[Guide] Signs and Signals found in SimRail printable cheat sheets / explanations

[Gazz292]

 

A guide i made for the signs and signals you will find in SimRail:

The image above is a low quality preview, please print out the high quality version in the .zip file at the bottom of this post.

The zip file attached at the bottom of this post contains a portrait and landscape version of the guide as seen above, in both .png and .pdf formats.
You can print the guide out or display it on a phone / tablet / 2nd monitor, allowing you to look up what that signal or sign was telling you that you just zoomed passed whilst driving in SimRail. 🙂

The idea of the landscape guide (shown above) is so you can print it out on a sheet of A4 paper and fold it in half, giving you a handy A5 sized guide with the signals on one side and the signs on the other side.
Or keep it full sized in either landscape or portrait if you wish.
If you can, laminating the print out will make it last almost forever (or until mistakes are spotted and i need to re-release the files)

When printing, it might help to set your print settings to 'fit to page keeping aspect ratio' and 'centre on the page' if that's an option.

Alternatively, you can display the guide on a phone or tablet.
If using a tablet, 2nd screen or large phone, simply displaying the whole guide may be fine, but for a normal sized 'tall and skinny screen' smartphone, it may be too small to read unless you zoom and scroll about the picture.

So i have also made 3 condensed views of the guide arranged for better viewing on a phone screens, you can flip / swipe between the 3 images/pages on your phone and view them in a format that fills a 'typical' smartphone screen as much as possible, however this version does not have the info panels telling you things about passing an automatic block signal at red etc, that the full guide has, so i would recommend reading the full sized guide first to see a few explanations about some of the signs and signal types.
 

The 'Printing or Displaying the pictures' Read Me file explains how to 'use' the images with more detail / waffle.
The 'Understanding the guide ' Read Me file has some info on a few Polish railway rules and how to read the semi-automatic signals.

There is also a folder called 'Textless guides for translation'  inside this folder are the 2 full guides plus the phone sized ones with all the graphics but empty text boxes, the idea being people can add the text below the pictures in their native language then share the translated guide with others (If you translate the guide , could you please post it in this thread)
You can open the .png versions in an image editor then add you translated text over the empty boxes, or use a PDF editor on the .pdf versions, and you should be able to type directly into the text boxes.

Big thanks to jmluengor for the idea of a pdf version to edit.

----------------------

Below is an animated .gif showing the 3 pages that make up the phone sized pages showing the signals and signs as if you were flipping between them (the preview is low quality)

The small print:

I have drawn all the signal and signs myself in Inkscape as vectors, but i based the signals and signs on other peoples work, listed below:

The signal aspect images are based on the ones on the polish railway signals Wikipedia page : https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Polish_railway_signalling
That page has a creative commons 3 license (CC BY-SA 3.0) : https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/3.0/ 
Which means i am allowed to re-mix and distribute the content as long as i reference the page i based my version on, and link to the relevant CC3 license.

The sign images are based on the ones shown on : http://pkprepo.net/wskazniki-kolejowe-pkp-epoka-vc/
That page has a creative commons 4 license (CC BY-NC-ND 4.0) : https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-nd/4.0/
Which means that i needed permission to "Re-mix, Transform or Build Upon'' the content, i have been granted that permission by E-Mail from the author of the website.

Change log for V2:
Added railway vehicle head and tail light codes, 
Updated the W8 and D6 signs text (when the sign is blank it means 20 km/h limit ahead)
Changed shunting signal identifier text to include 'Tm' T meaning shunting only signal, m meaning it's used for manoeuvres .

 

Signs and Signals in SimRail Guide V2.zip

Edited May 21, 2023 by Gazz292
Added train head / tail lights

[bprog]

4 godziny temu, Gazz292 napisał(a):

But it's the 3 and 4 state ABS i'm unsure about,  with the thing where a steady green can mean more than 1 OR 2 blocks are free, depending on if the signals are 3 or 4 state versions (how do you tell?)

You don't need to know this. Driver does not need to concern himself either the ABS is 3- or 4-state.

S4 signal (blinking yellow) does not exist on ABS. That would make it 5-state, innit? 🙂

S5 signal (steady yellow) means 100kph now, STOP on next signal. This is incorrect. S5 only ever means Vmax now, expect STOP

If we want to be really technical: Sz signal (substitute) is a blinking white light valid with every other non-existing signal on rest of the lights. So Yellow-Red-Yellow-Blinking White is also Sz. But, if a signal is a valid one on its own, and there is a blinking white (so Green-Blinking White OR Yellow-Yellow-Blinking White) you must stop the train as it would be a single red signal. This indicates a serious electrical fault at dispatcher's end, as it must be impossible to display substitute with any other valid signal.

Edited January 3, 2023 by bprog
misinformation

[Gazz292]

ahh,
i added the blinking yellow on the ABS as i saw it in SimRail last time i played, it was a 3 aspect signal, and after passing it the HUD changed to 'yellow, 100 km/h restriction'

but i didn't notice if it had the 'W18' shield on the post, meaning that signal was the last ABS one, and the next was a semi-automatic one.

 

Working on correcting the ABS signals now, will upload the new version when it's done.

