Master controller for railway vehicles

Abstract

To make it possible for a railway vehicle to leave a garage by remote control without requiring a driver dedicated for the vehicle leaving the garage and to perform remote control of the railway vehicle without considerably improving a master controller 1 for railway vehicle in the master controller 1 for railway vehicle that is provided with a steering wheel 3 protruding outside from a body 2 that is freely slide-operable and a cam shaft 4 rotating interlockingly with the slide of the steering wheel 3 that is housed inside the body 2.SOLUTION: A motor 11 rotating a cam shaft 4 and a clutch 12 mediated between the motor 11 and the cam shaft 4 are housed inside a body 2, and the motor 11 and the clutch 12 are remote controlled.SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 1

Description

Technical Field

[0006] , , ,

[0001] The present invention relates to a main controller for railway vehicles.

Background Art

[0002] Conventionally, a main controller for railway vehicles has a handle that protrudes from the body and can swing freely, and a camshaft housed inside the body that rotates in conjunction with the swing of the handle (see, for example, Patent Document 1).

[0003] Conventionally, when a railway vehicle stored in a depot is to be taken out, a driver dedicated to taking out the vehicle boards the crew's cab and operates the main controller for railway vehicles. In order to take out a railway vehicle from the depot without requiring a driver dedicated to taking out the vehicle, it is conceivable to remotely control the operation of the handle, but no specific measures for remotely operating the handle have been disclosed so far.

Prior Art Documents

Patent Documents

[0004] [[ID=2​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​To solve the above problems, the present invention provides a master controller for a railway vehicle comprising a swingable handle that protrudes from the outside of the body and a camshaft housed inside the body that rotates in conjunction with the swing of the handle, wherein a motor that rotates the camshaft and a clutch interposed between the motor and the camshaft are housed inside the body, and the motor and clutch are remotely operated.

[0007] According to the present invention, the motor and clutch are remotely operated by wireless signals from outside the railway vehicle, so that the railway vehicle can be released from the depot by remote operation without requiring a dedicated driver for departure. Furthermore, since the motor and clutch are housed inside the unit, remote operation of the railway vehicle can be achieved without making significant modifications to the main controller for the railway vehicle. [Brief explanation of the drawing]

[0008] [Figure 1] A schematic diagram showing a first embodiment of the master controller for railway vehicles of the present invention. [Figure 2] A schematic diagram showing a second embodiment of the master controller for railway vehicles of the present invention. [Modes for carrying out the invention]

[0009] Referring to Figure 1, a first embodiment of the railway vehicle master controller of the present invention will be described. The railway vehicle master controller 1 includes a power handle 31 located on the left side of the body 2, a brake handle 32 located on the right side of the body 2, and a reversing handle 33 located in the center of the body 2, as handles 3 that protrude outward from the body 2. The power handle 31 has a grip portion 311 that the driver grasps and swings with their hand, and an arm portion 312 that extends from the left end of the grip portion 311 into the body 2. A handle shaft 313 perpendicular to the arm portion 312 is provided at the tip of the arm portion 312 inside the body 2. The power handle 31 is swingable in the front-rear direction of the body 2 around the handle shaft 313. The brake handle 32 also has a grip portion 321 and an arm portion 322, similar to the power handle 31, and a handle shaft 323 is provided on the arm portion 322. Furthermore, the brake handle 32 can be swung back and forth around the handle shaft 323. The arm portion 322 extends from the right end of the grip portion 321 into the interior of the device 2.

[0010] Inside the device body 2 are two cam shafts 4 that rotate in conjunction with the swing of the handle 3. These include a power cam shaft 41 extending parallel to the handle shaft 313 from the left side to the center of the device body 2, and a brake cam shaft 42 extending parallel to the handle shaft 323 from the right side to the center of the device body 2. The power cam shaft 41 and the brake cam shaft 42 are located coaxially. In addition, multiple cams 5 are arranged side by side on each cam shaft 4 of the power cam shaft 41 and the brake cam shaft 42, with axial spacing between them. Furthermore, a handle gear 6 is attached to the right end of the handle shaft 313, and a cam gear 7 that meshes with the handle gear 6 is provided at the left end of the power cam shaft 41. The meshing of the handle gear 6 and the cam gear 7 causes the power cam shaft 41 to rotate in conjunction with the swing of the power handle 31. Similarly, a handle gear 6 is attached to the right end of the handle shaft 323, and a cam gear 7 that meshes with the handle gear 6 is provided at the right end of the brake cam shaft 42. The meshing of the handle gear 6 and the cam gear 7 causes the brake cam shaft 42 to rotate in conjunction with the swing of the brake handle 32.

[0011] Furthermore, inside the device body 2, there are the same number of cam switches 8 as there are cams 5, which are arranged side by side on each cam shaft 4 of the power cam shaft 41 and brake cam shaft 42. These switches are turned on when pressed by the cams 5. Each cam switch 8 is arranged in a set of one cam 5 and one cam switch 8. Each cam switch 8 turns ON when the movable contact, which is pushed by the cam 5, touches the fixed contact when the power cam shaft 41 and brake cam shaft 42 rotate in conjunction with the swinging of the power handle 31 and brake handle 32, and turns OFF when the movable contact moves away from the fixed contact. When the power handle 31 and brake handle 32 are in the "off" position, all cam switches 8 are OFF, and a predetermined cam switch 8 is turned ON according to the swinging position of each handle 3.

[0012] The reversing handle 33, which functions as the handle 3, has a grip portion 331 that the driver grasps and swings with their hand, and an arm portion 332 that extends from the center of the grip portion 331 into the interior of the device body 2. At the tip of the arm portion 332 inside the device body 2, there is a reversing cam shaft 43, which functions as a cam shaft 4 and is perpendicular to the arm portion 332. The reversing cam shaft 43 extends parallel to the power cam shaft 41 and the brake cam shaft 42, from the right end of the power cam shaft 41 to the left end of the brake cam shaft 42. The reversing handle 33 can be swung in the front-rear direction of the device body 2 around the reversing cam shaft 43.

