Mini-tram lighting questions

[velotrain]

I'm considering using a Pro-Hobby Ca-ND-1 chassis to power one of my World Kougei work trams - re-building the sides of course.  Some references (such as Plaza Japan) show Kai after the name, which I assume distinguishes the lighted version from the earlier one.  However, none of the many meanings that I found for Kai seemed appropriate.

 

 

 

 

I'm wondering if anybody knows of an appropriate headlight casting (US or Japanese) I could use for routing the light to?  I'm certainly willing to mount the light at the top of the cab, instead of on the roof, as I'm certain that will make things easier all-around.

 

I've seen clear plastic tubing used for channeling light, so will likely go with that.

 

 

Since the lights only come on at a relatively high minimum speed, I was curious about Constant Lighting.  I had thought that it was only a question of having a CL controller, but early  research indicates that it's also a matter of having CL-capable lighting, so wondered just what distinguishes that, and if there's any way the L.E.D.'s on this chassis could be made compliant?

[HantuBlauLOL]

You can:

 

make your own light board with just a resistor and 2 LEDs.

use a fiber optic as a light tubing.

Make your own CL controller, check my workshop thread on personal project subforum, last page.

 

 

Any LED will work with CL without the need for other component.

A incandescent bulb will need a ceramic capacitor to make it work with CL, I dunno the capacitance yet.

[velotrain]

make your own light board with just a resistor and 2 LEDs.

use a fiber optic as a light tubing.

Make your own CL controller, check my workshop thread on personal project subforum, last page.

 

 

If you look at the photo of the chassis, I already have a light board.

 

All I see on the last page of your thread is a video of you running a train, so that doesn't really help.

[HantuBlauLOL]

There is a Japanese page on 2 post above it, there is the circuit..

[railsquid]

I'm considering using a Pro-Hobby Ca-ND-1 chassis to power one of my World Kougei work trams - re-building the sides of course.  Some references (such as Plaza Japan) show Kai after the name, which I assume distinguishes the lighted version from the earlier one.  However, none of the many meanings that I found for Kai seemed appropriate.

 

Without knowing the character used here, it's hard to be sure, but at a guess "改" from "改善" (kaizen), i.e. "improved".

Edited July 26, 2015 by railsquid

[velotrain]

Good work Squid - exactly the character on the small leaflet in the package.

 

AFAIK, the lighting is the sole change from the previous version.

[kvp]

CL lights work by having a small capacitor parallel with the light circuit to help buffer the power during the off phase of the CL controller's high speed PWM pulses. If the motor has a very low starting current, then adding a diode before the lighting circuit helps to isolate the buffer capacitor from the motor.

 

The whole circuit looks like this:

-for one direction: series diode , parallel buffer capacitor, series resistor, led for one direction

-for internal lighting: diode bridge, parallel buffer capacitor, series resistor, internal lighting led

-for two directions or one direction with tail light: build two separate single direction circuits

-for two directions with tail lights: build two separate single direction circuits and feed the tail light from the other end's headlight circuit (with its own resistor, but shared diode and buffer cap)

 

Since low current diodes and bridges can be really tiny, it's possible to squeeze multiple 4 component circuits into a single headlight panel.

[HantuBlauLOL]

How much farad does it need?

[kvp]

Around 4uF for a high frequency CL controller working at 12V. Higher ones give better flicker resistance on dirty track.

[cteno4]

Kvp,

 

Dumb question, but cl is pulsed high freq dc in the polarity of the main dc power, correct? Always assumed it was and from your circuits it looks that way, but I was just always assuming, and that never good to do!

 

Jeff

[kvp]

Yes. Anything higher voltage would kill the leds and ac would turn on both the head and the tail lights. If you turn the CL high enough with no lighted car on the track a low power consumption loco might start to creep.

[velotrain]

Here's a top view of the board - I can see two components for each LED.

 

Just in case one of the experts can "shed any light" on it.

 

 

[kvp]

( diode, capacitor, resistor, led ) x 2

 

The board is double sided with 4 vias to the other side. It's symmetric, since one direction's ground is the other direction's supply and vice versa.

[velotrain]

( diode, capacitor, resistor, led ) x 2

 

The board is double sided with 4 vias to the other side. It's symmetric, since one direction's ground is the other direction's supply and vice versa.

 

If you mean physically double sided, that isn't possible as the bottom is flush with the top of the motor.

[HantuBlauLOL]

I can't find the diode and cap on that board..