1. What operations are now transferred to machines? 2. What are the differences between yesterday’s and today’s technologies? 3. Why is signaling one of the most important spheres of up-to-date rail engineering? 4. What traditional signals can be recorded? 5. What digital and analogue signals have been added for recording recently? 6. What is ROC? Why does it supersede traditional signalling? 7. Where is Transmission Based Signalling applied? 8. What principal advantages of TBS do you know? 9. What feature of TBS helps to increase safety? 10. What does standardization on the European railways mean? 11. Why is it so vitally important? 12. What has been designed to Europeanize’ national signalling systems? 13. What systems does ERTMS include? 14. Which country is pioneering the technological transition from older analogue networks to the new generation of digital systems? 15. What is the main goal for designing a standardized European Driver’s Desk (EUDD)? 16. How do simulators assist in staff training? 17. What are the features of the latest simulators? 18. What are the latest developments in providing passenger information? 19. Where can smart cards be used? 20. What will future railway technologies be like?

Exercise 3. Replace the italicized words with their synonyms from the active vocabulary.

1. She always follows the latest directions in fashion. 2. The operating rules and signalling systems for international traffic have to be stan­dardized. 3. He received numerous injuries in the car accident. 4. We hope to enlarge our business this year. 5. Fashion is changing all the time. 6. Out-dated equipment and installation must be replaced at once. 7. The book deals with the link between accountancy and law. 8. We need to focus public attention on this issue. 7. Some railways are slow to introduce smart card ticketing. 9. The robber ran off fol­lowed by the police. 10. Special modelling machines prepare the drivers for real operational practice.

Exercise 4. Read and translate the following word combinations from the text.

Human activity, electro-mechanical, computer technology, traditional signals, analogue and digital signals, radio-based signalling, real-time information, high-speed passenger service, transmission based signal­ling, cross-border transport, automatic route control, intelligent train control, open information environment, rail traffic control and safety systems, computer-integrated railroading, ‘intelligent’ dispatching and control centres, telematics-based command, the most advanced and innovative train control system.

Exercise 5. Scan the text for the given abbreviations. What do they stand for?

ROC, GSM-R, DB, ERTMS, TBS, CyberRail, ATP, EUDD, ETCS, R&D, CTC, ATO, TEN.

Lesson 3

GRAMMAR. Infinitive. Functions. (Grammar Comment §4).

Exercise 1. Translate the following sentences paying attention to different functions of the infinitives.

1. Modern railways are completely automated to provide high-speed mass transportation. 2. High-speed traffic requires signaling to be widely used on railway lines. 3. Signaling is used to control and regulate the movement of trains. 4. To drive a train strictly to schedule and at a high speed, an engine driver should always look ahead, size up the situation quickly, set the necessary engine operation mode, use braking devices. 5.To go for a walk was the only thing to do. 6. To ride with a careless driver is dangerous. 7. I demand to know who is responsible. 8. It’s not a question to be discussed now. 9. To do well is better than to speak well. 10. The method is not good enough to be used everywhere. 11. This railway was built to connect central and eastern regions of the country. 12. Computers work according to the program to be prepared in advance.13. If I have any news, you will be the first to know. 14. A great step forward was to use steel rails instead of wooden ones.

READING

Text

INDUCTIVE CONTROL SYSTEM

For use on busy lines various safety devices are additionally available. One of these is the inductive train control.

Each signal on a section of line equipped with this system has a device which activates the brakes of a passing train. The locomotive is provided with a” transmitter” which has an iron-core coil and a condenser. This oscillating circuit is tuned to 2000 cycles/sec. and is supplied with current from a high-frequency generator to which the coil of an electromagnet for a relay is connected. The high-frequency generator is driven by an electric motor or a small steam turbine which also drives a 24-volt direct-current dynamo. A second relay and two pilot lamps are connected to this dynamo. When the system is in operation, the high-frequency generator supplies current to the oscillating circuit of the locomotive and to the high-frequency relay, so that the armature of the latter is attracted by the electromagnet and allows current to flow through the 24-volt direct-current relay. When thus energized, the relay interrupts a flow of current to the actuating electromagnet of a valve.

The signal beside the railway track is also equipped with an oscillating circuit tuned to 2000 cycles/sec. When the signal is at “safe”, its oscillating circuit is short-circuited and has no effect on the passing locomotive. However, if the signal is at “stop” and the train nevertheless fails to stop, the oscillating circuit of the signal will resonate in tune with that of the passing locomotive and withdraw so much energy from the latter circuit that the armature of the high-frequency relay is no longer sufficiently strongly attracted by the electromagnet and is therefore released. This in turn cuts off supply of current to the 24-volt relay, which then likewise (так же) releases its armature. This completes the electric circuit to the electro-magnet that controls the monitoring valve. When this happens, the monitoring valve causes the brakes to be applied and the driving motor of the locomotive to be switched. At the same time, the pilot lamp “a” goes out and the lamp “b” lights up.

Exercise 2.  Copy the following words. One word in line doesn’t belong to the group. Cross out the odd word and explain your choice.

