[Genma Saotome]

As described here I created a spreadsheet as an aid to creating .inc files for .wags. Anyone who would like to evaluate the spreadsheet, which is 80% complete right now, please send me a PM.

Before getting into the details, a disclosure: The scope is quite limited: US freight cars, late steam/early diesel transition era, Outside of that it won't be of much use. Here's why: To come up with a list of possible ladings and their weight I turned to a body of information I already had in hand -- commodity statistics provide by each class 1 railroad in the US, some data for 1950, some data for 1956. This is a list of over 300 different commodity ladings, some very specific -- anthracite coal -- to fairly generic -- machinery. Each railroad reported how many carloads of each commodity was moved over their rails, whether that movement was local, inbound, outbound, or bridge, how much it weighed, and how money they received for moving it. From this one can easily compute tonnage per car, and if interested, revenue per car.

The spreadsheet I created uses that tonnage per car value to compute the effect lading has upon the parameter values of a .wag. Given the limits of what data I have on hand therefore limits the utility of the spreadsheet to equivalent circumstances in OR.

This is the data entry page (click on image to enlarge to full size):



The top section explained (click on image to enlarge to full size):



The next section explained (click on image to enlarge to full size):



The next section explained (click on image to enlarge to full size):



The last data entry section explained (click on image to enlarge to full size):



The results explained (click on image to enlarge to full size):



The resulting .inc file for every empty car will look like this:

Quote

Comment ( XM_USRA_DS_Fixed_Specs.inc )

comment ( "Parts 1A and 1B are correct for all .wags of this model" )

comment ( "Part 1A - Parameters based on the model itself." )

Type ( Freight )
Size ( 3.1m 4.6m 13.275m )
WheelRadius ( 33in/2 )
NumWheels( 8 )
InertiaTensor ( Box ( 3.1m 4.6m 12.975m ) )
MaxBrakeForce (3.0611kn )
MaxHandbrakeForce (2.2958kn )
DerailRailHeight ( 4cm )
ORTSTrackGauge ( 4ft 8.5in )
ORTSRigidWheelBase (5ft 6in )
ORTSBearingType ( Friction )
ORTSUnbalancedSuperelevation ( 6in )
ORTSBearingType ( Friction )

comment ( "Part 1B - Unsupported parameters based on the model itself." )

MaxWidth ( 9 ft 3 in )
MaxHeight ( 13 ft 3 in )
BrakeShoeFriction ( 0.2)
TargetPctMtyWeight ( 0.7)
Davis Formula ( "Davis 1926" )
Number of axles ( 4 )

comment ( "Part 2A and 2B are parameters based on presence or absence of a load. " )
comment ( "Parameters for an empty car belong in a Fixed_Specs.inc" file." )
comment ( "Parameters for a loaded car belong in a {Lading Name}_Loads.inc file." )

comment "Part 2A - parameters based on presence or absence of a load.

Mass ( 21.865 s-t )
CentreOfGravity (0.85m)
DerailRailForce ( 49.5898t )
DerailBufferForce ( 327.7kn )
ORTSDavis_A ( 144.4245 lbf )
ORTSDavis_B ( 0.9839 lbf/mph )
ORTSDavis_C ( 0.0613 lbf/mph^2 )

comment ( "Part 2B - Unsupported parameters based on presence or absence of a load." )

LadingName ( "None - Mty" )
LadingWeight ( 0 s-t )
CAPY (80,000 lb )
LD LMT (80,000 lb )
LT WT (43,730 lb )
True MaxMass ( 123,730 lb )

The resulting lading .inc file will look like this:

Quote

Comment ( XM_USRA_SS_Canned_Food_LD.inc )

comment ( "Part 2A and 2B are parameters based on presence or absence of a load. " )
comment ( "Parameters for an empty car belong in a Fixed_Specs.inc" file." )
comment ( "Parameters for a loaded car belong in a {Lading Name}_Loads.inc file." )

comment "Part 2A - parameters based on presence or absence of a load.

Mass ( 54.8286 s-t )
CentreOfGravity (1.9m)
DerailRailForce ( 124.3513t )
DerailBufferForce ( 389.4046kn )
ORTSDavis_A ( 191.1024 lbf )
ORTSDavis_B ( 2.5997 lbf/mph )
ORTSDavis_C ( 0.0706 lbf/mph^2 )
ORTSBearingType ( Friction )

comment ( "Part 2B - Unsupported parameters based on presence or absence of a load." )

LadingName ( "Canned Food" )
LadingWeight ( 28.7596 s-t )