I am not sure if it's a bug or working as designed but LZB/185 seems to have a hard time reacting to speed changes. I was coming to Fulda where the speed drops to 100km/h and LZB and the 185 seemed have to almost lagged in response to the blue LZB marker on the hud dropping. This is also noticable if you start down a grade it is slow to respond and often leads to overspending by 1-2km/h. Around Fulda in order to not set off PZB I found I had to quickly apply quite a bit of brakes get slowed up before LZB or PZB ground me to a hault.
That could be but to me the ICE's respond faster to the change in speed limits from LZB then the 185.
Driving a cargo train is something completely different to driving a passenger, let alone a ICE train. Brakes are much slower in fright trains and as the AFB is only reacting, you as the driver, have to do the forward thinking. IRL the AFB on these trains is quite regulated and not always used… However, I think there used to be a bug in the 185 on older routes, that the AFB would not add the air brake, when trying to slow down. Has this been fixed? This basically makes it impossible for the AFB to slow heavy fright trains, as the dynamic brake is obviously not strong enough.
I have really only used LZB/AFB combo on the two previous ICE routes and this was my first go at the new route and driving cargo with LZB/AFB. But I will check and see if the air brakes are coming on as I am pretty sure they were not, as the slow to 100kmh needed air brake intervention by myself coming into Fulda.
So I just ran both ICE's and the 185. The ICE's are faster responding to the LZB/AFB systems then the 185. Also the air brake bug is resolved by the looks of it as the brake pipe and equalizer are moving but the BC gauge takes a moment or 2 to say anything. So I still am unsure if there is something wrong in the response time of LZB/AFB of the 185 although from the sounds of the responses it is normal operation and I will monitor my speed and brake more carefully. Thanks for the input.
Thanks for the feedback. Once I have TSW3 as well, I will for sure try it out myself as well. But depending on the brake settings on the fright train, it can be plausible that it takes ages until you feel a reaction on deceleration.
AFB on a cargo train and AFB on a high speed train have very different purposes. Think of AFB on a cargo train as a maximum speed cutoff. On the 185, AFB should be set to the track speed (or 120, whichever is lower) and not adjusted unless the track speed changes for a significant length. You should not be using AFB to slow or speed up the train. Both brake and throttle should be set to 0 when adjusting it, and AFB should never be decreased below your actual speed. On the ICE, the AFB works more like a speed selector and will serve as an autopilot in LZB zones.
From DB's manual (with the aid of Google Translate): In principle, the AFB must be switched on; however, in the event of AFB malfunctions, you can drive without AFB. The control behavior of the AFB must be monitored by you. Drive your traction unit with foresight, if necessary, intervene in the control of the AFB to avoid unnecessary acceleration and braking. Consider AFB as a device that supports you in your activity. If you are driving towards an LZB Stop on an LZB-guided train with the AFB on, monitor the braking behavior of the AFB particularly carefully. Take over the braking shortly before the stop,
Yes, I have to correct myself. On the German TRAXX F140 AC1 the AFB only directs the dynamic brakes, just checked again. This is not always the case, however, on the version DB uses it is like this indeed… (edit: corrected loco type designation)
Although that is not encouraged. In theory, the AFB/LZB interlock works like an auto-pilot but from what I gather online from real drivers, you're supposed to cut power and brake before AFB/LZB intervene. That is also supported by my experiences in Zusi where when I tried, the interlock was often not strong and reactive enough to actually comply with the braking curve and my intervention was necessary to prevent an emergency brake application (think this was on a Br 120 IC). Also, there seems to be a divide between the manuals and actual practice. Most manuals talk about how much AFB should be used and how much it'll handle on its own. When you look at online forums, however, most freight drivers tell you that they leave it off or only use it as a failsafe to prevent speeding but still control the train manually (no throttle to z-max as the manual calls for).
I think however in game terms, the difference can be explained by the slow reaction times of P- and often G-mode brakes back down the consist, rather than the ultrafast R+E system in ICE's.
I thank everyone for the input I am genuinely learning quite a lot. It sounds like fault lies with the rather inexperienced German train driver, as I don't delve too much into the German routes. I would like to learn more I'm still having a hell of a time with PZB at times on the non-LZB routes. I have watched Matt's tutorial a number of times and there are still times I don't know what I did wrong to cause PZB to intervene.
To my mind, a video tutorial will only get you so far. What you're describing - those moments PZB seemingly stops you at random - that's how you truly learn PZB. Find out why you were stopped and you'll slowly begin to grasp the underlying logic. If no online resource helps, give us a shout on the forums; we'll be happy to help you understand what happened
I had completely forgot they had programmed in a help thing up by the speed and signal info on the hud. I am currently playing Munchen-Augsburg and I think maybe that could be a useful tool to help me learn when and where I should expect to react to PZB.
