Thursday, 3 May 2012

Invention of Interceptor

TRICHY: On the occasion of the 40th anniversary of the Ponmalai Diesel loco shed, the Divisional Railway

Manager of the Tiruchirappalli, A V Vaidiyalingam, announced the invention of a new gadget that would

stop the shunting loco from going beyond a permissible speed of 15 kmph. The invention that was an

initiative of seven enthusiastic engineers of the shed has been reported to the Railway Board, and must

be replicated for use across the zonal railways.

Unlike the open line long haul locomotive engine, the shunting loco moves on the loop line only. Out of a

total of 120 long haul loco engines, 20 are shunting loco in Trichy division. Meanwhile, when these loco

engines travel at a speed of more than 15 kph there is a distinct possibility that they might derail, and

mishaps had taken place in the past. So, some of the engineers and technicians got together and invented

a speed-controller-gadget that would automatically cut off the power supply when the speed limit crosses

the 15 kph.

More interestingly, there is a possibility that when the engine travels over a down gradient slope, the

speed cannot to be controlled, and even after the power supply is cut off automatically, the engine could

still travel at a speed of more than 15 kph because of the accompanying impact. In such an event, the

formation brakes would be automatically activated to control the speed. For instance, should the engine

happen to travel at speed of 17 kph on a downward slope, the formation brakes would be activated, and

when the speed is brought down to below 15 kph, the application of the brake would be automatically

deactivated. In the final analysis, the new invention would see to it that the engine never travels at a

speed of more than 15 kph, and thus ensuring the safety of the engines from derailing at any point of

time.

Gloating over the new invention, on the Ruby Jubilee (40 years) day, the DRM announced a "substantial

prize " to the team, and they would be duly honoured in a future function, so that more and more

engineers wereand technicians encouraged to come out with more

inventions. There is no need for patenting the gadget, since the loco shed engines are the monopoly of

the railways and it cannot be used in any other area of operation, said the DRM. A delighted DRM also

announced a number of welfare schemes to the 720 workforce including computer literacy to all of them,

vocational guidance to the wards of the workers, and the construction of a eco park for their exclusive

use.

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