Stop Train Problem

[mononlaf]

Hi all:

Does anyone know what causes a Stop Train order to be issued by the simulator while an AI engineer is running his train?

The situation: A long lead serves several industries, including a coal mine (1st turnout) and a refinery (2nd and 3rd turnouts). An incoming mixed consist is broken apart, each part pulled behind a switch engine, the first going to the mine and the second to the refinery (2nd turnout). The road engine then turns around using a turntable on another lead and lines up at the beginning of the mine/refinery lead with the engineer transferring to a nearby engine nowhere near the lead, so that the subconsists can be hooked up to its rear.

Everything works fine up to the point at which the coal consist has coupled to the road engine and its switcher has moved off the lead. The tanker consist won't move, even though it has a couple-at-trackmark command up next along the command bar - using the local AI menu that you get when you click ahead of a driver command on this bar shows the option for continuing the schedule, which is usually there only if the train has been previously stopped by the player using the same local menu. But, I have not done this. Something in the running of the simulator has stopped the train. As soon as I click Continue Schedule, the tanker consist moves out, couples up, and everything is back to normal.

Naturally, I want that part of the session to work without operator intervention. This is the only hitch in making this yard operation work all the way through strictly under AI. Very frustrating!

Has anybody any advice on this?

Dick

PS I'm using TRS 2006, SP 1

 

[stagecoach]

what was the command prior to the couple at trackmark?

 

[mononlaf]

The immediately prior command was to wait for a message signifying that the coal switcher was out of the way.

A little longer string of prior commands was ... Drive to the refinery oil drop, Set Junction away from the oil drop stub, Unload, Waitformessageandclear ... then the couple at trackmark command.

All the commands prior to couple at trackmark executed OK - the apparent Stop Train occurred after the message was received and the waitfor... was deleted from the command bar.

The Set Junction command was inserted because the road engine had a red signal at the entry to the lead and was apparently unable to change the junction in question.

Dick

 

[mononlaf]

Update - found a way

Ok - found a way to make it work. Wonder if the problem described in the first post was due to using a Set Junction command. In fact, I started another thread asking whether anyone can explain the several junction commands and rules. (Another thread because the only feasible way to find something in this forum is to make the title pretty specific to the problem.)

I eliminated the Set Junction command (see my reply to stagecoach) by holding the crude consist on the arrival track until the road engine was in place at the entrance to the lead. After that, the junction in question caused no problems, and there was no Stop Train effect.

Still, I'm curious about why the Stop Train occurred in connection with the set of commands that included setting a junction. Maybe it was something else that caused it, but that was the only "different" command that was used in the version that would not work right. I also used a number of postmessage, waitformessageandclear, move-to-train, and change direction commands, but these were in both versions.

Dick