System and method for computing rail car switching solutions in a switchyard including logic to re-switch cars for block pull time
AssigneeCanadian National Railway Company
InventorsKari Muinonen, Anshu Pathak, Matthew Barker, Vincent Morency, Gordon Doyle
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Abstract
A system for computing car switching solutions in a railway switch yard. The system is computer based and has an input for receiving data conveying information about one or more arrival trains arriving at the switch yard and data conveying information about departure trains to depart the switch yard. A processing entity processes the data and computes car switching solutions for the railcars.
Claims21
A method for computing car switching solutions in a railway switch yard containing a switch, a plurality of classification tracks and at least one reswitching track, each reswitching track defining a path allowing recirculating cars from a position downstream the switch to a position upstream the switch, said method comprising:
- a) providing a data processing apparatus having an input and an output, the data processing apparatus being programmed with software to compute car switching solutions and selection of car switching options;
- b) applying at the input of the data processing apparatus first data conveying information about an expected pull time of a given train block, the pull time being indicative of an approximate time at which cars from the given train block are expected to vacate a classification track in which the cars are to be eventually switched by the switch;
- c) computing with the software executed by the data processing apparatus a car switching solution for one or more cars of the given train block, the car switching solution indicating a particular classification track of the plurality of classification tracks or one of the reswitching tracks in which the one or more cars are to be switched by the switch;
- d) the computation of the car switching solution includes a selection by the data processing apparatus of at least one car switching option among a set of car switching options, one car switching option of the set including switching the one or more cars to the classification tracks and another car switching option of the set including switching the one or more cars to one of the reswitching tracks, the data processing apparatus processing the first data under control by the software in performing the selection of the car switching option;
- e) releasing at the output of the data processing apparatus second data conveying the computed car switching solution.
A method for switching cars in a railway switchyard containing a switch, a plurality of classification tracks and at least one reswitching track, each reswitching track defining a path allowing recirculating cars from a position downstream the switch to a position upstream the switch, said method comprising:
- a) providing a data processing apparatus having an input and an output, the data processing apparatus being programmed with software to compute car switching solutions and selection of car switching options;
- b) applying at the input of the data processing apparatus first data conveying information about an expected pull time of a given train block, the pull time being indicative of an approximate time at which cars from the given train block are expected to vacate a classification track in which the cars are to be eventually switched by the switch;
- c) computing with the software executed by the data processing apparatus a car switching solution for one or more cars of the given train block, the car switching solution indicating a particular classification track of the plurality of classification tracks or the reswitching track in which the one or more cars are to be switched by the switch;
- d) the computation of the car switching solution includes a selection by the data processing apparatus of at least one car switching option among a set of car switching options, one car switching option of the set including switching the one or more cars to the classification tracks and another car switching option of the set including switching the one or more cars to the reswitching track, the data processing apparatus processing the first data under control of the software in performing the selection of the car switching option;
- e) switching the one or more cars of the given train block with the switch according to the computed car switching solution.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.