New r.c. launching system!!!

Hello! I have come up with a new way to launch roller coaster cars!!!How it works is that there are two giant batteries one for each side of the track. positive electricity is charged in to the trains and negitive electricity is run through the
rails through small adapters wired into the rails,but the electricity does not run through the rails freely, it is controlled from one adapter to the other. a magnetic pull is conducted between the car and the rail , thus if you move the electricity in the rail it will make the car move.

Any questions?

Do you mean that it's like model train sets but only backwards?  That's sure what it sounds like, but faster.

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"Rarely is the question asked: is our children learning?" - George W. Bush

I have thought of that to before, where it workd the same way a model train does.That would be pretty cool. Then you may be able to control the speed of the train during the ride if you had a power control like on model railroad.

For your idea to work, the rails would have to be very good conductors. Steel is not a good conductor.  Also it would be mighty expensive, much more expensive than Lims, with all that electricity constantly running but it could work.
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The world's a roller coaster and I am not strapped in, maybe I should hold with care, But My hands are busy in the air- Incubus

I think it could work better for a model or somthing.

Ever heard of a third rail coaster? They used to be popular in the 20's. However, they stopped building them after a few terrible accidents (overzealous operators).

I always thought a similar system could be used whereby the size of the layout would not need to be limited by the size of the lift. You could have an electric coaster that snaked around the countryside...over hill and dale etc. Kinda like a modern day Mauch Chunk (sp?).

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"I'll bet that thing hits 5 Gs going through that loop.....faaar ooouut!"

Although I think Josha is talking about a launching system...not an electrified propulsion system.
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"I'll bet that thing hits 5 Gs going through that loop.....faaar ooouut!"

Well, model railroad locomotives have motors, with electricity carried to those matters through the nickel silver rail.

I think what was being suggested was some variation of the concept that LIM's make use of.  At least, that's the impression I got. . . by somehow taking advantage of the attractive and repulsive characteristics of electricity.

That's something quite unlike a model railroad, I'm afraid.

Also, using any material for the rails seems like it would be a maintanence headache. . . keeping them free of oxidation and things.

~ Michael ~

If you are suggesting something like a model train usees, parks would never go for it.  Remember that the electricity runs through the engine or car etc, and I do not think that parks would want to take the risks of their patrons being electrocuted.  Like somebody said though, this would work well if you wanted to build a model of a launched coaster without having to worry about magnets.
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"If somebody throws a rock and knocks a man off his donkey, do we say that he's stoned off his ass?

This sounds sort of like Maglev propulsion... sort of.  But we'll never see that in the next decade, probably never, because it is very, very expensive.

Ummm, there is no such thing as "positive electricity" or "negative electricity" and even if there were (i assume you mean like there are north and south poles on a magnet) that would cause the train to be attracted to the track, not to move. Unless you meant like a railgun. Railgun tech would work, but would require INCREDIBLE amounts of juice to do (orders of magnitude more than a lim launch) for no benefit unless you need to be moving at thousands of meters per second. Sorry. Now, the "Giant Rubber Band launch"...

There is powered coasters, Mack is a good example. You can see the power rails in the middle of the track in this photo.

Back to the model train idea...I don't think fear of electrocution is the reason for lack of these types of rides. If that were the case, there would be no subways or streetcars! I think space and cost could come into play. Then again, Mack makes a propelled coaster. Here's an example:

http://www.rcdb.com/installationgallery975.htm?Picture=1

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"I'll bet that thing hits 5 Gs going through that loop.....faaar ooouut!"

Doesnt the Whizzer at SFGAm have an engine in it that allows the cars to go up the lift and the electricity cuts off at the top of the lift and re-engage at the brakes right before the station?

Just curious...
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Bob Hansen

"Excuse me while I kick the sky!"
kickthesky@hotmail.com

Model trains have motors!! 

To include a motor on a large coaster is cost and space prohibitive, I think.  Remember, though it might be different to have a motor on board the train propel the ride initially, that extra weight is along for the ride for the entire trip . .  and it's a waste of space and energy.

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~~~ M ~~~
Official Driver for the Long Island Regional.

That's the same way that subway trains, model trains, monorails, etc... work.  First of all, it's not very safe, passengers are likely to drop something onto the track, it would get fried and possibly catch fire.  Second of all, a safer way of doing that would be Linear Induction/Syncronus Motors, oh wait, we already have those.  Also, maintainance would be a *****.  To fix something, they would have to completely shut of all of the electricity and then turn it back on when they were finished.  That would require quite a bit of energy to generate that much electricity that fast and it would cost a fortune.
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Is a tomato a fruit or a vegetable?

I think I'll stick with compressed air. Good for the economy, low cost to run, and it makes the fastest acceleration!
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It's his turn to feast, when you ride the Son of Beast.

For a model for a science fair, I made my own launching system. 

It consisted of a PVC pipe piston, charged with water.  The dynamics are the same as S&S's Air launch system, only using water.  It was a pretty cool effect.  My friend and I dyed the water with a special dye to make it visible under a black light presentation.

Kick the Sky, I was wondering the same thing.  I always thought Whizzer and the old Zinger at WoF had electric lifts.
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Just wait till next year!

Kick the Sky and Valleyfair Fan, you are right. Schwarzkopf coasters with spiral lifts are just like any 3-rail model train. The outside rails are ground, the car is the motor, and the middle rail is hot. I myself havn't seen the accuall design scematics for it, but it has to be how it works. When you are on the lift, you can hear the hum of the motors.

I doubt that anyone would ever build a coaster as Joshua stated, and I'll tell you why. Track is steel.While it was said it isn't the greatest conductor, it is a conductor... and powered coasters are always steel coasters. That means both rails would be connected to eachother, causing a short. You wouldn't get too far with that happening, and I bet the ride op would get annoyed with the dim lights on the control board (I sure do on my grandma's model train! Shorts suck, and they are hard to find if it isn't just a derailed train.)

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Word of the Week from the boy who doesn't even know the correct abreviation for his own home park! SFGRAMBoy20!
The word is: Refrain