Stealing is also known as Forcing An Address Selection or Sharing
If you try to select a loco address that is already selected on another throttle the DT400 will display “Steal?=Y” in the text area. This is a safety interlock to prevent operators from taking control of locos that are already selected on other throttles.
Occasionally it is necessary to override this interlock to gain control of a loco that is “lost” for whatever reason. This override is called stealing & can result in having a single loco address selected on two different throttles at the same time.
To steal an address with the DT400:
1. Press the LOCO Key to enter selection mode.
2. Dial up the address of the loco you want to steal and press the LOCO Key again.
3. The DT400 will display “Steal?=Y” in the text area if the loco can be stolen.
4. Press Y + Key if you want to steal.
5. Press N - (or any other key) if you do not want to steal.
Once a throttle has “stolen” a loco address, the slot following mode becomes active and both throttles will update speed and direction information for the loco address. This can result in strange locomotive behavior especially if one throttle is trying to to stop the loco and the other is trying to speed it up at the
same time.
When you have gained control of the stolen loco and are finished running it, release it from your throttle by setting the locomotive’s speed to 0 and pressing the LOCO Key followed by the DISP or EXIT Key.
Operating a "Stolen Address" Slot Following
When the throttle detects that a loco address that is in-use on one of its throttles is being changed by another throttle or computer, it will cause the throttle to “click” every time it sees a remote throttle change its locomotive settings. If that locomotive is in the active throttle, its speed display will also show the changes. This is called slot following.
- This allows two DT throttles to run a single locomotive address with both throttles being able to send commands to the loco. Both throttles will show the current speed and direction of the locomotive in their displays.
- Slot following is useful for training new operators. The supervisor can “steal” a locomotive that is selected on a trainee’s throttle & be able to “look over the trainee’s shoulder” and closely supervise that locomotive’s control. The supervisor can gain instant override control without having to physically “grab” the trainee’s throttle. This lets you have unskilled visitors participating and enjoying operations without too much anxiety for either party.
- Slot following also allows a computer on LocoNet to run CTC & routing control programs with automated control over locomotives. The computer can control speed and stop engines automatically while letting the engineer with the throttle in his hand know what is happening.