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Quick Start - Step 4:
Creating Blocks - Tracking Train Positions
Equipping the layout with feedback sensors
The most important prerequisite to control trains automatically with your computer or
to monitor the movements of trains on the computer screen is equipping the layout with
feedback sensors. These sensors are used to report train movements back to the computer.
Based on this information TrainController is able to take the right decisions
to direct automatically running trains to their destination or to monitor the movement of
trains.
Feedback sensors differ in occupancy sensors and momentary track contacts. Details of
this difference and more detailed information about feedback sensors can be found in
chapter 4, “Contact Indicators”.
In the following we assume, that occupancy sensors are used to control our small layout
and that our layout is divided into four detection sections according to the following
image:
Undetected
Section
Detection Section
(Occupancy Sensor)
Diagram 16: Detection Sections and Occupancy Sensors
Gap between two
Sections
There are other possibilities to divide a layout into detection sections or to control it
with momentary track contacts. The scheme displayed above is also not necessarily the
optimal solution, too. The above scheme has been chosen for this tutorial for reasons of
simplicity and because it is sufficient to perform a quick start. Other variants to equip
your layout with feedback sensors are outlined in more detail in section 5.8.
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