Signalling for Single Track

Discussion about RailWorks route design.

Re: Signalling for Single Track

Unread postby LandN » Thu Jun 26, 2014 9:00 am

Daniel,

I'm not sure if the actual route has signals. If it doesn't, you can always bury them so they don't show like they did with the Fraser-Cariboo route.
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Re: Signalling for Single Track

Unread postby barnez » Thu Jun 26, 2014 9:20 am

Can you post a simple diagram? Sorry, I'm way too visual.

The general answer to your question is yes ... assuming I'm understanding the scenario, again - I'm very visual

For the most part, the signal scripts in the game run in series - each signal reads the state of the next signal along the line and displays its aspect accordingly. Signals covering junctions need to be set so as to read each possible exit of the junction in order to display the proper aspect.

The signaling is fairly comprehensive, but does not replicate true life. There are also some "rules" in the signaling that are more restrictive than true life signals in order to facilitate AI and the dispatcher.

Example of hard rule in the game is blocks (as I think this applies to your question) In the game blocks are absolute. An occupied block can only be occupied by one train. The signal nodes mark the beginning of each block. This is the 0 node of a signal. The game then looks for an exit node from that block and from there to the next 0 node marking the start of the next block. The aspect of the next signal is passed so that the current signal knows what lies ahead and displays the proper aspect.

Also - the specific aspects displayed by signals and the script governing them is specific to that signal set - ie: USModern, UK, US Searchlight etc. The scripts tend not to play nice when mixed because of differences in the variable names, displayed signal aspect, and pass rules (pass rules meaning what information the signal passes to the next signal).

Not sure if this helps, or not ...

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Re: Signalling for Single Track

Unread postby barnez » Thu Jun 26, 2014 12:40 pm

Based on the illustration ...

I don't believe that RW has the ability to accurately simulate the AB signaling that you post. Within the game each signal is an individual directional entity. You could place 2 signals back-to-back to simulate the AB signal, but each would read independently so the "reverse" signals would not display all red aspects the way it is shown in the illustration.

Using the illustration as an example - to properly signal as shown in-game you would need at minimum a signal to cover each leg of each junction. The center portion (where the AB signals are shown) could be covered by as many or as few signals as you wish to subdivide it into blocks, but again, they wouldn't be bi-directional.

The signals facing opposite of the direction of travel would display their aspects irrespective of the train's direction of travel - so the signal closest to the head of the train would display red, the next away yellow, and then green.

There may be signal sets out there that include a variable that takes into account direction of travel and so could record and pass this information which could then be utilized in determining the signal's aspect, but I'm not sure which sets, if any, can do this.

And no, my scripting skills are fairly limited, I'm not sure I'd be able to add this type of detail to a signal script, although, there may be others here (or at UKTS) that possibly could.

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