Traction and braking control system for a railway train set

Abstract

Traction and braking control system for a train set comprising a master locomotive, at least one slave locomotive and a plurality of carriages, in which each of the locomotives includes traction apparatus and braking apparatus associated with respective manually actuated control devices and a respective electronic control unit. The system is characterized in that the control unit in the master locomotive is associated with sensors designed to provide said control unit with signals indicating the speed and/or the acceleration of the locomotive and the commands given by the driver; memory modules storing data indicating the composition of the train set, data defining a mathematical model of the longitudinal dynamics of the train set, data defining a profile of the section on which the train set is travelling, and data defining at least one operational objective; positioning means for providing signals indicating the instantaneous position of the train set along the section.

1 . Traction and braking control system for a railway train set comprising a leading master locomotive, at least one trailing or intermediate slave locomotive and a plurality of carriages or cars, and provided with a pneumatic braking system and in which each of said locomotives comprises traction apparatus and braking apparatus associated with respective manual control devices and a respective electronic control unit and related signal transceiver means through which the electronic control unit of the master locomotive is able to communicate with the control unit of said at least one slave locomotive; the arrangement being such that the traction apparatus and the braking apparatus of the slave locomotive can be controlled by the master locomotive;
 the system being characterized in that the control unit in the master locomotive is associated with:
 sensor means designed to provide said control unit with signals indicating the speed and/or the acceleration of the master locomotive and the commands given by the driver to the traction control devices and the braking control devices; 
 memory means storing data indicating the composition of the train set, data defining a mathematical model of the longitudinal dynamics of the train set, data defining a profile of the section on which the train set is travelling, and data defining at least one operational objective; 
 positioning means for providing signals indicating the instantaneous position of the train set along said section; and 
 a human-machine interface for providing information to the driver; 
   the control unit of the master locomotive being designed to
 check whether the commands given by the driver using the traction control devices and the braking control devices are consistent with said at least one operational objective, and to use the human-machine interface to provide the driver with instructions on how to operate said control devices to achieve said operational objective; and 
 generate, in a predetermined manner and as a function of the data stored in said memory means and the information provided by said sensor means and the positioning means, signals for controlling traction and/or braking, and to transmit said control signals to the control unit of said at least one slave locomotive through said transceiver means. 
   
     
     
         2 . Control system according to  claim 1 , characterized in that the control unit of the master locomotive is also designed to generate, in a predetermined manner and as a function of the data stored in said memory means and the information provided by the aforementioned sensor means and the positioning means, signals for controlling traction and braking, and to use said signals to control the traction apparatus and the braking apparatus of the master locomotive. 
     
     
         3 . Control system according to  claim 1 , characterized in that the control unit in each slave locomotive is associated with the same means and devices that are associated with the control unit of the master locomotive; the control units of the master locomotive and of the slave locomotive or locomotives being designed to operate selectively as a master control unit or as a slave control unit.