So now that some time has passed, I am understanding this whole thing much better. I am using mission codes to assign the various paths and tasks to the trains and all the ai seem to be automatically selecting the correct paths and managing to avoid conflicts with each other. What is still confusing to me is that even though I have assigned mission codes to the active player train, the correct path needs to be selected manually and is not being assigned automatically as with the ai. When the path selection window pops open for the active player, all paths are listed, even those not assigned to the active player via the mission codes. It's as if the mission codes are not even assigned to the active player (they are). I have the proper active player mission code assigned via a drive command right when the session starts. How do I get the active player to automatically pick up his paths as the ai are doing perfectly without having to select them in the pop up window.
LouP
Hi LouP.
To have the active player automatically pick up his paths using EITs and MCM without any specific driver command, you need :
1 - to have the paths enabled for automatic path assignment at the path level. On the edit path page, you should have the path Assignment option set to either "Automatic" for paths being used for both AI and player train or "Automatic (AI only)" for paths being used only by AI train or "Automatic (player only)" for paths being used only by player trains. The assignment option should not be set to "Manual" which disables automatic path assignment for the current path and is reserved for sessions wanting to use only ITSetPath, or PathTrigger or Follow path methods as path assignment selection method.
1bis - at the tower level, I would also advise to have the tower yellow disc option set to "display yellow disc disabled", as you will no longer use the yellow disc option and associated selection box. I would also advise to suppress from the default rules the Interlocking Tower Path Selection UI rule which is the rule displaying the default N3V path selection box, which is no longer needed when using MCM. With this rule suppressed from your session, the display selection box can no longer be displayed in your session and will not interfere with your automatic path selection using MCM.
Of course this advise do not apply if you are using a mixed configuration with MCM being used for only some trains and the standard N3V selection box being used for some other trains with no mission codes (outside MCM).
2 - At MCM level (when you edit MCM rule), on the towers tab (the second tab from left) displaying the list of all available towers, you need to have Auto path assignment mode set to "Auto assignment on entry signal approach is enabled". If the option is set to disabled, it prevents automatic path selection on signal approach (setting reserved for session wanting to use only ITSetPath or PathTriggers or Follow Path assignment methods).
With these options correctly set, MCM should select one of the paths eligible for your train mission code when a train with an active mission code approaches an entry signal (at a distance of 0.5 mile) , but you can anticipate this automatic selection via MCM by running earlier an ITMCAssignNextPath driver command at any time (at less than 10 km from the next entry signal) or using pathtrigger defined in MCM rule for firing the automatic path selection process by MCM when your train reaches the path trigger.
Take care that if no paths are eligible for the train mission code, the train will remain stucked at the entry signal, until you add using the run time monitor a valid eligible path for the current train mission code.
If you have some trains with mission code stucked at an entry signal for an unknown reason, just open the MCM run time monitor and switch to the requests tab (should be last tab displayed only under the run time monitor not under surveyor). The requests tab should list all the requests made by MCM for the current train, with the request status and a short diagnosis if for any reason the request was not successfully processed or is delayed for any reason.
You can have also a look to the EIT Demo route - UK1 - Full session with MCM ( <kuid2:61392:8402:6> ) available on DLS that has its paths and MCM configured this way.
Hope this helps. If you need more help just ask.
Regards.
Pierre.