A.A.R. compliant electronic braking system

A system for reliably communicating a brake command from a master controller on a locomotive to brake equipment on each rail vehicle of a train, said system comprising:

• (a) a means for detecting whether said brake command is being successfully communicated over a communications channel from said master controller to said brake equipment on said rail vehicles, said means for detecting using at least one of the following techniques to determine whether communication has failed:
• (I) a preset number of successful communications have failed to occur over said communications channel within a prespecified time period;
• (II) communication over said communications channel fails to fall within preset tolerances;
• and
• (III) said brake equipment on at least one of said rail vehicles disruptively transmitting on and thus preventing valid communications over said communications channel;
• (b) a means, independent of said communications channel, for communicating said brake command from said locomotive to said rail vehicles when said means for detecting determines that communication over said communications channel has failed;
• (c) a means, disposed on each said rail vehicle, for receiving said brake command conveyed from said locomotive via said means for communicating;
• and
• (d) a means, disposed on each said rail vehicle, for acting upon said brake command conveyed from said means for receiving so as to enable said brake equipment on said rail vehicle to execute said brake command as if said brake command were communicated to said brake equipment over said communications channel.