 | | New Press Release about Power Function Trains
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Thanks to a member of the Trains and Town website we have received a new press release regarding Power Function Trains. This release is new to me and I wanted to make sure it was shared. If this is old information please forgive me. The article is (...) (17 years ago, 25-Mar-08, to lugnet.trains)
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| | Re: New Press Release about Power Function Trains
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(...) so does this mean we have a PF train motor comming or is the IR-RC train motor being reused? ondrew (17 years ago, 25-Mar-08, to lugnet.trains)
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| | Re: New Press Release about Power Function Trains
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BTW the batt box is 4 bricks high, not studs. SteveB (...) (17 years ago, 25-Mar-08, to lugnet.trains)
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read the RailBricks article in issue II, www.railbricks.com. It explains everything that "can" be explained. It's a very good article and riviting too... ;) SteveB um, cause i worte it! 8P :) (...) (17 years ago, 25-Mar-08, to lugnet.trains)
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(...) Thats funny, I read it as 4 bricks. I didn't even notice the 4 studs until you pointed it out. I have to say I am intrigued. The battery box seems to be a decent compromise. I would have prefered it either a couple of studs narrower or a (...) (17 years ago, 26-Mar-08, to lugnet.trains)
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"Eric Kingsley" <kingsley@nelug.org> wrote in message news:JyBFrz.E48@lugnet.com... (...) You (or I, or someone) could always make some track charging station with a little engine-uity [that could]... We could connect linear contacts of (...) (17 years ago, 26-Mar-08, to lugnet.trains)
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--snip-- (...) I believe that's vaguely how the trains at Legoland Berlin run. Tim (17 years ago, 26-Mar-08, to lugnet.trains)
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(...) I wonder what this will mean for those who have made their own 'RC' kits? (17 years ago, 26-Mar-08, to lugnet.trains)
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(...) It's been talked about before. The old 12v components might work here. From the 1970s era 12v, there is a brick with metal stud contacts that could be used for the pickup from the 12v power rails. Frank (17 years ago, 26-Mar-08, to lugnet.trains)
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(...) Several people, myself included, have tried Lithium camera batteries in the RC trains. They run for 4-6 hours, and can be recharged in 15 minutes. I would hope that the Lego battery box would be similar. That, coupled with fixing the traction (...) (17 years ago, 26-Mar-08, to lugnet.trains)
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(...) Here are some rough calculations to estimate the longevity of the announced battery. Li-poly technology offers 300Wh per litre[1]. The battery box will be 4x8x5 lu (4 bricks high=5 studs) = 32*64*40mm3 Assuming 2mm thick walls, that leaves (...) (17 years ago, 26-Mar-08, to lugnet.trains)
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(...) This was precisely what I was discussing with Abner at a recent show. What happens with the IR trains at a show like Brickworld? I have to admit that it will be pretty funny to mess another layout's trains...for the first 5 minutes. Once the (...) (17 years ago, 26-Mar-08, to lugnet.trains)
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(...) I agree that IR is not ideal for all the reasons previously listed. I hope WiFi is a consideration for a later release. Line of site controlers just are not practical for large layouts but I would guess we will find a way to manage. The (...) (17 years ago, 26-Mar-08, to lugnet.trains)
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(...) The nice thing is that the IRLink is a module by itself and there is nothing preventing LEGO from making a module that accepts radio signals in the future. Probably, I'd end up suggesting Bluetooth or Zigbee over Wifi, or even a proprietary (...) (17 years ago, 26-Mar-08, to lugnet.trains)
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(...) Even if it's a different firmware version of the IR link that does not have a timeout feature - that would be an intersting stop-gap. Ralph (17 years ago, 26-Mar-08, to lugnet.trains)
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(...) I was thinking of switching to radio control. From what I've read regarding IR systems, it should be straight forward to to modify LEGO IR transmitters and receivers to work with small radio modules. Converting them to transmit the unmodulated (...) (17 years ago, 26-Mar-08, to lugnet.trains)
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I agree that the lack of traction is still one of the biggest hindrances to the new system. My latest trains (to be revealed at BrickWorld) have eight of the new RC-type wheels that are all powered, yet they barely get any traction! Has anyone tried (...) (17 years ago, 27-Mar-08, to lugnet.trains)
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(...) The problem with Bluetooth, WiFi, Wireless USB and any other kind of radio frequency transmission would be the horsepower requirements required to decode it (i.e. microprocessor or custom ASIC both of which require extra circuitry to make them (...) (17 years ago, 27-Mar-08, to lugnet.trains)
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| | Re: New Press Release about Power Function Trains
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Metal rails and metal wheels is a good solution. :) Those burned out motors turn out to be a great way to pickup power from rails (when properly modified) that can be rerouted to the battery box charging port. BTW there is some talk about the Pf (...) (17 years ago, 27-Mar-08, to lugnet.trains)
