Kansas City • (913) 661-2424 • www.tcsrailservices.com Secure frames for transit stops STRATEGIC PLANNING: • Commuter Rail Transitions • FRA Compliance Programs • Operations Auditing OPERATIONS TRAINING & CONSULTING: FEBRUARY 2017 | MassTransitmag.com | Mass Transit | 33 Metra recently began to use new digital inverter units as part of a recent upgrade of the emergency lighting system on passenger rail cars. Th e project, motivated by new regulations, also required converting the existing DC lights to brighter, AC-powered fl uorescent lights. “Rather than trying to install a proprietary system, we got an inverter that could be confi gured to run on our specifi c rail voltages,” said Jedraszczak. “It is a very good application for the intelligent inverter, because we didn’t have to redesign the fl uorescent lighting system on the rail car.” Th e inverter from Analytic Systems has two inputs, one from the battery banks and another that feeds 120-volt AC to select fl uorescent lights. Th e inverter senses power loss and switches very quickly to the battery bank to seamlessly maintain 120-volt AC power to select, assigned lights as outlined in the regulations. Jedraszczak said the inverters were an economical solution given Metra operates several hundred rail cars. He also appreciates that in the event of changing requirements being able to reconfi gure the inverter electronically and upgrade fi rmware is ideal. “If we have to make a change with an analog inverter, that requires going in at the circuit board level and soldering on a resistor, for example, so it’s very invasive to make even the smallest adjustments,” said Jedraszczak. “With a DSP-based unit, it allows for changing some of those settings electronically so we can make adjustments on a case-bycase basis.” He also appreciates that Analytic Systems controls every step of the process in house. “From an engineering standpoint, I love that because I can talk to their engineers and they understand my concerns and they can go right down to the fl oor and have it built, tested, right there and then get right back to me,” added Jedraszczak. For the rail industry, whether for rolling stock or rail-side communication and control, intelligent power converters and the fl exibility and ease of programming will allow engineers to select from a simplifi ed list of models and receive a custom solution. Th is will not only eliminate the need for application-specifi c designs, but also enable faster delivery of the power converter at a more economical cost. CONSULTANT CORNER Listings of Select Transit Consultants CLASSIFIED ADVERTISING Any Size 1 minimum Low Cost Made in the USA Pole stands and A Frames made ANY size or height with ANY of our frames 1-800-915-2828 sales@fastchangeframes.com • Engineer Training & Certifi cation • Excellent History with FRA, NTSB • Mechanical & Part 238 (QMP) • Part 232 (QMI) ADVERTISE HERE Contact Ben Preuss for advertising information: Phone: 800-547-7377 ext. 1627 Ben.Preuss@MassTransitmag.com Target your audience with classified advertising in Contact Ben Preuss Today! Phone: 800.547.7377 ext. 1627 Ben.Preuss@MassTransitmag.com Jeff Elliott is a Torrance, Californiabased technical writer.
MassTransit_February_2017
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