In the high-speed maglev system,accurate real-time information of the train position is essential forstable,safe and efficient train operation.To detect the relative position of the high-speed maglev trainfrom a reference position,a location method based on long stator slot detection was proposed.Besides,aprototype system has been successfully developed.The hardware structure of the system,as well as itsworking principle was described.Moreover,a subdivision algorithm for calculating the pole location anglesignal was elucidated.Experiments show that the proposed method is feasible.The technical indexes ofthe detection system satisfy the requirements of the vehicle operation control system.The relative positionsensing system can be put into practice.