Case Studies

Ongakukan builds train simulators with HD live-action video and real sound for railway training centers. Contec’s F&eIT remote I/O gives them realistic response with less wiring.

Overview

Ongakukan Co., Ltd. works in music production, game and simulation software and hardware, specializing in high-definition live-action video and real sound. It was founded by Minoru Mukaiya, former keyboardist of the jazz fusion band Casiopea, and its hit game “Train Simulator” led it into professional train simulators. Since installing a large HD training simulator at a major private railway in 2006, its simulators have appeared at the Railway Museum, events and theme parks.

Challenge

The simulators use the same railway-standard equipment as real trains, which means complex wiring, and they need fast processing to feel real, so Ongakukan wanted to minimize the I/O load between equipment and computer.

Solution

Ongakukan uses Contec’s F&eIT minimal-wiring remote I/O: an ultra-compact I/O device receives cab signals and a CPU module converts them to Ethernet, so one cable links the cab and the computer. F&eIT was used at the Railway Museum from 2007, in the 2009 update of the 209 and 211 series, and in the E5 Shinkansen and E233 series simulators added in 2018.

In 2016 a major railway ordered training simulators for more than 80 worksites, and Ongakukan now delivers systems that let drivers and conductors train together or individually.

Results

F&eIT delivered the response and stability needed to match real trains, with less wiring and space, moving the simulators from display use to actual training. Mukaiya called it “highly reliable and economical.”

Contec products used

• F&eIT remote I/O system

Originally published by Contec Co., Ltd. at contec.com.