Patent ID: 6883758

Claim:
An apparatus for performing a function on a model train car on a track, comprising: an electrically operated mechanism mounted on the car for performing a function on the car; a reed relay operatively connected to the mechanism for activating the mechanism, the reed relay comprising an arrangement for assisting the magnet in moving the reed contacts of the reed switch from the first position to the second position and including a reed switch having contacts movable from a first position in which the contacts are out of contact with one another, to a second position, in which the contacts are in contact with one another; and a magnet associated with the track for moving the contacts of the reed switch from the first position to the second position to activate the mechanism, wherein the reed switch includes a glass envelope enclosing the reed contacts, the reed relay including a coil extending around the glass envelope, the coil being in a circuit, at least a portion of the circuit being positioned in at least a part of the magnetic field of the magnet, whereby the magnetic field induces a current in the coil to assist the magnet in moving the reed contacts from the first position to the second position.