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Why do locos sometimes use the rear pantograph and sometimes the front pantograph? What is criteria for making this choice? 2 Answers Why do locos sometimes use the rear pantograph and sometimes the front pantograph? What is criteria for making this choice? Dec 07 2014 (07:46) Blog Post# 1299136-1 Anil Kumar Garg Added by: soumitra.chawathe^~ Dec 07 2014 (09:51) During winters, frost is a major problem. When the front panto is raised, it looks like this.. ">".. Now, any frost on the wires will be brushed aside by the panto in the forward direction, and the frost drops/particles will land outside the loco. However, if the rear panto is raised, it looks like "<", and here the frost particles will get deposited on the roof of the loco, which contains DBR and other valuable equipment. There is a risk of them getting damaged due to the frost deposited by the brushing action of the rear panto. For this reason, front panto is used in winter. However, this by no means is a convincing explanation, and it cannot explain why front panto is not used in rainy season. This is a subject of intense debate, and we have not found any satisfactory explanation from even 2-3 loco pilots, with whom we... more... Q. Why do locos sometimes use the rear pantograph and sometimes the front pantograph? There is in principle no difference between using the front and the rear pantographs for most locos as each is fully capable of delivering the required electric current from the catenary to the loco. (The AC-DC locos are special in that each loco is intended for a different traction supply.) Generally on IR there is no need for both pantographs to be raised at once since there are usually no unusual situations such as frost on the catenary or increased current collection requirements seen with other countries' railways. Yet,... more... |