1) a train, a plane, an automobile, a rail car.

2) steam, diesel, electric air.

3) a second, an hour, a mile, a minute.

4) current, voltage, time, resistance.

5) relay, transistor, diode, photo.

6) turbine, motor, generator, electron.

7) a railway, a highway, a runway, a road.

Lesson 4

GRAMMAR. Infinitive Constructions. Complex Object. (Grammar Comment §5).

Exercise 1. Translate the following sentences paying attention to using Complex Object.

1. Everybody knows the electric current to be the motion of electrons through an electric conductor. 2. I consider this business to be very profitable. 3. The firm can’t expect this unskilled man to become an experienced engineer overnight. 4. I admit the weather this year to be unpredictable. 5. I want your appraisal to be objective and true. 6. I think us to gain a bigger profit building a salt mine in Siberia than making a road project in South Africa. 7. I can’t believe your personnel manager to pull the workers off the job every two weeks because they are unskilled. And I don’t expect him to give any reasons. 8. He found his colleague to accept responsibility every time he was asked to. 9. We expect them to clear up several terms of the contract. 10. I want you or somebody from your company to meet our guests at the airport. 11. The engineers wanted cab signals to be located in the locomotive cab.

READING

Text

MY SPECIALITY

1. Railway transport plays a very important part in the development, both political and economical, of any country. The railway system is very complicated and to cope all the problems and tasks the railways need highly qualified engineers.

The АТC Department of Donetsk Institute of Railway Transport trains railway engineers in speciality of Supporting Systems for Train Operation for working in the field of automation and telemechanics. The graduates of the АТC Department work at different enterprises of the country as well as at the research and designing institutions. They deal with the developing and operating the most up-to-date train control systems and communication systems.

2. Automation has found wide application on the railway transport. An "Automatic Train Operation System" is a railway system where all the railway train movements, such as accelerating, braking, switching, etc. should be performed automatically by electronic and electromechanical devices from a central control point. Automation offers several advantages:

1) safety is improved; 2) the economic efficiency of railway traction is raised; 3) the line capacity is increased; 4) comfort is improved.

3. Two independent systems have been adopted for automatic railway operations: a control system in the vehicle itself, and fail-safety system which makes use of information transmitted from the line. Scientists have created automatic equipment ensuring a high traffic capacity of railway lines and the fail-safe running of trains.

4. At present the systems of automation and telemechanics perform the most complicated functions of automatic traffic control which is necessary for fail-safe working of railways. The electronically operated systems of signal interlocking, for example, perform the basic function of all railway signalling apparatus. Increasing the train weights, speeds and carrying capacity of the railway sections must be accompanied by enchancing the safety of the train movements. An important role in fulfilling all these tasks belongs to the systems of automation, telemechanics and communications.

5. The development of automation in each control system has the effects of simplifying the remote control system, shortening the control time, improving the reliability and extending the controllable area designed to each central controller. Nowadays the automatic block-signalling installations control the train movements at waysides. The modern interlocking systems enable an attendant to control the points and signals of the whole station.

6. Centralized Traffic Control (CTC) is also one of the modem installations used on the railway transport. It is the centralized control system which is installed at stations Station interlockings may be controlled either locally from the station panels or remotely by the operator at the CTC installation. This system permits the dispatcher alone to operate the train movements at the 100-150 km sections.

7. At the sections where trains travel at 200 km/h train speed is controlled by the multi-aspect automatic cab signalling system. This system provides continuous transmission of aspects from the track to the locomotive.

8. One of the most perfect systems of automation and telemechanics developed for classification yards is the installation of automatic hump interlocking and automated hump marshalling of trains. This system is designed for the automatic control of the speed of cuts down a hump.

At present scientists and designers in the field of railway automation and telemechanics go on working at tne development of complicated cybernetic systems of train operation that are based on the wide application of computers and computing technology.

The graduates of Donetsk Institute of Railway Transport will do their best to keep the railway system working and developing.

Exercise 2. Give the tytle to each group of the words:

a) central control points; remote control; centralized control system.

b) traffic capacity; automatic control system; centralized traffic control;

c) station interlocking; hump interlocking; interlocking of points and signals; sуstem of signal interlocking.

Lesson 5

GRAMMAR. Infinitive Constructions. Complex Subject. (Grammar Comment §6).

Exercise 1. Translate the following sentences paying attention to using Complex Subject.

1. The railroad engineers are said to be improving a protective device on the locomotives. 2. The efficiency of electric locomotives is stated to be much higher than that of steam locomotives. 3. That railroad appears to have been the first in the world. 4. High-speed trains is likely to be introduced on this section of the mainline early next year. 5. The timetable is known to be changed for the summer period. 6. The failure in power supply system is reported to have caused considerable alarm in the work of several industrial enterprises. 7. Everyone seems to be worried about environmental protection and careful use of resources. 8. The railroad engineers are said to be improving a protective device on the locomotives. 9. The efficiency of electric locomotives is stated to be much higher than that of steam locomotives. 10. The system is expected to be most effective on single lines.