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Subject: 
Re: New Press Release about Power Function Trains
Newsgroups: 
lugnet.trains
Date: 
Fri, 28 Mar 2008 13:34:40 GMT
Viewed: 
11161 times
  
In lugnet.trains, Benn Coifman wrote:

It would be nice if the new system offered easy multiple
unit connection- one IR receiver could power multiple
motors at the same power setting (more than two) with a
single output port... off of multiple batteries

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 at all positive it's a good idea - the PF RC Receiver has overload
protection, so if you try to draw too many amps from the receiver, it will shut
down to protect itself. Remember that little thing needs some protection from
somebody trying to pull 5 amps through it (that outrageous current could be
required by just three of the XL motors stalled... although I've no idea what
the max current draw characteristics of the PF train motors might be).

One of the nice possibilities of the IR system is the ability
to control multiple trains on one loop.

It already has this, sort of. The NXT, with an IRLink, should be able to handle
this sort of thing (using NXT sensors to detect train positions, for instance).
And using BT, you could network four NXT together, each commanding four
different sections of a layout, each able to control any IR trains in its
sector, while having a minimum of 16 different sensors to detect train position,
speed, state, color, etc. And if you stack old-style sensors, a lot more.

I still haven't played with the new trains and the IRLink - largely due to time,
and the amazing number of other things LEGO has opened up with the NXT and a
wealth of custom sensors, PF compatibility, and due to the fact that I want to
start using the *new* system this way... and it hasn't been released yet.

--
Brian Davis



Message is in Reply To:
  Re: New Press Release about Power Function Trains
 
(...) 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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