Westinghouse air brake system
E32613
The Westinghouse air brake system is a pioneering railway braking technology that greatly improved the safety and control of trains by using compressed air to apply brakes simultaneously across all cars.
Observed surface forms (1)
| Surface form | Occurrences |
|---|---|
| Westinghouse Air Brake Company | 1 |
Statements (46)
| Predicate | Object |
|---|---|
| instanceOf |
pneumatic brake
ⓘ
railway braking system ⓘ safety device ⓘ |
| appliesTo |
freight trains
ⓘ
locomotives ⓘ passenger trains ⓘ railway cars ⓘ |
| basedOn | compressed air ⓘ |
| countryOfOrigin |
United States of America
ⓘ
surface form:
United States
|
| developedBy | Westinghouse Air Brake Company ⓘ |
| enables |
operation of heavier trains
ⓘ
operation of longer trains ⓘ |
| fieldOfUse |
industrial railways
ⓘ
rail transport ⓘ |
| hasComponent |
air compressor
ⓘ
auxiliary reservoir ⓘ brake cylinder ⓘ brake pipe ⓘ brake shoes ⓘ main reservoir ⓘ triple valve ⓘ |
| hasEffect |
improved braking reliability in adverse weather
ⓘ
increased train operating speeds ⓘ reduction of railway accidents ⓘ |
| hasPrinciple |
automatic application on loss of pressure
ⓘ
fail-safe operation ⓘ simultaneous brake application on all cars ⓘ |
| hasVariant |
automatic air brake
ⓘ
quick-action air brake ⓘ straight air brake ⓘ |
| improved |
control of long trains
ⓘ
railway safety standards ⓘ train stopping distance ⓘ |
| influenced | modern railway air brake designs ⓘ |
| inventor | George Westinghouse ⓘ |
| notableFor |
pioneering use of compressed air for train braking
ⓘ
standardization of train braking systems ⓘ |
| operatesOn | pressure changes in brake pipe ⓘ |
| regardedAs | major innovation in railway history ⓘ |
| replaced |
early vacuum brake systems in some regions
ⓘ
manual hand brakes on trains ⓘ |
| safetyFeature |
automatic application if train separates
ⓘ
automatic emergency braking on pipe rupture ⓘ |
| usedFor |
railway safety
ⓘ
train braking ⓘ |
| usesMedium | compressed air ⓘ |
Referenced by (2)
Full triples — surface form annotated when it differs from this entity's canonical label.
this entity surface form:
Westinghouse Air Brake Company