[Csantucci]

I had a request for this. I checked and saw that it was quite fast to develop it, generalizing the existing transfertable code. So, even if it may not have many applications, I have modified the code as needed. Here https://www.youtube....h?v=c0s4gNy9DS0 a demo video can be watched. Don't consider the graphics, because I wanted to have a quick and dirty test case.
The feature will be implemented in short time in OR NewYear MG as well as in the official Unstable release, if not rejected.
Blueprint https://blueprints.l...ainset-elevator

[Weter]

Well, in Sicilia route there are two vessels.

[DRelyea]

There was one train elevator that connected the DL&W (surface) with the Hoboken and Manhattan Subway(subway) at the Hoboken Terminal, Hoboken NJ. Since it was next to the DL&W freight house, I expect that Express Freight cars were handled from the subway. I did find a period article in an engineering magazine, where it was stated the company that installed it had installed 4 others somewhere.(it did not list where.)

It went on that this particular elevator the frame could be unlocked from the floor with the track. and then the frame used to lift subway car bodies so that the trucks could be swapped out.

The Hoboken and Manhattan also passed under Erie's Pavonia terminal, but there were only stairways connecting the platforms, the subway passing at a 90 degree angle to the Erie's station tracks.

Doug Relyea

[jonas]

Even if it seldom exists, it would be a cool feature of Open Rails, especially if you already have it apparently as an adaptation of the turntables, Carlo.

Here is a link to Wikipedia about a previous wagon elevator near Berlin (unfortunately only in German there), but with at least two interesting pictures.

I am quoting a translation of the wiki text here:

"...The Eberswalde wagon elevator is a lifting platform for railway wagons in Eberswalde-Kupferhammer. Wagon lifts are very rare technical equipment because they are too slow for regular rail operations. ...
... Designed in 1906 by Borsig in Berlin, the elevator was handed over in 1908. According to the literature, the lifting platform was only designed for one wagon with a maximum total weight of 30 t (on the elevator is a sign with the maximum load of 25 t), the difference in height between the two platforms is about 6 meters. The framework consists of a steel framework in the elevator section and a short steel bridge to connect to the upper part of the slope.
The transfer of a freight car downhill took five minutes, the other way around, fifteen minutes. The electro-hydraulic drive was located at the bottom of the elevator and was protected by a corrugated sheet metal housing. Control panels could be operated from above and below.
The construction has counterweights on both sides of the elevator (similar to the Niederfinow ship lift). Exact weight compensation was not possible depending on the loading condition of the lift, the drive had to cope with the uneven weight distribution. Above and below were turntables and, of course, further tracks that no longer exist today. The wagons were transported on the factory premises by means of horses and ropes. ... "

Greetings
Jonas

PS: I've searched with "waggonaufzug" in the iNet

[Csantucci]

There was an elevator for single freight cars in the station of Milano Centrale too.

The feature is now available in OR NewYear MG rev. 96. Here
 Train Simulator.zip (3.62MB)
Number of downloads: 350
a demo route with a demo activity can be downloaded.

Having this demo as example, here is how the feature must be inserted in a route.
I created the demo elevator shape in a quick and dirty way, starting from the shape of the 27 m turntable. The elevator shape, named a1t27mVerticalTransfertable.s, can be found in the demo pack in Train Simulator\Global\Shapes. The vertical animation is as follows:

		animations ( 1
		animation ( 1800 30
			anim_nodes ( 2
				anim_node BASIN (
					controllers ( 0 )
				)
				anim_node TRACKPIECE (
					controllers ( 1
						linear_pos ( 2
linear_key (	0	0	-1.92177	0	 )
linear_key (	1800	0	6.07823	0	 )



						)
						
					)
				)
			)
		)
	)

So the elevator has a span of 8 meters. The two occurrence of the number 1800 may be modified to match the desired elevator speed.
Within the route's Openrails subfolder two files are present:
1) tsection.dat, with this content

include ( "../../../Global/tsection.dat" )
_INFO ( Track section and shape addition for transfer table derived from turntable 27m )

TrackSections ( 40000

_SKIP ( No change here )

)


TrackShapes ( 40000

_INFO(TrackShape for for vertical transfer table derived from turntable 27m)
 
TrackShape ( 37301
 FileName ( A1t27mVerticalTransfertable.s )
 NumPaths ( 2 )
 SectionIdx ( 1 0 -0.18 0.0000 0 338 )
 SectionIdx ( 1 0 7.82 0.0000 0 338 )
)
)

This way it is not needed to modify the main tsection.dat file.

2) turntables.dat, with this content

1
Transfertable(
WFile ( "w-005578+014976.w" )
UiD ( 75 )
XOffset ( 0 )
YOffset ( -0.18 )
ZOffset ( 13.405)
VerticalTransfer ( 1 )
TrackShapeIndex ( 37301 )
Animation ( "TRACKPIECE" )
Length ( 26.81 )
)

As can be seen two new parameters have been added to the block needed for a horizontal transfertable, that is YOffset and the flag VerticalTransfer. If the latter is not present, a horizontal transfertable is supposed.
To insert the elevator in a route using TSRE5 it must be reminded that the latter doesn't look at the tsection.dat file within the Openrails subfolder. So, for the sole time of the editing of the route, the TrackShape() block must be inserted in the global tsection.dat. After route editing is terminated, the block may be removed.
Within Global Tsection.dat build 38 or higher is required.

At runtime the elevator is moved with the keys used for transfertable and turntable. Alt-C moves the elevator upwards, while Ctrl-C moves the elevator downwards.

Within a couple of days I foresee to create a PR for the official OR releases.

[jonas]

@Carlo, I see two more or less little things:

Csantucci, on 12 April 2021 - 06:28 AM, said:

... two new parameters have been added to the block needed for a horizontal transfertable, that is YOffset and the flag VerticalTransfer. ...

Are you sure naming "YOffset" as a new parameter?

and


When the locomotive drives on the elevator, it will be scaled somewhat :-)

Your example route seems to require a XTracks tsection.dat. Only there exists the 26.81m straight track vector "TrackSection (338", which is expected from the "TrackShape (37301" of your included tsection.dat.

[jonas]

With XTracks it works, I like it!

[Csantucci]

Good that it works. I have now inserted in my previous post the requirement about the build required for tsection.dat
YOffset is a new parameter. It wasn't read by the code before this update.

[Csantucci]

The feature is now available also in Unstable release U2021.04.13-1521 .

[xavivilla]

Hello

When trying to run the test route downloaded in message # 5, the simulator crashes, both on Monogame 99.1 and X 1.3.1-363.
The error message is the same and the OpenRailsLog.txt file in the two cases is identical.
I think the program load does not take into account the include file tsection.dat in the OpenRails folder.
Attach file OpenRailsLog.txt

Attached File(s)

•  OpenRailsLog.txt (13.53K)
  Number of downloads: 288