The Brilliant Engineering behind Pantographs!
2022 ж. 18 Сәу.
2 448 493 Рет қаралды
Modern, Z-shaped pantographs are marvels of engineering. In this video we will explore all the details of their design and engineering innovations.
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No sponsor, sub-begging, stupid jokes... just clean, to the point quality content.
You don't think content creators deserve to be compensated for the time they put into educating people?
@@DaimyoD0 never said that
Perfect yt channel ever mahnn og og
@@flexo3333 you meant that
@@imnemo2327 Why didn't I say it then? Enlighten me.
Even as a train engineer I'm fascinated how much engineering is behind a pantograph which seems like a very straight-forward simple mechanism.
Seems over-praise is offered in this video to -exactly as you say - a very simple system. It's much the same as a JCB's front bucket - you either keep the paralellogram arrangement OR you put identical quadralaterals together but flip one, and you'll get the same effect - the collector plate would remain level.
It is simple. It’s a system of springs and hydraulics.
"Simplicity is the highest form of sophistication." It took us decades to arrive at this design.
@@terryjimfletcher The world is build off a collection of these ingenious changes. The current end result was not obvious but a result of iterative improvements. The video was quite neutral and on point.
Is my dream job to be train engineer
I love how this channel break down complexity by begining with a simple model, explaining the disavantage of this model and adding something to solve that disavantage, and keep doing this ultil fully explaining how the system works
😑😑😑😑😑😑
If the system works then why are people driving wrong
Like a real engineer would
@@sebitalent04 why are people using gasoline cars if it clearly isn't working for everyone
I seem to remember an old instructional video on Differentials that did the same thing...
Hi. I am a train driver from Germany. Thanks for this very interesting video. I am not aware that both pantographs have to be raised at high speeds. Different regulations may apply in other countries. In Germany, the front pantograph must be raised if there are wagons with dangerous goods behind the locomotive, or wagons with plastic sheeting, or another locomotive. Because of flying sparks. In addition, the second pantograph is a fallback. There is a sensor in the contact strip that responds if the contact strip breaks. Then this pantograph is unusable. In the case of a locomotive, both pantographs may only be raised if the overhead line is icy. Then the top speed is limited to 110 km/h.
In Czech republic at 3kv DC part of network is the second pantograph used when accelerating a heavy train to prevent local melting of catenary, there are over thousand of amperes going trough when starting a heavy train. Also used when standing in stations to prevent the same issue.
The video author meant that at high speeds you want to raise the pantograph on the back of the train, so that's why you need two. He didn't say that you raise both at high speed. Those special rules are quite interesting though, thanks for sharing
Also if the train has new automobiles on the the car directly behind the locomotive, only the front pantograph must be raised. Sparks from the rear pantograph could cause damage to the windshields and paint job on the automobiles.
Not quite, as maxono1 said it's to give you one for each direction of travel - having two raised in high speed running can cause vibrations and resonance in the line between them. This has caused some odd issues with UK train designs, as in past decades engineers were uncomfortable running high voltage cables through passenger cars, which led to the APT tilting train having the locomotive in the middle, basically dividing the train in two
There is a lot that is not correct in this video - including "both pantographs have to be raised at high speeds." That is not true, at all.
Premium grade video. Good, clean, simple and clear video explanations. Starting with the basics and slowly building up to the final solution. This is what video tutorials should be about.
Seems weird to say "why have 2 pantographs" when everyone knows trains can reverse, it's not rocket science!
It's hard to keep the consistency without any sponsors.. Great guys
BME here. I can’t help but notice the mechanics of the pantograph is a good representation of how the musculoskeletal system maintains stillness and balance.
I believe there is a lot to learn from nature's designs. E.g. Bodies of insects are simple, effective machines with a lot of flexibility and adjustability built in. For instance, if nature had to evolve a pantograph, it would probably use a flexible cartilage instead of the metal arm, it would naturally evolve thicker padding at the carbon plate, it would make the lower joint flexible too and there would be a lot of redundancy, so that if a pantograph arm got stuck in the wire, it would tear off easily and another would grow in its place after a few weeks. God forbid, one day in the far future, we are able to grow bone and tissue to engineering specifications, we would have organic materials instead of metal. Then all of nature's lessons in mechanical durability would be applied and we would create "living" trains and such.
@@anandsharma7430 by the time we start growing bio-pantographs, trains will be an artifact 😂
As a mechanic on the Siemens S-70, SD160 & SD100 I agree with and appreciate how simple the explanation in this video is. I’ll be sure to pass this on to newer mechanics.
