System and method for associating wireless nodes of a consist

A method of rapidly, reliably and verifiably associating locomotives in a train with a lead locomotive of the train, the method comprising:

• carrying a mobile component to within a threshold distance or less from at least one of a device, feature, or short range transceiver located on one or more locomotives of one or more consists in the train;
• wireles sly communicating between the at least one of a device, feature, or short range transceiver located on each of the one or more locomotives in the one or more consists in the train and the mobile component when the at least one of a device, feature, or short range transceiver and the mobile component are brought within the threshold distance or less from each other;
• exchanging an identifier unique to the one or more consists in the train or unique to a wireless network associated with the one or more consists between the mobile component and each of the one or more locomotives, wherein the mobile component exchanges the unique identifier with each of the one or more locomotives automatically or upon an action of an operator when the operator brings the mobile component to within the threshold distance or less of each of the one or more locomotives;
• and
• limiting communication of wireless control commands or diagnostic information from the lead locomotive of the one or more locomotives such that the commands or diagnostic information may be communicated only to others of the one or more locomotives that have been verifiably identified as being associated with the lead locomotive by exchange of the unique identifier with the mobile component carried by the operator.

A train control system configured to enable rapid, reliable, and verifiable association of a lead locomotive in a consist in a train over a first wireless network with a wireless node located on one or more other locomotives of one or more consists in the train, the train control system comprising:

• at least one of a mobile component configured to be carried by an operator from one of the one or more locomotives to another of the one or more locomotives in the one or more consists in the train, or a separate, second wireless network communicatively coupled to the one or more locomotives in the one or more consists in the train;
• the wireless node located on each of the one or more locomotives in the one or more consists in the train and the at least one of the mobile component, or the separate, second wireless network being configured to communicate with each other wireles sly;
• the mobile component and the separate, second wireless network being configured to exchange with each of the one or more locomotives an identifier unique to the one or more consists in the train or unique to the first wireless network;
• the mobile component being configured to exchange the unique identifier with each of the one or more locomotives automatically or upon an action of the operator when the operator brings the mobile component to within the threshold distance or less of each of the one or more locomotives;
• and
• the train control system being configured to limit communication of wireless control commands or diagnostic information from a lead locomotive of the one or more locomotives such that the commands or diagnostic information may be communicated only to others of the one or more locomotives that have been verifiably identified as being associated with the lead locomotive by exchange of the unique identifier with the mobile component carried by the operator or with the separate, second wireless network.