[0013] The reversing cam shaft 43 has a power interlock cam 91 and a brake interlock cam 92 attached to each side of the arm portion 332. The power interlock cam 91 can interlock with and release the power interlock cam 101 located at the right end of the power cam shaft 41. The brake interlock cam 92 can interlock with and release the brake interlock cam 102 located at the left end of the brake cam shaft 42.

[0014] The reversing handle 33 has three positions: "forward," "reverse," and "off." When the reversing handle 33 is swung to the "forward" or "reverse" position, the power interlock cam 91 and power interlock cam 101, and the brake interlock cam 92 and brake interlock cam 102, respectively, are interlocked to a state that enables "forward" or "reverse" movement. At this time, the railway vehicle moves forward or backward by swinging the power handle 31, and the forward or reverse movement of the railway vehicle can be slowed down or stopped by swinging the brake handle 32. When the reversing handle 33 is swung to the "off" position, the power interlock cam 91 and power interlock cam 101, and the brake interlock cam 92 and brake interlock cam 102, respectively, are interlocked to a state corresponding to "off." At this time, the power handle 31 is constrained to the "off" position, and the brake handle 32 is constrained to the "emergency brake" position.

[0015] In the main controller 1 for railway vehicles, three motors 11 that directly rotate the power camshaft 41, brake camshaft 42, and reverse camshaft 43, respectively, are housed inside the main body 2. A clutch 12 is interposed between each motor 11 and each of the camshafts 4 of the power camshaft 41, brake camshaft 42, and reverse camshaft 43, and the three clutches 12 are also housed inside the main body 2. Each motor 11 and each clutch 12 can be remotely operated by a control device, such as a stationary device installed in a control room, or a portable device such as a tablet. Specifically, the wireless signals transmitted from the control device are received by each motor 11 and each clutch 12 through a control device installed in the railway vehicle that is different from the control device, or by each motor 11 and each clutch 12 themselves. Based on the commands of the received wireless signals, the power cam shaft 41, brake cam shaft 42, and reverse cam shaft 43 rotate, and the swing of the power handle 31, brake handle 32, and reverse handle 33 is remotely controlled in conjunction with this rotation. As a result, railway vehicles that have been stored in the depot can be released from the depot by remote control. Therefore, railway vehicles can be released from the depot by remote control without requiring a dedicated driver for release. Furthermore, since each motor 11 and each clutch 12 are housed inside the unit 2, remote control of the railway vehicle can be realized without making significant modifications to the main controller 1 for the railway vehicle.

[0016] Furthermore, cameras are installed in both the leading and trailing cars of the railway vehicle, and various commands based on the images captured by the cameras are pre-programmed into the control device, allowing the operator to remotely control the railway vehicle while viewing the images.

[0017] Referring to Figure 2, a second embodiment of the railway vehicle master controller of the present invention will be described. Reference numerals in Figure 2 that are the same as those in Figure 1 refer to the same parts, components, etc., and only the differences between the second embodiment and the first embodiment will be described below.

[0018] In the second embodiment, instead of the motors 11 directly rotating the power cam shaft 41 and the brake cam shaft 42, respectively, the handle shafts 313 and 323 are directly rotated, indirectly rotating the power cam shaft 41 and the brake cam shaft 42. For this reason, the clutches 12 are interposed between the handle shafts 313 and 323 and the motors 11. This is the difference from the first embodiment. In other words, in the second embodiment as well, the motors 11 that directly rotate the handle shafts 313 and 323, respectively, and the clutches 12 interposed between the handle shafts 313 and 323 and the motors 11, respectively, are all housed inside the body 2, and all motors 11 and clutches 12 are remotely operated. Therefore, in the second embodiment as in the first embodiment, railway vehicles that have been stored in the depot can be released from the depot by remote operation. For this reason, railway vehicles can be released from the depot by remote operation without requiring a dedicated driver for release. Furthermore, remote operation of railway vehicles can be achieved without making significant modifications to the main controller 1 for railway vehicles.

[0019] Although embodiments of the present invention have been described above with reference to the drawings, the present invention is not limited thereto. Various configurations are possible for details such as the configuration and structure of the cam 5 and cam switch 8, the configuration and structure of the power interlock cam 91, the brake interlock cam 92, the power interlock cam 101 and the brake interlock cam 102, and the configuration and structure of the motor 11 and clutch 12. Furthermore, the handle 3 is not limited to those with separate power handle 31 and brake handle 32, but a single handle that controls both power and braking with a single handle can also be adopted. In this case as well, the swing operation of the single handle can be remotely controlled to release the railway vehicle from the depot. [Explanation of Symbols]

[0020] 1...Master controller for railway vehicles, 2...Unit body, 3...Handle, 4...Camshaft, 11...Motor, 12...Clutch.

Claims

[Claim 1] A handle that protrudes from the body and can be freely swung and controlled by the driver, In a master controller for railway vehicles, which includes a camshaft housed inside the device that rotates in conjunction with the swinging of the handle, A motor that rotates the camshaft and a clutch interposed between the motor and the camshaft are housed inside the device. A master controller for a railway vehicle, characterized in that the motor and clutch are configured such that when the driver grips the handle by hand and operates it, the driving force from the motor is not transmitted to the camshaft, and when the handle is not operated manually and the vehicle is unmanned, the motor and clutch are remotely operated by a signal from outside the device body in order to release the railway vehicle, and the driving force from the motor is transmitted to the camshaft via the clutch.

Images