Car Fowarding/Operations

[Jib228]

Will this is kind of a bummer, but no real surprise to me. A dynamic scenario was exactly what I was hoping for.

[Chacal]

Who are you?
Oh yeah, the OP
Well no dynamic scenario, but as you can see in this brainstorming, you can get pretty close.

[Leaf85]

I love some of the ideas in this thread. I too used to use a 'pencil & card' system for my N-scale set up back in the late '70's but it was simpler than what's been described already. I'm wondering if the generation of freight movements would be better fulfilled using a 'free-roam' ? You could then select your cars from what was presented in the free-roam, setting up a consist as per the generated work order. If that 'map' had functional loaders, e.g., coal loader, or flat car loader, the operator could then load up the cars as needed (or empty as the manifest suggests), move the cars/haul them to another yard etc.

[Jib228]

I love some of the ideas in this thread. I too used to use a 'pencil & card' system for my N-scale set up back in the late '70's but it was simpler than what's been described already. I'm wondering if the generation of freight movements would be better fulfilled using a 'free-roam' ? You could then select your cars from what was presented in the free-roam, setting up a consist as per the generated work order. If that 'map' had functional loaders, e.g., coal loader, or flat car loader, the operator could then load up the cars as needed (or empty as the manifest suggests), move the cars/haul them to another yard etc.

This is part of what I was thinking too. I use a combination of "Model Railroad Inventory," a free software to make car cards and waybills as well as keep track of every thing you own model railroading wise for my layout. As well as they olde pencil and paper. Ive started doing car for car switching on a route in Railworks using a pencil and paper to note things down.

But what I was thinking for Railworks is some thing like what the user Dap has created for Trainz. He made an asset/rule called Car Movement & Traffic Management System, or CMTMS4 for short. Now I hate talking about other sims in other forums, but for this example I'll have to a little. What Dap has made works much the same as a car card for model railroading. Couple up to a car and you get a switch list. This list says the cars running number, the cars railroad, where its distended to go, which yard order it needs to go through, and whether its loaded or not.

Some thing like this:
"83641 CSX Meijer_LR L"
or
"83648 CSX Home Depot L"

As the first one reads, car #83614 is a CSX car. Its heading to Meijer and the under score LR indicates that it needs to go to Little River yard first. The second is all most the same thing, but rather then have a yard as part of its current destination, the car is to go straight tot Home Depot.

In both case's, the cars are loaded. And CMTMS would handle by loading the car with some thing to change the cars weight. Once the car is deviled to its destination, the operator clicked on part of the switch list that says "Click here when car is delivered." Once delivered a timer is started on the car. Once the time runs out the car is marked as ready for pick up and a new destination is set.

Now all of this is done with what are called cmtm records. The records are assigned to a car ether at session start up, or by the operator. The records tell the system what to do with each car. Not only where to send it, but what to load it with, what type of car, how long it needs to sit to load/unload and what days the record can be assigned to a car. So a record might look like this:

"cmtm0 "12x4x67,ECS1,XBG,x,x,Factory 1,empty,x,8,Meijer,load,goods,8,ECS1,empty,x,x"

With this record a empty box car will go form a yard track called ECS1, empty car storage, to Factory 1. Then in 8 hours the car will be loaded with goods and ready to go to Meijer. Once there it will be unloaded in 8 hours and sent back the ECS1 track. This record can be assigned on days 1 2 4 6 and 7. Or Sunday, Monday, Wednesday, Friday, and Saturday.

This right here is both the beauty and flaw of CMTMS. You see, you have to have a record for each and every car on the route. There is no automated system to make these records. This means that in order to set up a CMTMS session means doing lots of paperwork. So far I have put in well over 20 hours on just one set of records. I have over 600 records so far that I have had to hand type out. Over all, a pain in the caboose.


I was hoping that some thing like this had been developed for Railworks. But since Railworks has a larger team making content then what Dap has. Dap's just one guy and he has a life out side of making his content. I figured some one came up with a similar idea for Railworks but had worked with others and made it easier to implement.

Or maybe this is the start of a good idea.

[Leaf85]

I think it might be the start of a good idea. A 'free-roam' might then be the better way to set up since there is virtually no time limit associated with driving, and no limits on where one can drive (subject to traffic/signals) and I've been able to use loaders/unloaders. I've not set up a free-roam 'scenario' so I'm not aware of any differences to traffic generation (if any) at least in the sense of the scenario writer having to place and designate start times, destinations etc in a fixed manner like in standard scenario design. I *think* the biggest hurdle will be in the 'how' since TS/RW is programmed to be more of a driving sim and not so much an operations sim (otherwise we'd see a lot more marshaling by AI, AI loading/unloading etc--- at least I've not seen so much of that in my hours of driving).

What about a java script based work generator that can interact to a limited degree inside the RW core, but primarily be something you access before running the sim? I've seen something similar that was developed for a sim called Rise of Flight (WWI aircombat) that had a really limited 'campaign' when it launched. Patrick Wilson did a superb job at bringing an immersive campaign to the core game-- you can check out what he did here http://simhq.com/forum/ubbthreads.php/topics/2893248/ROF_Campaign_Released#Post2893248 on SimHQ forums. The idea of PW's system is you input your pilots name, select a start date, select a squadron to fly for and the campaign generator generates a mission, populates the world map (makes a scenario), and records the success at the end. Simple (for the user), but highly effective. Perhaps something like that could generate waybills/workorders/track warrants, populate the chosen map etc? Just some ideas thrown out to keep the thinking going

Now I'm curious about the free-roams so will go dig around there for a bit.

Kind regards,
Dave

[Jib228]

I *think* the biggest hurdle will be in the 'how' since TS/RW is programmed to be more of a driving sim and not so much an operations sim (otherwise we'd see a lot more marshaling by AI, AI loading/unloading etc--- at least I've not seen so much of that in my hours of driving).

This is some thing I'd really like to see changed with how Railworks is played. I think it would make a much more fun and interesting dynamic for those of us who like to operate and not circle burn.

I don't know much about programing, but I do like to think that I know a little bit about operations.

If any thing where to be implemented, Id highly recommend it be much more user friendly then the CMTM system that I used as an example above.