Automatic Train Control (ATC) is the term for a general class of train protection systems for railways that involves some sort of speed control mechanism in response to external inputs. ATC systems tend to integrate various cab signalling technologies and the use more granular deceleration patterns in lieu of the rigid stops encountered with the older Automatic Train Stop technology. ATC can also be used with Automatic train operation (ATO) and is usually considered to be the safety critical part of the system.
Over time there have been many different safety systems labeled as Automatic Train Control. The term is especially common in Japan, where ATC is used on all Shinkansen (bullet train) lines and other lines as a replacement for ATS.
Famous quotes containing the words automatic, train and/or control:
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—Richard Dawkins (b. 1941)
“... there isn’t a train I wouldn’t take,
No matter where it’s going.”
—Edna St. Vincent Millay (1892–1950)
“Playing at make-believe, the young child becomes the all-powerful person he cannot be in reality. In pretending, the child takes control of his otherwise powerless position.”
—Joanne E. Oppenheim (20th century)