Odakyu 30000 series EXE

The Odakyu 30000 series EXE (Excellent Express) is a Japanese limited express electric multiple unit operated by the Odakyu Electric Railway since March 1996. This article will also describe the 30000 series EXEα sets, the refurbished version of the EXE sets operating since March 2017.
==History==
The 30000 series trains were introduced to replace the older 3100 series trains as well as to increase transportation capacities. The first sets entered service on 23 March 1996, with replacement of the 3100 series sets complete by 1999. The sets were a recipient of the 1997 Good Design Award. Minor refurbishment works were performed on the sets in 1999.
The trains were the subject of a Wi-Fi experiment in 2003, with a wireless LAN connection introduced on car 1 of each train. In 2012, this Wi-Fi system was upgraded and became a paid premium service. Starting from 2017, various sets were heavily refurbished with new equipment and renamed the EXEα. The first EXEα trains began operation on 1 March 2017; as of 2022 three 4- and 6-car sets have been refurbished.
==Design==
The 30000 series sets use a streamlined front end with top-mounted headlights in rectangular-shaped casings recessed in the body. A three-color LED display displaying the service name below the middle window. The trains are painted in Harmonic Pearl Bronze with Upper Red accents around the EXE logo. The train's interior is intended to evoke a sense of comfort and luxury. A gangwayed cab car is present on each set, allowing for two sets to connect together in a 6+4 formation.
When refurbished the sets were given a new livery, with a Moonlight Silver body with Deep Gray Metallic accents and Vermillion Red highlights. The sealed beam headlights were also replaced with LED fixtures and the LED displays removed on the cabs, although the side LED destination indicators were replaced with full-color LED units. The design of the refurbished sets was overseen by Noriaki Okabe.
===Cab variations===
Odakyu 30000 EXE Original.jpg|Original livery
Odakyu 30000 EXE Gangway.jpg|Gangwayed end
==Specifications==
Construction is of steel. The trains use 3-level IGBT drives manufactured by Toshiba; these produce a whining noise; these were the first Romancecars to use variable frequency drives. Refurbished EXEα sets use Mitsubishi pure silicon carbide-based MOSFETs which produce a hissing sound. The 30000 series sets do not feature musical horns and are the only Romancecars to have never been equipped with them; instead, a single-note electronic horn is used.
The 30000 series trains are one of only three non-articulated members of the Romancecar family, in that none of the cars feature shared bogies; the others are the 20000 and the 60000 series.
Category:Odakyu trains
Category:Electric trainsets
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