial optimization problems that were previously computationally infeasible with conventional technologies.

Key Features of the System

(1) High-speed, high-precision automated planning under multiple simultaneous constraints

In this system, Hitachi's data scientists leverage their accumulated expertise in business understanding and data analysis from various system developments and service innovations in the railway sector to organize and model industry-specific constraints and processes. This enables the system to automatically generate large-scale, complex plans—previously heavily reliant on expert know-how and manual work—with high speed and accuracy.

＜Crew Operation Planning＞

Creating crew operation plans that satisfy multiple constraints after timetable creation previously took several months, but with this system, it can now be completed in about one week. This significantly reduces the concentrated workload during timetable revisions while shortening the overall schedule.

Furthermore, the system enables short-term verification of crew requirements for hypothetical timetables. This is expected to support future planning, such as expanding one-person operations, preparing transportation plans for the opening of the Naniwasuji Line, and developing disaster response plans (BCP timetables).

＜Vehicle Operation Planning＞

The system can quickly create efficient vehicle assignment and circulation plans while considering vehicle types, operational constraints, inspection and maintenance schedules, and stabling conditions. Particularly when operations are disrupted due to accidents or failures, the system can rapidly replan schedules for the following days once final depot information is confirmed, significantly reducing operational burden. In the 2025 verification test on the Nankai Line, the system reduced the time required to finalize one month of vehicle operation plans—including verification—from about 20 days to just a few days.

(2) On-site decision support through plan visualization and evaluation

The system automatically calculates and visualizes evaluation metrics for each operational scenario based on plans generated by CMOS annealing. Specifically, for crew operation plans, it calculates and visualizes metrics such as compliance with various constraints, required staffing levels, duty hours per shift, and rest periods. For vehicle operation plans, it calculates and visualizes metrics such as the number of vehicles undergoing inspection and maintenance. Based on these results, planners can assess the validity and improvement potential of each plan, compare multiple options, and make informed final decisions.

Roles of Both Companies

Nankai Electric Railway: Providing business requirements, conducting effectiveness verification and operational design, and evaluating and implementing the system in operational settings

Hitachi: Optimization and system development using CMOS annealing, business analysis and modeling support by data scientists, and cloud service provision

Future Outlook

Both companies will continue system development toward practical implementation, aiming for operational launch by 2027. As the system is cloud-based, they will flexibly expand functions and improve the system post-launch in response to operational changes and evolving business needs, aiming to reduce workload and stabilize and standardize the quality of crew and vehicle operation planning.

Hitachi will continue enhancing the performance of CMOS annealing and expand its application as a core technology supporting "HMAX by Hitachi," its next-generation suite of AI-driven solutions for transforming social infrastructure.

Related Websites

About CMOS Annealing

CMOS Annealing: Financial Solutions: Hitachi

Trademark Notice

Company names and product names mentioned are trademarks or registered trademarks of their respective companies.

About Nankai Electric Railway

Nankai Electric Railway operates a 169.0 km railway network connecting Osaka Namba with Kansai International Airport, Wakayama, and the World Heritage site of Mount Koya. In April 2026, the company underwent corporate spin-off of its railway business, marking a new beginning. Through this restructuring, Nankai aims to enhance management agility and decision-making speed, drive operational reforms through work-style innovations and technology adoption, and achieve sustainable growth through consistent sustainable investments.

About Hitachi, Ltd.

Hitachi is a global technology leader advancing digital solutions in IT, energy, industry, mobility, and smart life, contributing to a sustainable society.