Directional reference for trailing locomotives and railroad...

Railway rolling stock – Locomotives – Electric

Statutory Invention Registration

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Details

C105S026050

Statutory Invention Registration

active

H0001961

ABSTRACT:

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
Trailing locomotives in a multiple-unit consist are controlled from the lead unit by means of a known system using twenty seven wires extending through each locomotive unit. Connections are made to each adjacent unit through a twenty seven conductor jumper cable. Two of the wires used for directional setup are designated as forward and reverse. These are swapped at one end of the locomotive and swapped back to normal in the jumper cable. With this arrangement, any locomotive oriented in the reverse position will receive its forward or reverse signal in the opposite wire of the pair, and thus establish a direction of travel identical with the lead locomotive.
Slave locomotives, situated elsewhere in the train, are connected to each other in the above manner but must receive their commands from the controlling unit by radio. Even with error-free communication, the forward and reverse commands will arrive at the slave consist with ambiguous meaning because of the unknown orientation of these units relative to the controlling unit. Presently the slave consist must be set up manually to provide a directional reference.
The rail industry is now taking interest in the use of an electrically controlled pneumatic (ECP) train brake system. In its present form ECP employs a two-conductor cable trainline extending through the length of each car and locomotive for transmission of both digital control signals and DC power from the controlling locomotive to energize the electric devices on each car. The Association of American Railroads (AAR) has generally specified a standard inter-car connector for this purpose consisting of both a male and female component, such that, trainline connectors on adjacent cars will mate properly regardless of car orientation. An effort is ongoing to expand the ECP specification whereby the two-conductor trainline cable can serve as a platform for control of slave locomotives in lieu of radio. If fully implemented, this method could supplant the present twenty seven conductor trainline in all locomotives including those in the head-end consist. However, this would require an alternative directional reference for trailing units at least as automatic and foolproof as the present swapped wire arrangement.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
The invention is based upon the discovery that an electrical trainline as now specified for ECP can be made in include a directional reference throughout the train. The polarity of the DC trainline supply voltage provides the directional reference provided that each conductor is always connected from the female contact of one connector to the male contact of the connector at the opposite end and vice-versa. Because mating contacts will only connect male to female, each connected trainline wire will thus have identical contacts at the same end of every locomotive and car with respect to its orientation in the train. Standard orientation is defined by the polarity of the DC trainline supply introduced at the controlling locomotive.
In an exemplary embodiment, a positive polarity is arbitrarily established on the conductor having its male contact at the leading end of the controlling locomotive. With the electrical trainline connected as described, the same positive polarity will appear on the female contact at the rear end of the controlling locomotive. This, in turn, connects to the male contact at the leading end of the next locomotive or car, thereby sustaining the pattern throughout the train. Each trailing locomotive, by design, responds to a directional command as indicated by the polarity of its internal trainline wires. However, the orientation of the trailing locomotive does not affect the connection pattern. Reversing the orientation of a trailing unit automatically swaps the internal polarity of its trainline wires to compensate for the otherwise reversed direction of travel. This arrangement provides an absolute directional reference which must be defined manually on the controlling locomotive. Once defined, however, the pattern will extend through the entire train and can be used for automatic setup of sanding, trailing headlights, and any optional features dependent on orientation.
A variation of the above method would avoid the need for manual setup by using trainline polarity to directly control direction of movement. For example, forward operation could be specified by positive polarity on the trainline conductor whose male contact is at the leading end of the locomotive. This arrangement functionally emulates the conventional swapped-wire directional control but, like the latter, does not define an absolute reference for orientation.


REFERENCES:
patent: 3868909 (1975-03-01), Pelabon
patent: 5907193 (1999-05-01), Lumbis

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