Traincontroller problems

[caenmatt]

after profiling some locos I had the following issues.

 

Class 37425

 

on my profile track I would manually push the loco to determine the contact spot (2cm front and back)

when I transfer to the layout and enter (auto train drag and drop) the block the rear wheels would make contact and not the front therefore the loco will overrun the stop marker. on some blocks the front wheels will make contact.

transferring back to the profile track and driving the train over the block the front wheels make contact.

 

so a summary, it seems that some blocks will use the front wheels as a pickup and trigger the block indicator and some will use the rear.

am I missing something?

[RFS]

Do the entries to these blocks come from turnouts, and if so are the turnouts directly connected to the track bus rather than going through an occupancy detector? If this is the case it's likely the loco will not be detected until all the pickup wheels are in the monitored block.

[caenmatt]

RFS

yes they are from turnouts connected to the bus.

if this is the case how do you calculate the stop and brake markers?

my maths head is not on today.

if this is the case then would each train need specific stop markers per block..........

my profile track is just 3 blocks with no turnouts, they show on my 37 2cm contact spot. I didn't read this in the manual  how on earth do you go about stop markers.

I use LDT RS8 occupancy units, could I use one feed i.e. 120.4 to feed the power to track on all turnouts connected to a block? this would create a dummy block connected to the turnouts. the block would not be visible on the switchboard but power would be diverted via the LDT the same as the block. I think this approach would be a lot simpler and quicker than setting up specific stop markers per block.

I have 30 blocks and 10 locos, that would mean 300 specific stop markers and the same number brake markers. then later down the road if you couple and uncouple wagons a specific set of rules for each.

[caenmatt]

from Mr Freiwald on the traincontroller forum

it would seem RFS in on the money.

 

if a block is next to a section that it is powered from a dcc bus. a loco will draw from that track, when the front wheels enters the block they will not be detected as the power is being drawn from the track bus.

the option is to power the adjoining sections via an occupancy detector.

 

I often hear with TC the word workaround, it would be nice when something costs this much money it works as it should.

[caenmatt]

next question

I think two tone has mentioned this.

buttons to operate a route

I would like buttons beside each block so when button A is pressed and button B is pressed it creates a route between A and B then drives train from A to B.

then the same with other blocks if button A and button D is pressed etc.

[RudyB]

Hi Matt. A route 'between buttons' can be made by placing the pushbutton and double click it go into the properties window. On the 'Operations' tab select the filter for blocks and add the block you want to the right pane. Now at the bottom select the Autotrain icon in the desired directon. Do the same with a second pushbutton at another block. When you now click the buttons, an autotrain schedule betweenthese two blocks will start (if you have set the rule 'train may stay in start block').

 

Because this is an Autotrain schedule, there's only one set of rules available for all the possible schedules. If more control over rules is needed, different rules for different schedules, then best create a whole lot of schedules and start the one you need with a pushbutton (will need more than one button besides the block of there are several possible schedules to start).

[two tone green]

Or, put push button where you want on the layout switch board, I put them next to a block, even one at each end as you may have a long block and want a train to run to one end or the other in the block. In fact you can have lots of push buttons in a block to control different stopping points in that block.

 

Anyway, in the properties box of a schedule look for the tab marked Start-Dest. and you will see some drop down boxes for the start key and destination key. Under them you will see a button marked record, push it and a little video camera symbol will appear when you hover over a push button that you want to use as the start key, click on that key. Then click on the push button you want to use on the destination key. As you do so in both instances you will hear a click and once you have done both the properties box will pop up again and you will see the two switches in the right boxes, start and destination.

 

There are some tick boxes to do with pushing buttons in reverse order to start the schedule 'backwards'. If the loco has run from A to B using a schedule called A to B by pushing button A and the button B you can get it to run back by pushing button B then button A. Still with me. This reverse keys button is ticked by default.

 

If you untick it you have other options and useful if you have a round and round layout. If you do and have the reverse keys box ticked it can limit operations and schedules run strangely. Also you can limit the direction of a schedule by using these tick boxes, again useful on round and round layouts. I expect you can work out the impact of them with a little thought.

[two tone green]

A word of advise, by using the operations box in the properties windows limits the use of that object, a push button in this case. By selecting that object in other properties box you can use it for multiple things and at times easier to set up rather than using the logic and filter function.

