Railway vehicle provided with a pantograph and with a control system for raising/lowering such pantograph

A railway vehicle (1) comprising:

• electric drive motors (8);
• an element for picking up energy (10) movable between
• a first position, wherein the element for picking up energy (10) is suitable to cooperate in contact, in use, with a conductor element (14) of an electrified line to draw electrical energy and supply such electrical energy to said electric drive motors, and
• a second position, wherein the element for picking up energy (10) is spaced apart from the position where, in use, said conductor element (14) is provided;
• an additional electrical energy source (15);
• a moving device (12) for moving said element for picking up energy (10) between said first and second positions;
• a control system (18) for controlling said moving device (12) and, therefore, for moving said element for picking up energy (10);
• said control system (18) comprising:
• a first detection device (20) arranged on board and comprising at least one detector, which is defined by one of a camera, a LIDAR device, a RADAR device, and is pointed towards a space where, in use, said conductor element (14) is provided along the route, so as to detect and supply data relating to objects possibly present in said space;
• and
• at least one control unit (16) configured to control said moving device (12) in response to the data detected and supplied by said detector;
• said control system comprising processing means configured to determine the presence or absence of said conductor element (14) in the vicinity of the vehicle (1) along a route of the vehicle (1), starting from said data;
• said control unit (16) being configured to control said moving device (12) in response to the presence or absence of said conductor element (14) determined by said processing means, and so as to provide power supply to said electric drive motors (8) by said additional source (15) when said element for picking up energy (10) is in the second position;
• characterised in that
• said detector is pointing upwards and forward, beyond an end of the vehicle (1);
• said control unit (16) is configured to control said moving device (12) and move the element for picking up energy (10) into the second position if the processing means show the absence of said conductor element (14) in the following metres of the route, when the vehicle (1) is along an electrified section of the route with the element for picking up energy (10) arranged in the first position.