Remote control locomotive
In the second half of the twentieth century remote control locomotives started to enter service in switching operations, being remotely controlled by an operator outside of the locomotive cab. A remote control locomotive is a railway vehicle that provides the motive power for a train that differs from a conventional locomotive in that remote control radio transmitter and receiver system is used to operate it, by a person not physically located at the controls within the confines of the locomotive cab. They have been in use for many years in the railroad industry, including industrial applications such as bulk material load-out, manufacturing, process and industrial switching. The systems are designed to be fail-safe so that if communication is lost the locomotive is brought to a stop automatically. In the United States remotely controlled locomotives have been used since the 1980s, with the Occupational Safety and Health Administration issuing a Hazard Information Bulletin in 1988 regarding their use. By 1999 Canadian National had 115 locomotives with remote control equipment, covering 70% of flat-yard switching and all of its hump yard operations, with savings estimated at $20 million a year. In 1997 Wisconsin Central Transportation moved to extend the use of remote control operations and one-person crews, but the United Transportation Union demanded that the Federal Railroad Administration ban remote control on the Wisconsin Central and all other US railroads. Unions such as the Brotherhood of Locomotive Engineers and Trainmen have expressed concerns about remote control locomotives due to job losses. They cite remote control locomotives are not as efficient as traditional switching operations while being more dangerous. In 2001, the Federal Railroad Administration (FRA) recommended minimal guidelines for the operation of remote control locomotives.
The Union Pacific Railroad has developed Control Car Remote Control Locomotives, which are stripped down locomotives fitted with remote control equipment. When coupled up to a standard locomotive they permit units have not been equipped with RCL to be remotely operated. Loconrol is a product of GE Transportation Systems that permits locomotives to be distributed throughout the length of a train (distributed power). It is installed on more than 8,500 locomotives around the world, sending signals from the lead locomotive and via radio control to the remote units. Users of the system include BHP Iron Ore, Westrail and Queensland Rail in Australia.
5. Answer the questions.
1. What is slug locomotive?
2. What are they used for?
3. Where are slugs mainly used?
4. What locomotives have been used in place of slugs?
5. When did remote control locomotives start to enter service in switching operations?
6. How is a remote control locomotive operated?
7. Where have remote control locomotives been in use?
8. What happenes if communication with locomotive is lost?
9. When did the United States begin to use remotely controlled locomotives?
10.What is locontrol?
6. Translate the following sentences, paying attention to the Perfect Tense:
1. The control system involving unmanned stations has been developed. 2. The design of the locomotive includes a great number of serial units and aggregates whose reliability has been checked in many years of service on other models of locomotives. 3. The traction generator has forced ventilation from an axial-flow fan driven by the engine. 4. The concept of multiple unit has entered the horizon of the Chinese since the 6th Speed-up Campaign of China Railways in 2007. 5. Experience has shown that trains of significantly different speeds cause massive decreases of line capacity.
7. Read the following text. Give the name to the text. Make a plan and retell the text.
A definitive aspect of high speed rail is the use of continuous welded rail which reduces track vibrations and discrepancies between rail segments enough to allow trains to pass at speeds in excess of 200 km/h (120 mph). Depending on design speed, banking and the forces deemed acceptable to the passengers, curves radius is above 4.5 kilometers, and for lines capable for 350 km/h running, typically at 7 to 9 kilometers. There are also a number of characteristics common to most high-speed rail systems. Almost all are electrically driven via overhead lines and have in-cab signaling as well as no level crossings, although there are some exceptions like the Great Western Main line in United Kingdom. Advanced switches using very low entry and frog angles are also often used. Magnetic levitation trains fall under the category of high-speed rail due to their association with track oriented vehicles; however their inability to operate on conventional railroads often leads to their classification in a separate category.
UNIT 4
multiple unit – складова одиниця
coupling – зчеплення
carriage – вагон
gearbox – коробка передач
hydraulic transmission – гідравлічна передача
wire – дріт
semi-permanent – напівпостійний
1. Match the words with their definitions.
| multiple | a wheeled vehicle |
| coupling | consisting of, including, or involving more than one |
| carriage | metal in the form of a usually very flexible thread or slender rod |
| wire | a device that serves to connect the ends of adjacent parts or objects |
2. Fill in the blank spaces with:
permanent, unit, single, multiple, component, electricity, carriages, denote, term, wire.
1. He suffered … injuries in the accident. 2. They rode to the city in …. 3. The dollar is the principal … of American currency. 4. A telephone … had fallen on the road during the storm. 5. The museum's … collection includes works of art from the 18th century. 6. The … went off during the storm. 7. “I had the feeling that I had been there before.” “The … for that is ‘déjà vu.’” 8. It costs $10 for a … glass of wine! 9. The word “derby” can … a horse race or a kind of hat. 10. The interview is a key … in the hiring process.
3. Translate the word combinations from the text into Russian.
Self-propelling train unit, passenger trainset, multiple-unit operation, multiple-unit train control, rapid-transit system, diesel electric multiple unit, rapid transit rolling stock, high-speed rail rolling stock.
4. Read the text. Express the main idea of the text.