Subject: Automatic Equipment Identification (AEI) Transponders (5/27/1993)
[12/27/91] AEI Transponders - The AAR has been experimenting with Automatic Equipment Identification devices which may be attached to freight cars and locomotives, as well as trailers and containers. These will be much like the old ACI identification used on cars 10 or 15 years ago, except that now they are small plastic devices which are designed to be read by radio frequency equipment. There is currently a proposed beginning implementation date of March 1, 1992 for the requirement to place these transponders on all equipment offered in interchange. The current maximum mandatory application date is June 30, 1994. The approximate cost of two transponders, including application and encoding is estimated to be $115. As these devices are added to our cars, we will be required to go back and amend our Umler reports.
At the moment, I do not believe we are in a position to apply these devices to our cars, since codes need to be generated for our equipment. As a matter of interest, these devices do not have batteries which need recharging, but instead take the radio frequency energy directed to them, convert it into information, and retransmit it back to the ground device. Similar devices are currently in use in Dallas on the toll roads, on the Oklahoma Turnpike, on the New York and New Jersey Turnpikes, and at L.A. International Airport. Members of the Railway Progress Institute, private owners of freight cars, have agreed to the use of the AEI transponders, but do not believe that private car owners should have to pay for them. Instead, their position is that these devices benefit the railroads, but not the car owners, and therefore the railroads should bear all costs. As matters develop, you will be kept advised.
[8/31/92] AEI Transponders - In my last report I talked about the new automatic equipment identification devices which are to be attached to interchange cars and locomotives, as well as trailers and containers. These are automatic devices which can be read by trackside devices, and will tell the reader the reporting marks and number of the car read, along with additional information, such as which side of the car is being read. The AAR and the class I railroads have decided to make the installation of these devices mandatory, and they will automatically be applied to all cars, without cost to the owner, I hope, by the railroads. We have been given the opportunity to decide not to put the transponders on our cars immediately, although they will become mandatory on January 1, 1995. I have advised the AAR that the cars marked PPCX are not to have the transponders automatically applied until further notice. If you had me put your car in the UMLER system under some other mark, then you need to advise the AAR of your choice.
Apparently, Amtrak has not made up its mind whether it intends to apply these devices, nor where they will do so. However, during the recent 3985 steam trip to Houston, I had the opportunity to view one of these transponders, and to talk to the manager of the steam excursion fleet of the Union Pacific. He advised that they had already applied such a device to their steam engine, that it was the wave of the future, and that the entire UP passenger car fleet would soon have such devices applied. From this, it dawned on me that our best option is simply to prepare to play the game and make provision to have these transponders put on our cars, with the least amount of intrusion or destruction of our equipment. I have devised a simple bracket, which you can have made at any sheet metal shop that can handle 1/8 or 3/16 thick material, and which you can then apply to your car, so that the class I railroad can apply the transponder.
Rather than fight the establishment, I believe we should simply go along. There are, however, certain details yet to be worked out, such as what is to be programmed on the transponders for our passenger equipment, since the AAR is only interested in freight equipment.
The two transponders, which go on your car, are not identical when programmed. One is designed to go on a BL location, while the other is designed to go on an AR location. The reader can tell which side of the car it is reading. The obvious advantage to us is that the dispatcher can then tell, after getting his train report, which way your car is oriented, and if it needs to be turned, this will be known in advance. This also means that if you decide to put the transponders on your car yourself, you must mark them (with a felt tip pen or similar) so that you know which is for the left side, and which is for the right side, when they are ultimately installed.
The transponders have been applied to a goodly number of cars by TTX by means of double sticky tape. TTX has reported to the Car Officers Association that this experiment did not work. Almost 10% of those applied by tape failed in less than a year. - Consequently, the AAR has mandated that these transponders be fixed to a flat surface on a bracket either by means of pop rivets, or by 3/16 diameter studs or screws. In addition, the preferred method of application is to either weld a steel or an aluminum bracket (Fig. 11) to the car side, and then pop rivet the transponder to the bracket. You probably will not want the railroad to weld anything to your Imron paint job, and certainly if you have a horse-hair insulated car, you will not want any welding done. The AAR has decided not to screw the freight brackets to a car, because they do not want to penetrate the car side with a drill. In addition, if you own a stainless car, you will want a stainless bracket affixed to your car, and not an aluminum nor a carbon steel bracket. Further, if you have a corrugated sided car, you are going to need a flat place in which to fix the bracket, and there simply isn't one on the car side. Hence, the need to provide your own bracket.
There is a definite window prescribed by the rules in which the transponder must fit. Not only is the window described in terms of height and width, but it is also described in terms of depth. Thus, I had at first thought that the transponder might be affixed to the truck frames, much like the plate which reads "locking center pin released from inside the car". However, I have discovered that the truck frame is too narrow to fit within the depth of the window specified.
