Automatic couplings (ACs) are already in use in rail freight transport across the world. Only Europe is lagging behind countries like the United States, Russia and China at the moment. In the last hundred years, attempts have been made several times to introduce AC in Europe and technical solutions have been worked out for it in UIC leaflets (e.g. UIC 530-1), but the high costs associated with a European-wide introduction were major roadblocks. This is the reason why the prior attempt to replace screw couplings for freight wagons with automatic ones was unsuccessful in the 1990s (even despite the manual coupling process for an entire train – includes the wagon inspection – take about an hour longer each time). The large number of ground staff required is another important reason for the enormous need for action.