[robert357 - W7 FTW]

That "power off" for We8 and "on" for We9 is also little misleading (signs for neutral sections). It sounds, at least for me, that you have turn off whole locomotive where you only have to set power at zero position.

There is missing important sign W19 (warning sing for W20, sign with arrows). Sign W13 is not important to know in game right now (for snow ploughs) so you can replace that one with W19 (sign with one arrow).

 

[Królik Uszasty]

What you have signed as "penultimate block signal" is sign, which can be translated as "here should stay distant signal for entry signal to station" and if there is no signal with this sign, it means you should stop because it was stolen or something like this. It is placed on last block signal, when ABS is 3-state, or penultimate, when ABS is 4-state. It is caused by the fact, that in theory 4-state ABS is for high speed, when you need two blocks for smooth braking to stop a train.

[Gazz292]

25 minutes ago, robert357 said:

That "power off" for We8 and "on" for We9 is also little misleading (signs for neutral sections). It sounds, at least for me, that you have turn off whole locomotive where you only have to set power at zero position.

There is missing important sign W19 (warning sing for W20, sign with arrows). Sign W13 is not important to know in game right now (for snow ploughs) so you can replace that one with W19 (sign with one arrow).

 

 

Yeah, i was unsure what phrase to use that is not too long for some of the descriptions.....

"Indicators We 8a, We 8b, We 8c “Dead-driving indicators” mean
the place through which the electric traction vehicle should pass without
drawing traction current from the traction network"   

.... is what i tried to condense into less than 6 words.

 

W19... i tried to make out that W20 kinda covered that... they both mean reduced braking distance... but i can change it to show that W20 will be preceded by W19, and try and put the differences (again it's that 6 word limit thing.

Edited January 3, 2023 by Gazz292

[Gazz292]

2 minutes ago, Królik Uszasty said:

What you have signed as "penultimate block signal" is sign, which can be translated as "here should stay distant signal for entry signal to station" and if there is no signal with this sign, it means you should stop because it was stolen or something like this. It is placed on last block signal, when ABS is 3-state, or penultimate, when ABS is 4-state. It is caused by the fact, that in theory 4-state ABS is for high speed, when you need two blocks for smooth braking to stop a train.

Thank you,  i noticed that there were 2 meanings for the W1 sign, depending on if it's mounted on the signal post or as a separate sign before a signal,

How do you tell the difference between 3 or 4 state signals?
is it just that if you are on a high speed line (is that 160 km/h?) it's 4 state, and low speed line it's 3 state.

i originally had another set of signals in the cheat sheet like below... but thought i could be clever and reduce the ABS bit to one line, but i also wanted to show that 'S3' could mean '100 km/h at next signal' if that signal post is the last ABS one (has a W18 sign on the post)
Working on putting it back to 2 lines of Automatic Block Signals now

[Footz]

@Gazz292 Wow, thanks for your work, I'll print it out straight away for reference.

[Gazz292]

7 hours ago, Footz said:

@Gazz292 Wow, thanks for your work, I'll print it out straight away for reference.

Just remember the version i posted yesterday (03/01) is wrong,
i am working on it right now, and will have the corrected version ready to post soon for people to look at and tell me if i have other mistakes to correct,

The idea is i release a zip file with high resolution versions in different formats, so it can be printed say in landscape on A4 paper, folded in half to make a double sided A5 sheet, and versions to display on a phone and flip / swipe between the panels etc.

[Footz]

Well, I'm no railway expert but looking at your "Track ahead closed" sign, from what I've read in the manual, this looks like a ridgid (non switchable) sign warning about approaching an entry signal/semaphore. I'm writing non switchable, because it looks like one on your sheet, but there are folding options and options with lights as well. They are however usually mechanical and are phased out. Only ones left are on some backwater stations I'd imagine, where modernisation hasn't arrived yet. 

So I wouldn't call it track ahead closed, more like "possible STOP signal ahead" or if foldable, it will state the signal aspect.

I'll wait for your booklet then.

Cheers

Edited January 4, 2023 by Footz

[Gazz292]

ahh... the one in my signs section is a 'DO' portable shield, not an 'OT - 1, 2 or 3 mechanical distant signal'
it's a temporary sign placed at braking distance + 200 meters before a 'D1' shield, which is the red oblong shield that means 'STOP, track closed'

From the 2020 signal book : DO signal "Behind the warning shield there is a stop shield"

but i see how it can be confused,,, i will change it's description to something like 'caution, expect stop ahead' or something like that.

 

I believe SimRail will have an earlier time period track system to go with the steam train when that is released later, when that happens i will need to add the old mechanical signals to my sheet,  but for now i am keeping them out as it can be confusing enough for someone new to SimRail to learn the signals and signs likely to be seen as they drive,

i struggle myself with wanting to give too much info at once and get technical, but i want the cheat sheet to be something people can pick up and glance at as they pass a signal or sign.... find the relevant picture and read 'ahh, that semi-automatic signal combo means i should....pass this signal at vMax, and expect a 100 km/h speed reduction at the next signal.... or ... i should have turned the traction power off as i passed that weird blue diamond signs with a face on it.

