BR Style Block Instrument - 3D Printed

[HugoFitz]

I thought I ought to finally start sharing some projects that I'm working on in case it's interesting to anyone else.

I'm involved in running and implementing the S&T for a sizeable 00 garden railway which has two Signal Boxes which are manned when there are enough people. The whole thing is controlled by JMRI and old PCs as the whole layout is DCC. It's grown over the years, must be getting on for a decade old now and I'm in the process of upgrading the S&T systems to run on Raspberry Pi with a cleaned up on screen interface using Entrance>Exit routing, currently you have to work your way round setting every point though the signals are kind of automatic....

To send trains from main garden loop signal box to the station terminus box there is an onscreen version of an absolute block instrument. Communication is via bell codes and you have to ring the train through in a fairly prototypical manner. To save everyone learning bell codes you select the type of train you want to send on screen, I simplified it down to five train classes and the logic in JMRI forces you to follow the correct procedure. This whole thing takes up rather a lot of panel space on the screen and I thought it would be much more fun to have a physical working block instrument. Hence this project.

I'm still going to cheat a bit and have a little panel with the "shortcuts" to the bell codes along with LEDs that prompt you. I plan to create a physical bell which will be struck using a modified 12V relay with a clapper attached. I looked at making real working needles as per the proto type but decided to compromise on using micro servos to move the needles. The whole thing will be controlled using electronics from MERG (the Model Electronics Railway Group) using there CBUS system.

I'm also planning an End to End 45mm Gauge Line with live steam down my long narrow garden with single line for the main section so I plan to use a couple of these at home too.

I've started drawing them up in Fusion360 over the last couple of evenings. There are a homage to the British Railways ones, I don't have any scale drawings so just guestimating and making my own version. They will be modular as per the original which should make them easier to print and configure to suit various use cases etc. Each module is 120mm square and 100mm high. A full set will stand about 400mm high or 16 inches.

Block Instrument.png (303.42 KiB) Viewed 4221 times

Tis is the progress so far. I've not started on the bell and tapper module for the bottom, I'm probably going to cheat and have a button/plunger for the time being.

[Andrew]

Hi Hugo,

I'm not familiar with the BR block instrument, only the old wooden ones, but it looks great to me.

Love the idea of block working in the garden, and of a whole bunch of you doing it together. It reminds me of tales of chaps in the 50s or whenever gathering in attics to smoke pipes and run clockwork versions of the West Cast Main Line, with bell codes tinging away all over the place, and Gerald calling Cedric a nincompoop for rear-ending the Royal Scot with his pick-up goods...

Your live steam version will be fun too. I think you said in another post that you've recently had a baby? In my experience, my kids got the most out on my garden line when there were "rules" - shunting puzzles in my case, but they'd have loved proper signalling!

I'd love more details of both lines when you get the chance. We claim to be "any scale, any gauge", and indeed we are, but there's very little of the smaller stuff...

All the best,

Andrew.

[philipy]

It reminds me of tales of chaps in the 50s or whenever gathering in attics to smoke pipes and run clockwork versions of the West Cast Main Line, with bell codes tinging away all over the place,

Andrew, I assume that you've not come across the Gainsborough Model Railway Soc? A decent O gauge version of the East Coast Mainline, that occupies most of an old infants school.
http://gainsboroughmodelrailway.co.uk/

Many years ago, a chap I knew in Worksop bought one of the redundant crossing boxes on the ECML, had it craned on to a low loader and moved to his back garden. Then he had his OO garden railway controlled from it.

Hugo, my apologies for hijacking the thread!

[Andrew]

Now that's pretty impressive!

I've done a little Googling, and discovered that it was the "Sherwood Section of the LMS" that I was thinking of, a huge clockwork-operated model railway built by Normal Eagles and run to a strict timetable...

Sorry Hugo, back to you!

Andrew.

[HugoFitz]

Oh don’t worry! I love this kind of derailment...

Very interesting what other people know about!