Patent ID: 6892701

Claim:
A method of controlling the operation of a railroad locomotive to reduce emissions during a load transient mode of operation as the engine responds to increased loading, the locomotive comprising a plurality of wheels, traction motors for driving the wheels, a diesel engine having a plurality of cylinders, an electric power generator coupled to the diesel engine for generating and supplying electrical power to the traction motors for driving the wheels, a throttle for controlling operation of the locomotive, with the throttle being movable through discrete throttle notch settings for controlling the level of electric power generated and the resultant load on the engine, with each notch setting corresponding to a unique level of electrical power generated at the electric power generator and with higher notch settings corresponding to higher levels of electrical power generated, wherein during operation of the locomotive the operator increases the notch setting from an initial notch setting for generating more electrical power with a resultant increase in the load applied to the engine, the method comprising: monitoring a parameter indicative of an increase in throttle notch setting; transmitting data representative of the increase in notch setting to a locomotive controller; and controlling the operation of the electrical power generator via the locomotive controller in response to the data representative of the increase in notch setting to control the application of additional load on the engine as a ramp function over a predetermined period of time after an increase in notch setting so as to reduce emissions from the engine as the engine responds to the increased load.