Perfect focused explanation without any useless talk,,, Loved the way animation created and explained
I never knew that pantographs existed or that they were this interesting.
Very nice video, to mention that the rear pantograph is usually connected also because if an accident happens, the front pantograph would have fallen on all of those devices on top of the locomotive
This channel is one of the best. Actually going down to the very details is a structured and incremental fashion. Simplifying things in a way that is not misrepresented. Really really appreciate this channel.
More stuff I never thought to ask about, brilliantly explained. Trains in my area (south of England) don't have pantographs (because we have an electrified third rail) but I see these in other parts of the country.
I Lisbon and Porto (both in Portugal) there are still trams with the trolley pole collectors, but with a wheel instead off a grooved head. In Lisbon there are also some that have both the trolley pole collector and a modern pantograph as they share lines with more modern tram.
In the end of the video, actually some engines have 2 pantographs for different voltages. In France, for example the BB7200 has 2 pantographs for 1500V DC (1 pantograph would drain too much current when starting to move a long train) The BB15000 has only one pantograph of 25000V AC And the BB22200 has 2 pantographs, one for 1500VDC and one for 25000VAC (+ when starting under 1500VDC) These 3 engines are from the same family
The showed Railjet locomotives has also 3 pantographs :) 2 for 25kV AC 50Hz and 15kV AC 16 2/3 Hz and another for DC systems, for example 1500V or 3kV DC. The EuroSprinter series has also a 4 pantograph version for all systems, it is called for ES64U4, where the U4 indicates, it can use 4 diferential systems. And this uses 4 pantographs. The ES64U2 version has only 2 or 3 pantographs :)
DC-only locomotives often raised both pantographs when starting, to balance the heavy current draw. As the train picked up speed, the front pan (usually) was dropped.
Even among systems using the same voltage, there are physical differences among the overhead catenary systems. For example: Germany (DB), Austria (ÖBB), and Switzerland (SBB) all use 15 kV 16⅔ Hz. DB and ÖBB both use catenary that zigzags 400 mm either side of the track centerline, or 800 mm in total - a parameter called "stagger". Both systems use a contact bar 1950 mm wide. SBB's stagger is half that of DB and ÖBB; SBB uses a contact bar 1450 mm wide.
@@smwca123 I'm curious about it that's interesting! Is it documented? I can't find that stagger parameter online
B/c Germany and Austria unified their railways after Anschluss, while Switzerland developed it's own standards, electrifying the networks earlier
I used to work in overhead line design. A guy I worked with designed a system in the uk where the lift is air powered and if a carbon came off the pan it released the air pressure dropping the pan to prevent damage to the line.
ADD has been around for a good while. I too know someone who put the idea forward through British Rail's OWLs scheme that was adopted on Cl.90 and 91 locos in the early nineties.
Amazing technology Lots of love ❤️ From Nepal 🇳🇵
The two pantographs are used not only when changing direction, but for different electric systems as well. Like direct and alternating current ( it's the case in Russia, and, as I know, in some EU countries, like Austria, Czech Republic, Germany, Poland). Different countties, different historical periods, different standarts.
I figured redundancy too. It's simpler to get a slow train to a maintenance depot under its own power instead of towing a slow train.
In EU there are locomotive with four pantograph. That's because there are different countries with the same electric system that need different pantograph
Wow..this is an incredibly helpful video for mechanical engineers. This would certainly help us to have a better clarity in Kinematics of Machines subject. Thanks a lot 😀
After watching these videos, I'd love to do my engineering again... And really gonna like to study again... 😍
One of the things this misses is that on some SNCF and Korail trains, they actually keep the collector hollow and run the pneumatics through it. As the carbon top wears down, or is otherwise impacted by something on the catenary, the air leaks out and collapses the pantograph, bringing the train to a halt. This is an important safety feature as if left up, it could rip the catenary, or damage the carriage.
Other design, common for example in Germany, is using a small brass tube within the carbon collector.
Using a pantograph on the back side is also a safety feature. If it breaks, it's pieces will just fall behind and the locomotive can proceed to the next station using the front one. If the front one breaks, it's pieces will likely also damage one on the back, or some electrical equipment on the roof, and the entire line will become blocked until a working locomotive arrives to pull it to the station.
About a year ago I've been wondering how these work and wasn't able to find a good explanation online. Glad one exists now. Curious choice of train though, I wouldn't have expected to see our Railjets in a learn engineering video, that gave it an almost eerie sense of familiarity.
I always liked the diamond pantograph like the GG-1's just my opinion. Have a great day everyone
I love these, whoever you are we need this!
