Something A little different There will be a few of you who find this video a bit like watching paint dry. Others might find it fascinating seeing block detection and automatic signalling in action on a model railway. I've recorded a video of the JMRI based control panel for the Rede Valley Railway during a short 5 minute operating session where I was single handedly operating 4 trains at once. You will see the trains circle the layout with signals changing as they go, automatically responding to point settings and whether the block they protect is occupied or empty. The panel was built ages ago, but I didnt add the signals to it until last week. It was remarkably straightforward, and once all the icons were in place JMRI pretty much built the signal logic by itself. At the moment all the signals are virtual, they only exist on the panel, however every icon could potentially be linked to a real signal on the layout that will change aspect in exactly the way the one on the panel does. Its not quite 100% yet, you will see at the very bottom of the diagram a red signal that never goes green, This is the down starter at Chathill Station. I'm going to have to do a lot of playing to make JMRI understand the trackwork ahead of the signal a lot better. At the top of the panel you will see the fiddle yard, with each road long enough to hold 2 8 coach trains. The plan is to use the signals to automatically advance the rear train once the front one has departed. But thats a story for another day.

Posted by Kevin Appleby at 2024-06-05 20:29:47 UTC