A working example of the Repoint switch has been installed on the heritage Great Central Railway in the hope that it finds an industry backer.

Railway switching is a process where lengths of rail are physically moved in order to set a route for a train where lines diverge or come together. When the new position is locked and confirmed the appropriate signal is set.

Conventional switch design is well understood, but it has known failure modes that can lead to delays and widespread disruption on busy lines, with derailment a worst-case possibility.

A key element of the Repoint design is that instead of sliding the switch rails sideways, it uses a cam mechanism to lift them up and over from one drop-in position to another, ensuring that they are held in position with the help of gravity.

The system uses three standard actuators for redundancy and will continue to operate safely if one or even two should fail.

Most elements of the demonstrator are standard commercial off the shelf components.

The motor/cam/gearbox assembly is designed as a line replaceable unit (LRU). Faulty units can be isolated, then speedily removed and replaced at a convenient time and taken away to be repaired and serviced offsite.This reduces the time the line is out of use and moves much of the work to warm and dry conditions indoors.

The system is designed to be suitable for retrofit as well as new installations.

Loughborough University’s Professor Roger Goodall said that the Repoint (Redundantly Engineered Points for railway track switching) project had its origins in a 2010 proposal to rethink railway switching in order to improve performance. Since then, he explained, “we have patented the concept, refined the design and built a demonstrator,” adding that the team had been well supported by a number of companies and the RSSB .

The installation at Great Central Railway will lay the groundwork for the future, Goodall said. “The next step is the exploitation side, and that requires an industry exploiter. We need to make sure the UK doesn’t miss out.”

A working example of the Repoint switch has been installed on the heritage Great Central Railway in the hope that it finds an industry backer.

Railway switching is a process where lengths of rail are physically moved in order to set a route for a train where lines diverge or come together. When the new position is locked and confirmed the appropriate signal is set.

Conventional switch design is well understood, but it has known failure modes that can lead to delays and widespread disruption on busy lines, with derailment a worst-case possibility.

A key element of the Repoint design is that instead of sliding the switch rails sideways, it uses a cam mechanism to lift them up and over from one drop-in position to another, ensuring that they are held in position with the help of gravity.

The system uses three standard actuators for redundancy and will continue to operate safely if one or even two should fail.

Most elements of the demonstrator are standard commercial off the shelf components.

The motor/cam/gearbox assembly is designed as a line replaceable unit (LRU). Faulty units can be isolated, then speedily removed and replaced at a convenient time and taken away to be repaired and serviced offsite.This reduces the time the line is out of use and moves much of the work to warm and dry conditions indoors.

The system is designed to be suitable for retrofit as well as new installations.

Loughborough University’s Professor Roger Goodall said that the Repoint (Redundantly Engineered Points for railway track switching) project had its origins in a 2010 proposal to rethink railway switching in order to improve performance. Since then, he explained, “we have patented the concept, refined the design and built a demonstrator,” adding that the team had been well supported by a number of companies and the RSSB .

The installation at Great Central Railway will lay the groundwork for the future, Goodall said. “The next step is the exploitation side, and that requires an industry exploiter. We need to make sure the UK doesn’t miss out.”