An apparently simple mechanism has such a complex development history. The collective genius of the railway engineers!👍 Many thanks for the lucid explanation and fascinating graphics.
NGL, while I love the wonderful animation, it's always a delight to see some of the people involved in the channel
Legends have already seen this
in bullet train, there are even more pantographs on coaches for example, Japanese bullet train has 10 cars (2 trailers and 8 coaches) car no. 1 and car no. 10 (trailers) have pantographs as mentioned in the video but also car no 3 and car no. 7 would also have pantographs even they are just coaches but rest coaches no. 2, 4, 5, 6, 8, 9 would not have pantographs.
Japanese bullet trains are EMUs, that is every car has motors. There is no "locomotive" or "coaches" in a train set. Every car has its own propulsion and can carry passengers (At least in theory. Depending on the configuration, some cars may be pure coaches)
Typical the Restaurant have his own power supply. Some trains use secondary power supply or extra supplies for WiFi, internet, computer, network switch, hot water, aso. So all the system are independent - not that a broken router break the engine...
The 500 Series _Shinkansen_ used an unconventional pantograph design that a fusion of the one shown in 1:35 with the 'horns' shown in 8:05, but surrounded by a pyramid-like structure (or a sleeker fin-like one instead on the newer E5 to 7 models) on the roof to protect it from being blown over by aerodynamic drag. P
I wondered about this mechanism a week before. Now it's here in my youtube recommendation list .
Also if you use the front pantograph when going forward and anything should happen to it at high speed , it will come crashing down over the rear pantograph damaging it, leaving you with no power whatsoever.
That's common sense I suppose 💀💀
That is why the front pantograph is manually lowered by the driver. The driver's judgement is always important.
Simply awesome teaching... gratitude for whole team🙌👍
As Austrian it's nice to see that you use an ÖBB train
Ich denk's mir auch - auf den Railjet können wir schon stolz sein
Indian railways runs double stack container train on electric lines. Please clear that too. How they made elongated Pantograph & what are issues related to it. Thank you from India for sharing knowledge.
From KG to PG. From Kinder Garten to Post Graduation. The adaptability of the Pantograph to changes in levels of Traction and form an effective conduit for the heavy electric power from source to the motor is well detailed for easier understanding. The surge current aspect as and when the pantograph makes and breaks the supply system is worth appreciating resulting in a sparkless phenomena. The alignment and supports system with the holding system, governed by mathematics of Catenary Curves also play an important role in keeping the traction wire to remain horizontal throughout the stretch. It is a perfect example of an integrated engineering marvel of Team Work. I rate this video 10/10. RangarajaN, Jersey City, Jul 02, 2022
I must have missed the bit about ?in-rush current? , i only saw the mechanical development of pantographs.
Hey, the trolley-pull collector--that's how the San Francisco buses work! That rope is why kids can run behind a bus and yank the collector off the wire! Good times.
Sorry, but the taurus type lok have reversed pantographs ;) Let see the orientation of the pantographs on a Railjet lok: it is not the same, as shown from 8:55. And the reason, why loks use the rear pantograph is not the aerodynamics. The real reason is not that: if the train uses the front pantograph, and it breaks (for any reasons), it can also break the rear panto, and also other equipment on the roof. When the train uses the rear, and it breaks, the train can go next with the front pantograph. But there is a case, where the front pantograph is used: the tank trains, filled with flammable substances. Because at the contact point can sparks occur and these sparks can give flame to the trailers, it is common, to use the front pantograph and/or extra protective car between the locomotive and the first car to protect the cargo.
The French BB15000 series has only one pantograph. Apparently SNCF considered that all that was needed.
Yes, locos also use the front pantograph if they pull car coaches for a similar reason.
Excellent presentation. Highly educative. Thanks for providing information.
You can easily see how advanced the pantograph technology is on the shinkansen, and why they went trough the trouble they did resulting in the cool and weird designs of today
The high speed trains have another consideration because the trains themselves are going around a corner at an angle. The pantograph probably has to be adapted to also be horizontal in those cases.
Bless you All World you work
0:51 dude just despawned into dust. this clip is some great meme material
I love it how you took the pride of the Austrian railways, the Taurus, and put all sorts of silly current collectors on it. 🙂 It ought to be mentioned that the French class 15000 (25 kV AC) has a single pantograph, whereas the class 22200 (1.5 kV DC and 25 kV AC bi-currant) has two pantographs that both point in the same direction. The orientation of the pantographs is a bit of a mixed bag in these "nez cassés" locomotives.