 

That's why using the start-destin tab in a schedule is a better way of starting schedules using the push buttons.

[RFS]

from Mr Freiwald on the traincontroller forum

it would seem RFS in on the money.

 

if a block is next to a section that it is powered from a dcc bus. a loco will draw from that track, when the front wheels enters the block they will not be detected as the power is being drawn from the track bus.

the option is to power the adjoining sections via an occupancy detector.

 

I often hear with TC the word workaround, it would be nice when something costs this much money it works as it should.

 

See this topic from a little while ago which explains in detail how to equalize the voltage across blocks fed by occupancy detectors and those fed directly from the bus.  Won't cost an arm and a leg!

 

The problem is caused by the LDT using 1.5v voltage reduction to do the detection, and the laws of physics doing the rest.  Hard to blame Freiwald really - not much the software can do if the hardware doesn't  say "detected".

 

http://www.rmweb.co.uk/community/index.php?/topic/74750-ldt-rs8-inconsistent-block-detection/

[two tone green]

Good reply RFS, its been a while since we went over that issue.

 

Back to the push buttons schedules. Sorry if I seem to be going on about this and using the operations tab in the properties box.

 

If you don't do this you can use the button for multiple uses. For example one day you want to play by yourself and have the PC run trans so you can train spot. Pushing the buttons starts schedules and you sit back to watch the trains go by. Nice.

 

Next day your mate drops by to play trains with you so you decide to be signal man and him the driver. By using the same buttons that you use to start schedules you can by doing a few clever little things use the same buttons to select routes instead and if you want have the signals respond to the routes set or you can set the signals yourself and your mate drives the trains. A very friendly situation

 

So straight away you can see that one object can have multiple uses.

[caenmatt]

Hi All

and thank you.

RFS

I looked at the thread to sort out the voltage problem. luckily when I wired the points and non blocked track I used copper tape, one for j and one for k. I wired everything to the right, when I wired in my LDT RS 8's I wired these to the left. I simply cut the tape in half (isolating the tracks from the LDT units). I then fed the J and K from the command station to the LDT tape, I then ran two wires from an empty port in an LDT to the track tape.

it took about 30 minutes and now every piece of track runs through an LDT.

 

thanks

 

route switches

I played about for a couple of days and sussed how to do it before your replies. I found a new way  one switch at each block for multiole routes.

 

ok

Block A to Block B

• set up an on\off switch for each block. in operations set a delay to 10 seconds followed by that switch turning off. this will reset the switch after 10 seconds.
• create a schedule A to B
• create a flagman, in trigger set switch A on, switch B on and Block A occupied.
• in operations set Schedule Block A to B

when button A and B is pressed and a loco is in Block A the train will move from A to B

• set the trigger for the second Flagmann for button A on, Button B on and Block B occupied
• in operation set Schedule A to B (in reverse)

doing it this way allows you to have one button per block and select multiple options. all you need to do is add flagman for each schedule.

 

again thanks for your help.

 

 

[two tone green]

Hi Seems a bit overly complicated when the simple solution is by using the start destination tab in schedules and use push buttons.  No need for on off switches at all. Push button do the job without the need for flagman etc.

 

The schedule wont start if there is no loco in the start block, forwards or backwards.

[caenmatt]

Two Tone

I had a play with your method and I am converted. a lot quicker than my method. thank you.

[two tone green]

Thanks, always happy to help.

[peach james]

from Mr Freiwald on the traincontroller forum

it would seem RFS in on the money.

 

if a block is next to a section that it is powered from a dcc bus. a loco will draw from that track, when the front wheels enters the block they will not be detected as the power is being drawn from the track bus.

the option is to power the adjoining sections via an occupancy detector.

 

I often hear with TC the word workaround, it would be nice when something costs this much money it works as it should.

 

It's not a TC directly related issue, but a physics one.  The path through the non detected section has a lower resistance, so most of the current flows through that way...it depends on the sensitivity of the detection section as to if it will pick up the partial current flow or not.  The best solution is to have ALL track detected, even if you don't use the sections for anything.  (rather than running the turnouts through non detected sections).  I include turnouts in my track plan, and use the resulting section as a lock on the turnouts, to prevent turnouts switching under trains.

 

James

[two tone green]

Likewise James.

 

My O gauge layout and my old OO layout was fully track circuited as a train could be between blocks sat on points so having them locked was an added safety feature.