DCC uncoupling

Despite spending the last 15 minutes looking for a recent topic about uncoupling and if its possible anywhere without magnets, I cant find it but thought this may be of interest.

I came across it on RMweb



John

I'm sure the DCC boys will have plenty to say about that when they see it John. Thanks for the link.

Looks wonderful, but at 239Euros for one loco and 3 coaches, it is a serious investment!

Yes as Geoff says watching the video its a wonderfull system but i think many of us would find the price to much to justify

Of course if many of us  had limitless funds we wouldnt think twice ( i really should have a go at that lottery thing):lol::lol:

 

Brian

Do you really think you could remember the DCC address for every locomotive, coach and wagon on your layout?

Imagine the embarrassment of putting the wrong number into your handset and watching your crack express split in two at full speed. Or accidentally uncoupling vehicles at random in the fiddle yard. :roll:

[user=339]Ian Morton[/user] wrote:

 …watching your crack express split in two at full speed…

Perfect for slip coaches, then…

Yes Ian i can see your point there especially with a handset like that with a quite limited graphical display.:lol::lol:

Brian

Better than the hand of God any day, after some serious thought from Brian's original question it offers the required solution. Price who would pay that! i mean there are some lunes that pay £400 for a piece of rail control software.

:lol:

It will catch on and the price will drop but it is a neat solution.

I think for coupling i will settle for tensions or kadees for now i just need the vehicles closer to each other and there is plenty of info on here concerning that.

Actually Jims project using the Relay electromagnet with the dingham couplings acheives the same result i assume what they have done is make a coupler that has some sort of internal mini relay or something ?

Brian

Interesting to see it in action.
Probably no more obtrusive than standard N Gauge couplings.

Not so sure the price will come down if it catches on though. Nothing else seems to.

Chris

I think from the posts you are all missing the true technology behind this, The control is via the loco decoder which hasa second address (called the TCCS address) relating to the train formation. the uncoupling is done as functions of the LOCO decoder not individual decoders each wagon. It is also referred to as a DCC bus. As can be seen form the deom where insulating tape is put on the rails and the loco is still running as the couplers also create rail pick ups from every wagon wheel.

Im not saying I would spend that much but have another look at the video, its far more than just a mechanical coupling controlled by a wagon based decoder.

John, at 2.55 into the video, it shows uncoupling wagons as required so each uncoupling unit must have some form of decoder to be able to identify each wagon.
Pity the flyer is not in English

That tape across tracks - some decoders allow that provision now - I think one of the Lenz units does that - I found it
GOLD+ with USP storage module

Another possibility could be there isan electrical contact between coupllers then by some clever method which is way beyond my knowledge you may be able to send a signal to any couple on the train to operate.


Brian

If you download the literature from their website (fortunately there is an English version) you can see what a complex system it is. http://t4t.e-vendo.de/

The couplers provide an electrical connection as well as a mechanical one. Through the coupling a data bus runs along the entire train, controlled by the decoder in the loco.

The decoders in each wagon/coach control the couplings on that piece of rolling stock, tail lamps (if fitted) and interior lights (if fitted).

Interior lights can be controlled individually or for the train as a whole. Vehicles can be uncoupled from any position in the train.

Rolling stock that picks up power can feed it through the bus to help with electrical continuity.

When coupling up to a train (clever stuff this) the loco can stop automatically as soon as it is coupled.

The train has its own address, related to the loco address. A brief read (and I may be wrong here - I frequently am) indicates that locos would have DCC addresses 1 to 999 and the train would be 1000+ the loco address.

Individual vehicles do not have their own DCC address - they can only be controlled as part of a train.

All the vehicles in a train would need to be fitted with a decoder and couplings - so apart from multiple units or fixed rakes/part rakes, EVERY item of rolling stock would have to be fitted.

UK suppliers are quoted as DCC Supplies - but their website doesn't list anything at the moment.

This Page goes someway to explain

I used google babel fish to translate it. The translation is in the attached text file.. It seemed a bit big to paste as part of the main post"

Its not a 100% translation, some things to note, when they say clutch they mean coupler.

Yes the insulation test is due to built in delay/power in the loco decoder.

Try this link:
http://t4t.e-vendo.de/…T_flyer_2009_web_engl.pdf

which is the English version of the flyer.