Explore indian pantographs.. they have gaps at the point of poles. So train get power for few secs and lose power for few seconds and it goes on It's incredible how it works..
This channel is Indian ! by IIT Delhi student Graduate 😊
@@svanimation8969 really?
Starting from the first iterations of an invention is a great way to explain things. Wish I saw it more.
A pantograph is called a pantograph because of the linkage mechanism that resembles a drawing tool of the same name. I don’t know the history of overhead conductors on trains, but it can only have been called a pantograph for as long as it has had this type of linkage.
Nice illustration.. I had chance to work with the company who manufacturing the compressors to supply air to pantograph mechanism. Really nice video.
Hooray! Very well explained! Thank you!
Absolutely perfect video! Thank you
Thank you for this very interesting video!
The use of two pentagraphs is a safety feature as well. If the OTL is warn, it might tangle the pentagraph and rip it of the roof of the engine. Then it’s quit handy to have a second set! 😅
To everyone hardwork behind this awesome video hats off!!!
Great video. Great animations. Thank you sir for such valuable content.
Oh my freaking god! What an amazing crispy knowledge filled video.... That too soooo many info! You guys really impressed me a lot!!
I'm passionate about public transport and I would say that this video is amazing, although I have pieces of knowledge about the pantograph. It's similar to those on trams.
6:42 we can make the collector head round instead of rectangular.
This is an incredibly well explained video with fantastic graphics. Well done and thank you!
u r deceived
A perfect example of something that many of us have thought little about..........until now!
Brilliant - learned so much from this!
Thank you. I am working as a translation manager for ALSTOM and had the Panto, as we lovingly call "him" for translation (I always say "Hi Panto", when one of our trams passes by) - now I understand much better.
Awesome....! A complete marvel of Engineering.
Vids made by geniuses are the best - And this vid is one of them!
This is why I love mechanical engineering
Thank you for this video on the mechanism of a pantograph.
Engineer's team is really appreciable.......
Beautiful description... A model for other you tubers dealing with technical matters..
Excellent… clear and understandable!👌
So lucidly explained. Fantabulous demo backed up with concepts and reasons. As enticing as railway journey Hats off to you and team for gargantuan efforts to make it easier for us to understand the complex mechanism.
This is the same technology that allows the mechanical drawing drafter instrument to maintain parallel lines
Seeing and understanding this concept it feels so good i love trains and knowing how it works is just awesome
Thank you so much for teaching me something new today.
Awesome explanation. Thank you so much for providing such information
Brilliant. Thank you.
Excellent graphics and animation. Makes subfect easy to understand.
This would have been very useful for showing applications in my Fluid Mechanics as well as Mechanisms & Kinematics classes.
I love videos like this. Very educational.
Great analysis, thank you
The engineering involved is extremely clever, and the explanations nicely clear. However there is an implication throughout that the pantograph mechanism was invented for this purpose yet it it is far older than electric trains, or indeed any trains at all! Pantograph from the Greek παντ- "all" and γραφ- "to write" is a copying instrument the earliest description we have is by Hero of Alexandria who lived 10-70CE, two millennia ago. The principle of keeping two points at a regulated attitude to each other by mechanical means is at least that old and likely older as Hero describes something already known. Applying this principle to a modern engineering problem was an act of genius even if it wasn't entirely novel invention.
I would love to have been an engineer and be able to follow such concepts. It is such an amazing topic.
Now I learn more about the Pantograph and great Thanks.
Great illustration 👏👍
Интересно и понятно всё объяснили, спасибо
I think ,this channel is best in this universe,what an explanation sir...🙌
Wow. Very useful video. Every doubt cleared in a single video ❤
The way you are explaing in the video is awesome sir thank you
I love the animation of the ÖBB Railjet for these videos!
Very excellent demonstration Thanks
Great video. Worth noting that the OHL voltage can vary considerably. For example in Victoria, Australia, we use approx 1500VDC for trains and something like 650VDC for trams. Higher voltage is more efficient, but our system is older.
Brilliant and crisp content
The last minute is fascinating
one of the true lions of youtube
I got engineering chills everytime I heard... "However ! , "
Amazing video. Thank you!
really nice video
have travelled on train for many years, proud to know only now how pantograph worked
Wawww, this is really well explained. Thank you
Good knowledge, clean and go to the point
Very impressed with the knowledge and quality of videos Thanks lesics
Pantograph alone has many versions to be perfect.. so good engineer does not complaint.. but seek for solution for the next improvement..
Very interesting and informative 😊
Great explanation... Thanks for the demonstration...