Westinghouse Air Brake Company

Michael E Romansky

Robert D Dimsa

Vincent Ferri

Frank J Jerina

Dale A Chovan

Howard R Munday

Joseph C Gray

The invention provides a real time process control system for control of machinery. The system has a master control module and a slave control module which receives control signals from the master control module. Both control modules send control signals to a control effector and cause changes in at least one effect causing quality of the control effector. The slave control module establishes a target value for the effect causing quality of the control effector based on the signal it receives from the master microprocessor. A sensor connected to the control effector and to the slave control module provides signals in the slave control module which indicate an actual value for the effect causing quality of the control effector. A feedback loop controls the control signal from the slave microprocessor to the control effector to adjust the value of its effect causing quality in accordance with the target value. In the event that the signal from the master control module to the slave control module is interrupted a discrepancy between actual and target values of the effect causing quality indicates interruption of the signal. The invention provides an increased deadband for the feedback loop to permit a discrepancy large enough to be detectable and useable as an indication of interruption of the signal from the master control module to the slave control module.

Software algorithm providing dynamic configuration of dead band control

A tamper-resistant independent brake valve device for use in a brake equipment on railway locomotives including a main body casing carrying a movable handle, a rotatable cam, a pivotal cam dog and an exhaust and supply valve assembly, a spring housing attached to the main body casing by a plurality of one-way screws, a break-away adjusting screw for setting the maximum brake cylinder pressure on the railway locomotive, the pivotal cam dog including an enlarged head portion to preclude the insertion of a prying tool, and the pivotal cam dog having cam engaging roller which is rotated on a round head roller pin.

Tamper-resistant independent brake valve device for locomotive air brake

An electromagnetic air brake control system including a module portion and an integral relay valve portion. The module portion includes a brake pipe cut-off valve. A bistable electropneumatic valve device pneumatically connected to the brake pipe cut-off valve. A pole changing relay electrically connected to an electric coil of the bistable electromagnetic device. The pole changing relay having an electric coil connected to a d.c. voltage. A quick release relay having an electric connection to the d.c. voltage and having contacts connectable to contacts of the pole changing relay. A pair of relay driver circuits supplied by a supplemental power supply for causing the electric coils of the pole changing and quick release relays to be energized and deenergized in accordance with output signals received from a command control circuit and a monitor checking circuit.

Electropneumatic air brake control system for railway vehicles

An equipment carriage for locomotive air brake valve components including a box-like frame having a rear section separating parallel end sections. The frame is arranged to guidably receive, through an open front section, a group of one or more unitized valve assemblies stacked in vertical, side-by-side relationship, such that an end face adjacent the rear section engages a mating face of a respective header bar that is affixed to the frame at the rear section thereof to provide a pipe bracket to which the locomotive air lines are connected. Such an arrangement, in addition to providing optimum space utilization, permits removal of individual unitized assemblies from the frame without requiring removal of the frame itself or any of the other unitized assemblies, and without disturbing the air line connections.

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North Huntingdon, PA, United States of America

Michael E Romansky