JNMA 2015

[ToniBabelony]

It's time again next week Sunday (2015-07-05) for the yearly JNMA in Hamamatsuchō.

 

 

Please check out the website here for detailed information: http://www.jnma.com/

 

I will be there and probably hang around the T-Trak guys and a friend and scour the place for maybe a bargain or two. I'm not looking for anything in particular at the moment, but technical literature (blueprints) and maybe a Sotetsu or Keisei train or maybe a tram would be nice. We'll see... It will probably be stinky busy with rude nerds.

[ToniBabelony]

And it's over! It has been a very very fruitful event this time. Not only in terms of purchases, but also in terms of new potential business contacts and friends.

 

It was surprising to see how quickly 3D printing has found its way into the model train scene here! Companies like Ginga Models and One Mile have quickly ventured either into direct 3D printing or using it as moulds for their future projects. The people at the CAD鉄 even brought two printers which got quite a lot of attention, especially from the younger generation (me). The old folk just passed by, gave an interested glance and strolled on, not understanding what was going on.

 

Here are some pictures of T-Trak modules and the obligatory lineup of self made vehicles that the modules always accompany.

 

If you get this joke, I have to congratulate you on being a hardcore nerd:

 

[katoftw]

Wow that module with the low platforms, Greenmax houses and bridge over rail lines is awesome.  The man walking a dog down the laneway is a nice touch.

[ToniBabelony]

Yes, that was one of the modules that stood out from the rest. A creative use of space, depth and high level of detail. The only downside was that the fences were printed on flat transparent plastic, as opposed to etched metal or some other material that adds a little depth. Other than that, it is pretty much something I want to make for my module as well (meaning I have to go for something else).

[JR 500系]

Thanks for the pictures Toni! I adore that Asakusa Daimon gate! Really nice!

 

 

 

If you get this joke, I have to congratulate you on being a hardcore nerd:

 

IMG04215.jpg

 

Shit I failed... I'm not a hardcore nerd... I'm thinking Rail on a ship?

[beakaboy]

Love the little trams and the large Station? Building with time and temperature display.

Impressive line-up of models behind the modules and that Garratt?? steamer is fantastic!

[railsquid]

If you get this joke, I have to congratulate you on being a hardcore nerd:

 

IMG04215.jpg

 

The underground train carrier Chiyoda? Albeit carrying a Hibiya-line 3000-kei?

[ToniBabelony]

The joke explained: the Hibiya line 3000 Series was nicknamed Kujira, which means 'Whale'. With Japanese whaling always under scrutiny, this was a tongue-in-cheek joke by shinpoSHI. The same guy who made this crazy garratt:

 

 

We collectively called it 'Monster', which he adapted. It had a will on its own on the modules, as it tended to ignore the ATC block system and generated quite a lot of powerful traction, making it a bit hard to stop by hand. shinpoSHI also referred to it as 'art' and not a model train, which I totally agree with.

Edited July 7, 2015 by Toni Babelony

[railsquid]

The joke explained: the Hibiya line 3000 Series was nicknamed Kujira, which means 'Whale'. With Japanese whaling always under scrutiny, this was a tongue-in-cheek joke by shinpoSHI.

 

Damn, bamboozled by the carrier-like superstructure. I was thinking more along the lines of there being somewhere (in the vicinity of Kita-senju maybe) where the Chiyoda line "carries" the Hibiya line...

[cteno4]

Toni,

 

Glad you had a great time train needing out, like totally!

 

Jeff

[kvp]

Good photos, thanks! I would really like to know a bit more about that ATS system you mentioned. I see that there was a paper about it, possibly explaining it.

 

The fantasy locomotive is not really a garrat, but a 3 section steam locomotive a powered water tank, an unpowered boiler and cab and a powered coal car: C+2-2+C. From an engineering point, this is a bad situation as the weight of the main section doesn't help with the traction. A better solution would have been to suspend the middle section on the two powered cars, creating a C-C or in case the trailer wheels are needed, a C-2-2-C or create a fully powered locomotive, like a C+C+C. Of course the locomotive looks cool, regardless of the engineering.

 

The paved tram station looks similar to the tram terminal next to Shibuya station in the 1960-ies. I also like the terminal station and the river crossing with the park. The elevated crossing of the two lines is very finely detailed.

[ToniBabelony]

I'll ask about the ATS/ATC system the next time I see those guys. It's a modular system with a box for each block (and probably a central box), which has train detection through only the two powered wires. Quite an ingenious system, as it predates Arduino and similar systems. It also has boxes for point control and bi-directional traffic for single-track modules.

 

That Garratt is indeed not a real one and it's certainly not based on any prototype. It's art, as shinpoSHI told me and I said before. If you know a thing or two about art, it doesn't matter how you call it, as long as it fits according to the artist's interpretation of the creation. In art, engineering is also not as important as art doesn't serve practicality, but emotions. The coolness was the main target and he succeeded in it pretty much (as he always does with his maniacal designs).

[cteno4]

Nicely said toni.

 

I wonder if this is the same atc system that east penn brought over from japan. Perhaps rich will pipe in.

 

Jeff

[kvp]

Electrical block detection is way better than optical, contact rail or threadle type and the fact that it's modular and even have a single track operation module makes it really interesting. This could even be used to automate small layouts without the builder having programming skills. I would really like to know the interfaces on each box and the types of signals moving between them.

 

ps: From what little info we have, this looks like a distributed bidirectional automatic block control implementation with absolute permissive blocks. I think even some Tokyo lines use this system besides CTC.