OK, sorry that this isn't a Disney layout, but it inspired my current "Little FWRR" project:

I was digging through some scans of very old photos that I scanned a few years ago, and came across this. In 1975, I opened the third retail computer store in the US, the first on the East Coast, in the Washington, DC area, selling MITS Altair computers (the first successful microcomputer, and the one that inspired Bill Gates and Paul Allen to start Micro-Soft, later Microsoft). In 1977, one of my employees and I decided to build a small N scale layout to demonstrate the process control capabilities of the Altair microcomputer, and to attract customers into the store. The program, written in BASIC, controlled three trains, running on a loop with two sidings at stations, with six blocks and four turnouts. At the terminal customers could program station stops, and cause trains to pass the stopped trains by automatically switching onto the sidings. Other than a Lionel set when I was very young (that my father set up and enjoyed "for me") this was my first train layout, and my last until about 35 years later, when I got interested again in computer control, and built my "little FWRR".

Here is my Altair Computer Center in 1978:



I wonder if anyone remembers the Altair (that's before Apple!).

I didn't get into it until Commodore64 and Texas Ist TI-99???
I didn't graduate college until around 1980 so work in the IT field didn't start until then. I worked in mainframe systems but had these new computers at home.
I remember when my company gave away Radio Shark TRS-80 model III, only catch was you had to cart them off from the basement of the building!!

Just a thought - this is only two years before Disney finally built and opened Big Thunder Mountain RR ride at Disneyland (September 1979) and their "New" innovation was a PLC controlling the safety block system. You don't think... Did you ever do any publicity write-ups on your little railroad?

And now you can do the same thing with an off the shelf SPLAT or Arduino micro-controller.

--<< Bruce >>--

Bruce, there were stories in The Washington Times and Washington Post newspapers about my computer store, but I don't remember that they mentioned the railroad. After the story in the Post, which was on the front page of the Sunday Business section, I got letters from around the world from people interested in retail computer stores.

But you made me suddenly realize there is another vague Disney link to this project. Four years prior I had worked in DACS (the digital section of the Audio-Animatronics Div.) in the Magic Kingdom, where I worked in the computer room, maintained show equipment, and got to wire show control and audio racks when Pirates was installed. My work at Disney certainly provided experience and inspiration for many creative projects later in my life (and an interest in trains).

My demo railroad layout happened because an I/O board with inputs and relay outputs had just been released for the Altair computer, and I wanted to demo a real-life application for that product. My current layout uses I/O boards from CTI Electronics in Baltimore.

VAGUE Disney link? That's not what I wouldn't call any work on "Pirates of the Caribbean", especially on the animatronics!

You're right, Roy, that was a poor choice of words. Disney deserves a lot more credit. I was so lucky to have had a lot of electronics wiring and assembly experience working as a technician in a small but unique DC "beltway-bandit" company building electronic black boxes for the CIA and NSA, as my first job out of school. When Dave Inglish from MAPO arrived at WDW to supervise installation of the POTC electronics, he somehow found out about my experience and assigned me to wiring control racks, while I alone manned DACS Central on the midnight shift. Cabling was laced with nylon cord, which made for nice looking racks. No plastic cable ties there.

One night Dave and I went out to Pirates to see how things were going. They were testing running the boats with sandbags. They decided that all was OK, and that it was time to try simulated "guests". I got to ride in the first boat! My most exciting boat ride ever!

Ok, so this is still on topic. Please elaborate and explain the technical stuff about how the computer works the railroad. I was on your site and it really does not cover the nuts and bolts of it. I am very interested in this. Does your layout also have sounds associated with it. Could you add the sounds if you wanted? What program are you currently running? This is all new to me. I am a traditional the is my power box type. I have no DCC equipment, even my fwrr live steamer is manual, i reach in and throw the johnson bar.

Dennis, my "Little FWRR" layout uses software and a set of computer interface modules made by CTI Electronics in Baltimore (http://cti-elctronics.com), which run with Windows computers. The software is a train control language called "TCL", and looks similar to BASIC. Their line of interface modules are specifically designed to control the various aspects of a model train layout. There is a module for direct DC control of a train, which I am using two of at the moment, which means I am limited to running two trains at once. The outputs of these modules (DC) is selectively switched to the various blocks in my small layout by a module with relays. The CTI system can also interface with DCC, which I would like to do in the future. Other modules offer various types of inputs and outputs for controlling turnouts, block lights and other accessories. I use reed switches and magnets to sense train positions, and photo sensors for precise positioning of cars for things like loading and dumping the ore cars. Of course, if I were using DCC, I would have sound modules in the engines, but for now I take advantage of the software's ability to program the running of triggered sound files from the computer, which isn't great since all of the sound comes from one place (unless you want to have multiple audio channels or switched speakers).

Actually, my N scale layout with the Altair was a little harder because we weren't using S/W and H/W that was specially designed for model trains. So more had to be done in the S/W, like writing code to talk directly to the integrated circuits on the I/O boards.

With the CTI software, you can manually run the trains, turnouts, etc. from the GUI on the computer display, or you can program a totally automated layout, which can be interactive based upon events that happen in real time. In other words, you could program a completely scheduled operation, or just let the trains run under a set of programmed rules, that if done properly, would keep them from destroying anything. As you might imagine, it can get pretty involved, but coding and testing is a lot of fun. When you make a mistake in your programming, you get to see the results first hand!

Obviously, one could use this system to control models of many of the Disney ride attractions, not just trains.

I'll be happy to try and answer any other questions.

Love the computer setup! I started with Atari 400 in the early '80's. I tore that machine apart time after time...adding a new keyboard, memory, graphics chip, etc.

Here is a link to my first attempt at a "Magic Kingdom" railroad. Circa 1980. Shot in Super 8mm film, recently transferred to digital.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BuQsM0zFUrY


Cheers,
Don in Chicagoland

WOW Don I loved the layout from 1980. I love the detail.