quantum engineer tenshodo?

[Little-Kinder]

Hello there,

 

This week end I was at the kato store in tokyo and saw some people on the HO rental layout at kato.

SInce it was my first time seeing anyone using it (unlike the N scale one where you have to wait one hour if you don't arrive at the opening), I became curious and checked what they are doing.

 

To my surprise I saw them using a system that "combined" DCC and DC called quantum engineer

From what i saw they plug the kato power pack on this item, and this item on the plug connected to the layout.

 

Allowing them to turn any layout into a DCC one.

 

Does that sounds familar to anyone? Couldn't find a lot of information online. (they still use the power pack for the speed of the train and direction)

[cteno4]

Well this is true of any DCC system it can swap out a DC power supply, they are all the same in this regard. The issue with any dcc/dc swap out is making sure there are not common rail issues in the track plan and if your wiring is beefie enough for DCC [it needs larger gauge wires for busses and more drops to get good signal]. If your layout is using point power routing it will also only power tracks that the points power in the directions they are thrown, so it can knock out a lot of the flexibility of a DCC system. Having block wiring design can get around that as you could swap a DC controller out for a DCC controller and just turn on all the blocks of the layout to the DCC controller and the whole layout is now on with DCC [unless you have a ladder or such still using point power routing].

 

I kind of doubt this would be powered by a regular Kato throttle as DCC uses much more amps on the rail than DC does [hence the heavy gauge buss wires]. This system may have the Kato DC power pack plug into it and the DCC system can do the automatic switching of the output to the layout from the DCC system to either putting out its DCC or the DC throttle.

 

this is done in a lot of layouts and ttrak and ntrak setups where you will have one loop running DC and the other DCC so folks can run either kind of trains easily. Again just have to make sure the loops are isolated from each other properly in your wiring.

 

Some DCC decoders will just pass thru DC if they dont see a DCC power signal and just plain DC so you can then run the engine with plain DC.

 

jeff

[UnfinishedKit]

There’s some info here / sales sheet 

 

https://n-railroad.jugem.jp/?eid=920#gsc.tab=0

 

its a product of QSI industries which, in the best tradition of model railway companies, has a website with no photos of the product and a note saying it’s been under construction since 2019

 

http://www.qsindustries.com/index.html

 

 

[Little-Kinder]

5 hours ago, cteno4 said:

 

 

I kind of doubt this would be powered by a regular Kato throttle as DCC uses much more amps on the rail than DC does [hence the heavy gauge buss wires]. This system may have the Kato DC power pack plug into it and the DCC system can do the automatic switching of the output to the layout from the DCC system to either putting out its DCC or the DC throttle.

 

 

From what i saw, the kato power pack was plugged in the Quantum thing, and the quantum thing was plugged in the Layout (they just removed the connection between the power pack and the layout). and they did use that power pack to control the speed. as you can see in the manual psoted above there is no control for the speed or direction.

 

I quote "『カンタム・エンジニア』（専用多機能コントローラ）をアナログパワーパックと給電用線路の間に繋ぐだけで、 カンタム・システム搭載車輌の汽笛、ATS警報音、ヘッドライト、テールライト等を好きなタイミングで鳴らしたり、ライトのON/FF、音量調整ができます。プログラム操作により様々なカスタマイズにも対応しています。"

 

But from what I understand also, you can use it for DCC and for analog with locomotives equiped with something from quantum, so maybe this was the case here.

 

Also the kato layout is just a basic circle anyway so no issue here.

Edited 21 hours ago by Little-Kinder

[cteno4]

Ok this is adding DCC signal to a basic DC throttle output so you dont need to add a decoder to your motor car [It’s controlled by regular dc} and if you add sound decoder to a car you can add sound to the train but not have to require the motor car and the whole system runs fine on plain dc as well without the controller in the mix. But you are still just running one train at a time with the throttle and controller combo, so you best to use on point routing power control or block power control for train operation. Only that running train will have the dcc sound access because of this.

 

QARC Technology and Quantum Engineer are ideal for most layouts where you run one locomotive or one consist at a time in the same powered block area. It is also ideal for many club layouts where isolated blocks are used to control power to individual trains. However, if you intend to operate more than one train on the same powered block area and wish to control them at different speeds, then DCC is a better choice.

 

It’s basically an easy way to add a dcc sound controller to an engine or a car and not have to require the engine and then just use your dc controller to run your train like you usually would. Their controller lets you fire the sound decoder stuff over regular DC throttle control. I think some lighting control may be possible if you wire that into the sound decoder.

 

Their sound decoders can also be accessed on a dcc system. They do mention in the manual that the use of the system is limited on the style of the track wiring its attached to

 

It also appears that it can give some of the old momentum features to the DC engine control. I’m guessing it uses something like the old Linn Westcott/Model Railroader TAT-IV electronic controller design to do this since the motor is being controlled by dc not a dcc controller [see RTC section} when using it with the DC throttle.

 

Manual explains much of this, but its funny it keep saying this is simpler than regular DCC its not an easy manual to read or all that clear for how long it is! The manual for just the use of the decoders on a dcc system is over 400 pages!

 

http://qsindustries.com/manuals/DC analog reference manual.pdf

 

This all looks to have been around for a long time actually with copyright of the early stuff manual being 2006.

 

Perhaps rich or inobu will have some more insites.

 

jeff