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(...) read and understood. i'll refrain from complaining as over all i'm pretty excited about converting over to rc track and trains. i only wish i knew whether i should keep modifing rc track or wait. ondrew (...) (17 years ago, 27-Mar-08, to lugnet.trains)
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| | Re: New Press Release about Power Function Trains
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For trains the Pf system does NOT require constant communication between the IR receiver and remote. And really how often do you control your trains at a train show. Currently most of us have only one train on a loop at a time at train shows, so you (...) (17 years ago, 27-Mar-08, to lugnet.trains)
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Broken Record... I'm reading this great thread and can't help but think that if everyone reads the article for a level set, then we can talk about the next level of details. I am NOT trying to brag but I have been over to Denmark 2 times (with some (...) (17 years ago, 28-Mar-08, to lugnet.trains)
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(...) past, would it be possible to have a 4 stud wide footprint on the bottom and the have the rest of the side recessed similar to the headlight brick configuration.This will give the ability to build 6 wide hood units by providing a 4 x 8 plate (...) (17 years ago, 28-Mar-08, to lugnet.trains)
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(...) Here are my 2c on the entire thread thus far, I'm still concerned that the 4 wide battery is too wide to conceal in the hood of a 6 wide mode of a typical American road switcher (i.e., just about every American locomotive built since 1968). I (...) (17 years ago, 28-Mar-08, to lugnet.trains)
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(...) Excellent idea, even if it means extending the battery by another two+ studs lengthwise. Another permutation to consider would be instead of recessing a half plate on each side, to make it a full plate thinner on both sides so that any surface (...) (17 years ago, 28-Mar-08, to lugnet.trains)
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| | Re: New Press Release about Power Function Trains
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--snip-- (...) --snip-- I would hope the box would be black too but I suspect the first PFS trainset will determine its colour (or colours if we're really lucky). Remember, though, that a lot can be concealed in the cab of a train leaving no more (...) (17 years ago, 28-Mar-08, to lugnet.trains)
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(...) You need to get some proper locos, with two cabs and some nice smooth bodywork between ;-) Tim (17 years ago, 28-Mar-08, to lugnet.trains)
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(...) That sounds interesting, although thinking about it from the standpoint of robotics & robotic trains even more ideas are presenting themselves to me. I'm not sure how this would work with trains... if a discharging train hits a power section (...) (17 years ago, 28-Mar-08, to lugnet.trains)
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| | Re: New Press Release about Power Function Trains
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(...) From a train point of view, not an issue, simply have a loop (in the UK railway sense of the term. i.e. a double ended siding) and have another train bypass the charging train. tim (17 years ago, 28-Mar-08, to lugnet.trains)
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(...) Well, I may be missing something, but why not? PF connectors will stack, so you could connect a bunch of PF battery boxes in parallel, and stack a bunch of PF motors off each output (again, in parallel). While this should be possible, I'm not (...) (17 years ago, 28-Mar-08, to lugnet.trains)
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(...) Please do that, it seems like a VERY interesting idea! When I read it it was one of those "but of course, I should have thought of that myself!"-moments :) It should, though, be possible to have the possibility to manually control the train's (...) (17 years ago, 28-Mar-08, to lugnet.trains)
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(...) Seems to me that train style PF RX/TX pair will be a perfect technology to reintroduce the monorail system with! Even if LEGO doesn't do this. I see it adding new value to my monorail system. MOnorail was always a bit limited by the lack of (...) (17 years ago, 28-Mar-08, to lugnet.trains)
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(...) Sure - but then it's not automated. You have to get the first train onto the siding, or (if it was running around the track through the siding in the first place) you have to throw the switch so any other train bypasses the siding on the main (...) (17 years ago, 28-Mar-08, to lugnet.trains)
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(...) I just want to say that there are some REALLY innovative ideas being thrown around here. All this talk of automated recharging on sidings and automated points is just making me giddy. Keep the ideas coming!!! -Dave (17 years ago, 28-Mar-08, to lugnet.trains)
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(...) I'm intrigued by this. I did a similar experiment using a 8.4v NiCad Battery and a monorail train. Whenever the train was stopped at the station, some metal brushes would contact between the the battery and track side connections. Thus (...) (17 years ago, 28-Mar-08, to lugnet.trains)
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(...) Dear LEGO: Please don't screw up this new train system like you screwed up the color change. We need something that can run multiple trains (GMLTC has 7 operating loops on our layout.), something that can pull long / heavy trains, something (...) (17 years ago, 29-Mar-08, to lugnet.trains)
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"Eric Kingsley" <kingsley@nelug.org> wrote in message news:JyCtqy.459@lugnet.com... (...) 4 - 5 years ago when Steve B., Huw M., HoMA, and I were asked to comment on the forthing coming RC train we had a conversation with the LEGO technical people (...) (17 years ago, 30-Mar-08, to lugnet.trains)
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