Battery powered locomotive

A locomotive that is operational at speeds of up to at least 60 miles per hour without a prime mover engine, the locomotive comprising:

• a power bus for providing power to components of the locomotive when the locomotive is operating in a motoring mode, a charging mode, or a dynamic braking mode;
• a plurality of batteries connected across the power bus, the plurality of batteries for:
• providing a voltage ranging from 530 volts to 800 volts to the power bus when the locomotive is operating in the motoring mode;
• and
• receiving power from the power bus when the locomotive is operating in the charging mode and when the locomotive is operating in the dynamic braking mode and when the locomotive is operating in the motoring mode;
• a charging source connected across the power bus for providing a charging voltage ranging from 530 volts to 800 volts to the power bus for charging the plurality of batteries, wherein the charging source generates less than 700 kilowatts;
• one or more traction motors, each comprising an armature winding and a field winding that are selectively connected in parallel across the power bus, the one or more traction motors operable when the locomotive is operating in the motoring mode and when the locomotive is operating in the dynamic braking mode, wherein the one or more traction motors provide a charging voltage ranging from 530 volts to 800 volts to the power bus for charging the plurality of batteries when the locomotive is operating in the dynamic braking mode, and wherein the one or more traction motors receive no power from the charging source when the locomotive is operating in the charging mode;
• and
• a power dissipation device selectively connected across the power bus for receiving and dissipating excess power from the power bus when the locomotive is operating in the dynamic braking mode.

A method for operating a locomotive without a prime mover engine in multiple operational modes including a motoring mode, a dynamic breaking mode, and a charging mode, the locomotive having a power bus, a plurality of batteries connected to the power bus, one or more traction motors connected to the power bus, a charging source connected to the power bus, and a power dissipation device connected to the power bus, the method comprising:

• the charging source providing power to the power bus while operating in the motoring mode and while operating in the charging mode;
• the plurality of batteries receiving power from the power bus while operating in the motoring mode and while operating in the charging mode and while operating in the dynamic braking mode;
• the plurality of batteries providing power to the power bus while operating in the motoring mode;
• the one or more traction motors receiving power from the power bus while operating in the motoring mode;
• the one or more traction motors receiving no power from the power bus while operating in the charging mode;
• the one or more traction motors providing power to the power bus while operating in the dynamic braking mode;
• the power dissipation device receiving and dissipating power from the power bus while operating in the dynamic braking mode;
• and
• maintaining a voltage of between 530 volts to 800 volts on the power bus while operating in the motoring mode, while operating in the dynamic breaking mode, and while operating in the charging mode.