 

[Królik Uszasty]

19 godzin temu, Gazz292 napisał(a):

How do you tell the difference between 3 or 4 state signals?
is it just that if you are on a high speed line (is that 160 km/h?) it's 4 state, and low speed line it's 3 state.

It's a bit more complicated. In Poland driver has this information printed in his timetable - if there is ABS or no and if it is 3- or 4-state and if it is bidirectional. Simple explanation is that high speed is 4-state and low speed is 3-state. The history of it is a bit more complicated, you have to go back about 40 years when high speed of 160 kph was introduced in CMK line.

Basic maximal signal distance (between distant signal and signal) and braking distance (for trains) is equal and is 1300 m. This is enough for standard carriages up to 140 km/h. The stopping distance of these carriages is about 1000 m, so with safety coefficient it fits. However, when introducing 160 kph there was no possibility that train of carriages with shoe brake can be stopped on such distance. There was special exception that braking distance on CMK is 1600 meters with signal distance of 1300 m - the ABS Signals were not moved. As you can see, there is a need that driver has to know eralier that he has to stop, so the 4-state ABS can show that he has only 2 blocks free and he has to brake before passing orange signal S5. S3 signal was chosen, because we didn't have better option. Reduction of speed to 100 kph is about a half of kinetic energy for 140 kph (which was first "high" speed).

Another topic is that according to other regulations signal distance should be greater or equal to braking distance, so there was introduced another exception for 4-state ABS that signal distance can be as low as half of braking distance. Of course it caused another problems, but I think we can stop here 😉

Summing up - the driver knowledge of route and timetables is the way how to say if there is 3- or 4-state ABS.

[Gazz292]

My latest version of the Signs part of the cheat sheet is below, i've changed to having the descriptions below the signs, as that makes more sense, i.e. spot a sign in SimRail, look it up on the sheet and read what it means below it.
please tell me what i've got wrong, or what should get better descriptions please, 

this version is sized for printing at A5 the idea being to print it on half a sheet of A4 paper, the signals bit would be on the other half of the A4 paper, but i am still working on them.

Changed the picture to show the latest version below, made a few corrections.

Edited January 4, 2023 by Gazz292
change picture to latest one

[Footz]

Looks good to me. Cheers

[Gazz292]

The first post now has the latest versions as off 05/01/2023.

Please have a look and tell me things i have got wrong, spelling mistakes etc,

 

Just posted another update, changed  the wording in places and added signal designators... S1, Sz etc,  i might have some of them mixed up tho.

Edited January 5, 2023 by Gazz292

[Gazz292]

I've just posted the .zip file with the high resolution pictures of the cheat sheet, and updated the first post to do this.

I hope i've not made any really bad mistakes, but if i have, tell me and i will upload a corrected version.

[Isambard Kingdom Brunel]

What an absolute corker of a chappy you are Gazza292. Thanks very much buddy, 6 members downloaded before me and not one had the decency, to say thank you.

[Gazz292]

Just uploaded a newer version (V1.6)

This includes 3 new views of the sheet, better suited to viewing on a smart phone screen,

And a little folder renaming, and of course updating of the readme file to be even longer now i try to explain about the 4 new images for the phones views... 2 seemingly the same, but they are different layouts of the signs panel, one with 6 signs removed (i say 5, but i forgot about the 'W6' sign) to make it fit on a phone screen better... i'll have a play about and see if i can resize some of the cells and make all signs fit on the phone sized one again,  but the missing signs i 'don't think' are seen in SimRail (yet)

 

i'm also not really liking the name of 'cheat sheets'  there's no cheating involved, this could be a page or 2 in a train drivers rules and regulations book,   a cheat sheet to me is something you use to reference things quickly,
i think i got the name from the sheets pilots use for quick guidance on what to do when preparing the plane for startup, takeoff, landing in certain airports etc.

If anyone can suggest a better name than 'cheat sheet' please do.

[Lawliet]

Thanks for your great work. Going to love having this for proper route learning.

[Zargos]

 

Thank you so much. Good job

As for the name of the cheat sheet why not reminder sheet?

 

[giBBer8]

On 1/9/2023 at 12:46 PM, Gazz292 said:

a cheat sheet to me is something you use to reference things quickly,

If anyone can suggest a better name than 'cheat sheet' please do.

Crib sheet. reference sheet, doesn't really matter Gazz. You've got the info off the internet and compiled it for us all to use. 

TBH, "cheat sheet" is fine. It is a good piece of work, whatever the name.

 

[Gazz292]

Uploaded v1.7.

Corrected the text for the 'We1' prepare to lower pantograph sign, in Poland you should also reduce speed to 60 km/h when doing this.

added a text less version of the sheet, someone asked if they could translate the sheet into another language and share it with their friends, something i am more than happy to have happen.

so to make this easier i have included 2 versions of the sheet with just the pictures and empty text boxes, one in .pdf and the other in a .png picture image.

[jmluengor]

Muchas gracias por su trabajo y por facilitar la traducción a otros idiomas.

[Gazz292]

De nada.

[grollie]

Brilliant thanks for your work