Let me first describe the window, and I will attempt to do so verbally, plus you should look at the accompanying sketches. Referring to Figure 1, you will note that the preferred location of the transponder, in part, extends beyond the window. This is because the window describes the maximum placement of the center line of the transponder. Thus, either end of the transponder may extend beyond the window, providing that the center line of the transponder does not. Secondly, note that the transponder is mounted horizontally. If you have a trailer, or a container, the transponder will be mounted vertically. However, all rail cars have the transponder mounted horizontally. The transponder is mounted on one end of the car, namely the B end on the left hand side, and on the A end at the right hand side, see Fig. 2. The B end of the car is that where the hand brake is situated. If you have hand brakes at both ends of your car, you may arbitrarily choose which end will be the B end, and which will the A end. Ordinarily, the B end is the same as the vestibule end. However, with business cars, typically the B end is the observation platform end. With round end cars, the B end is the opposite of the observation end, because that is where the hand brake lever is.
The height of the transponder must be between two feet from the top of the rail and five feet from the top of the rail. Most all passenger cars have 36" diameter wheels, therefore the center of the axle is 18" from the top of the rail. Add another 6" from that point, and you have the minimum height for the transponder. The width of the window is more complex. It starts at the center line of the truck bolster. It extends toward the center of the car to a point 2 feet beyond the center line of the axle of the inboard wheel. Obviously, then the width will be longer for a six wheel truck than it will be for a four wheel truck, as seen in Fig. 3. Somewhere in this area the center line of the transponder must be located. The preferred location is at the inboard edge of the area, (see Fig. 1). So far, the obvious place to place the transponder is on the car side somewhere in the vicinity of the inboard axle. The disadvantage is that it will be placed over your fine paint job, or upon a corrugated surface, and in addition you will have to drill holes, or weld to the car side, which probably you do not wish to do.
The final criteria is the depth from the longitudinal center line of the car. As shown in Fig. 4, the transponder must be placed between 5'4" from the center line to 4' from the center line of the car. The truck frame of most passenger cars is approximately 7' wide. Thus, the truck frame is only 3'6" from the center line of the car, and so you cannot put the transponder on the truck frame. Ordinarily, the bolster anchor sticks out another 6" or 7" from the truck frame, and you could, theoretically, put the transponder there. However, the bolster anchor can rotate, so that is not a good place to put it either.
It seems to me, that the solution is to emulate the Budd disk brake indicator (Fig. 5), and hang a special bracket from the side sill which has the required flat surface to which the transponder can be affixed. I had the opportunity to view a number of cars from the Ringling Brothers circus train, some of which had no skirts, some partial skirts, and some full skirts. In every instance, there was a Budd disk brake indicator somewhere in the window area which avoided the skirting, and there does not seem to be any reason why we could not do the same, at least for 99% of the cars.
Thus, I have sketched up several types which you might have made up locally, and which you can apply to your own side sill, so that the class I railroad can program and apply the transponder. While these brackets could be welded to the side sill, and could also be made out of any compatible material, my feeling is that you might prefer to bolt them to the side sill, either on the backside or from underneath, so that they could be removed (the brackets that is) when you need to remove the trucks, or otherwise work in that area. See Figures 6-10. Be sure the edges and corners are rounded off, and place the transponder in from the side sheet to further protect it.
The transponder, Fig. 12, is a piece of gray plastic 2-3/8" high, by 9-1/4" long, and 3/4" thick. It comes complete with 3/16" diameter mounting holes set 8-1/8" apart. CSX mounts the transponders with steel pop rivets. Burlington Northern advises using 3/16" aluminum pop rivets, and being careful not to over tighten, if nuts and bolts are used, otherwise the plastic material may be cracked. Stainless pop rivets are obviously too stout, and will crack the plastic. From the enclosed sketches, you will see my ideas on how the transponders might be mounted. I am still awaiting further information from the AAR as to how these transponders should be programmed for passenger cars, and when this information is received, I will advise. In the meantime, you may desire to go ahead and contemplate how you will do this, in the next year or so. If for some reason there is no place on your car within the specified window, then there is provision for seeking a variance from the AAR. My special thanks to Pete Claussen for obtaining a sample freight car bracket, and transponder for me to inspect.
I will submit my sketches (and any you might provide me) to the AAR for approval, since apparently only approved brackets may be used.
[5/27/93] AEI Transponders - In my last bulletin I provided sketches of suggested brackets for mounting the AEI transponders on your cars. In one of the alternative sketches I showed the bracket welded to the side sill. Nav Fosse has reminded me that you should not weld anything to the side sill if the side sill is made of stainless. Welding to stainless apparently sets up stresses in the stainless which may lead to cracking. The least harmful intrusion is a round hole. So, you would be better off pop riveting the bracket to a stainless side sill.
All of our cars are on "hold" in the Umler system, so a transponder will not be fixed to your car by a carrier. The AEI Committee at the AAR has not yet decided exactly what to code in for passenger cars. Nav also mentioned that one of the handiest improvements he has made to his car was the addition of garden hose bib cock at each end. This allows him to wash off the vestibule, or otherwise clean up the car end.
Paul L. DeVerter II
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