Hello Everybody I would like to ask about how I should react to speed sign reductions under PZB. The way I understood it when the sign tells you to reduce to a speed higher than what is 1000Hz reduction speed, then you should not need to slow down to the initial 1000Hz speed but only to the speed reduction given by the sign. Yet I do not seem to make this work. For example on the Ruhr-Sieg Nord - when you drive from Finnentrop, type M train, at 52.0Km post there is a reduction from 100Km/h line speed to 80Km/h. I acknowledge the PZB, yet it wants me to slow down to 70Km/h, if I don't, I get emergency brake. Not acknowledging the reduction also does not work, emergency again. Am I doing something wrong, or is it how it is supposed to work, decelerate to 70 and then accelerate back to higher line speed? That sounds wrong to me.
For me its working fine. You acknowledge a speed reduction under 100Km/h, and the 1000Hz magnet turns on. If you where a passenger train, you'll need to slow down to 85Km/h whitin 23 seconds. But, you're a freight, so the speed limit for the 1000Hz is 70Km/h whitin 29 seconds. Remember that the PZB doesn't know what the signal said. The PZB only knows 2 things: 1. it's in mode M (70). 2. it hit a 1000Hz magnet. The signal could have been a speed reduction to 50Km/h or even 40Km/h, but for the PZB its still a 70Km/h whitin 29 seconds.
So I have run another freight service, and this time it works as I would suspect - 1000Hz magnet at Km post 52.0 is not active, not forcing you to decelerate to 70, so you just slow down to 80 at your own pace. This is service DB80216 in journey mode. Service DB84601 (the consist of several locos from Finnentrop to Plettenberg) has this magnet active though, which I think is a bug, unless I am missing something. But I am sure I have encountered this magnet active also in another services, even from the other side, Finnentrop-bound, so I do not understand based on which conditions it is active.
I'm no expert, but the PZB should be programmed on the route level, not on the train level. I took the service DB84601, where you say that there is this bug, and tried something: I made save at 1Km from the "expect speed reduction" that you speak of. First thing that I did was passing the speed reduction at 80Km/h. No magnet. Then I reloaded the save and passed the speed reduction at 100Km/h. Magnet on. Retried the save at 80Km/h, no magnet. I suppose that the PZB works like this: You always need to acknowledge the speed reduction, but its on whatever your speed is that the magnet goes on or not. I made 2 screenshot, one after passing at 100 and another at 80 here https://imgur.com/a/wA1A2zg EDIT: maybe there's a bug, but at the Plettenberg's station. After I replied to you, I wanted to complete the service, and got it by a 1000Hz magnet emergency stop, that turned in a 500Hz magnet, at 250 meters from a green light... Strange...
Yes, I know about that 500Hz magnet at Plettenberg and I suppose this is correct, because right after that main signal you must slow down to 20Km/h for turning into siding. I would say it is protected this way. But you nailed it, the 1000Hz magnet (at least at post 52.0) is active based on the speed you pass it. 94Km/h or less and it is not active, 95Km/h and more and you have to acknowledge it and slow down to more than what it protects (80Km/h). It would be good if someone who knows how PZB should work shared some light on this, if this behavior is correct.
That is what I understood. It may be a bit stupid, but PZB is a safety system that enforces safe behaviour. If you drive a train with PZB-U you must decelerate till 55km/h first. So yes, decrease your speed till below 70 km/h. Once the 1000Hz light is off, you can clear the PZB and increase speed till 80km/h.Note that officially PZB should be installed on each speed reduction below 100km/h, but on RSN in most cases PZB will not be activated. PZB is bit of a rough system. It feels very German, describing in details your behaviour, unlike e.g. the US ATC system which just tells you to start braking till you reach the maximum speed. The Dutch ATB system works much like ATC in that respect.
You should not think of PZB as in cab signaling, it does not try and guide you to a target speed, that is the LZB system. PZB is strictly a protection system. Thus is works on set brake curve's as per the PZB Mode you are in. PZB has pre defined break curve's based on mode and there essentially based on a a ton of simulation work to come up with a balance between safety and efficiency however to drive with PZB you don't really need to go into such detail. All you need to understand is regardless of signed speed you must reduce speed to below the Monitoring speed for your PZB mode. Your not doing anything wrong other than perhaps thinking of PZB as been LINE speed aware.
