They chose Windmill Remote software to do this, as it let them view live data in ordinary web browsers. As well as this information - the state of the traction control, braking control wires, wheel speeds, bogie dump valves and time are all recorded and transmitted to an Internet server. This prevents the data file from becoming too large, and minimises downloading time. When Windmill receives a request from a browser, it presents the data in a series of web pages. Railway engineers can choose to see live information, or historical data and a calendar of wheel slip events.
Normal users can only view information.
More senior staff, though, can download logged data files, change logging conditions and set new telephone numbers to be dialled in case of alarms. They can import the downloaded data into Excel, or other Windows program, for analysis and report generation. The Windmill system lets the train operating company know immediately where problems are occurring and quickly take remedial action. As an aid to improving Monitor, and our technical support service, we would be very grateful if you could fill in this brief survey. All information is confidential and won't be passed to any third parties.