Jason has let me know that he is planning a small modification to #9's cab appliances. Instead of 19th century gauges, valves, sight-glasses, injectors, and other unattractive nuisances, the entire locomotive will be controlled via an iPad.
"iChooch" is in development now, and will be ready later this year. John McNamara is updating the Magneto phone system to allow wireless communication up and down the line. This will allow passengers to experience the cab without having to bother the train crew. Dana Deering is thrilled with this.
All brakemen will be issued iChooch equipped iPads to allow signals to be passed to the cab from the end of the train. Track switches are now thrown with a tap of the finger. The iPads can also be used as lanterns during night running.
Zack is working on adding an iChooch receiver to the Head Tide water tank. When iChooch determines that a water stop is needed, the locomotive will automatically position itself precisely under the spout, which will drop and raise automatically.
James is particularly thrilled that the current timetable will be incorporated as well. With the GPS in the iPad connected to the throttle, scheduled trains will no longer be able to pass their designated stations ahead of schedule. It is unclear if an iPad's battery life will be sufficient, should a train lose its operational rights after 12 hours.
Conductors will be able to use iChooch to log passenger counts, report defects, and remotely lock/unlock Alna Center.
Bob Cavanagh will use his iChooch iPad to remove ashes from the track pan. This (of course) will be done by hand, with the iPad acting as a crude shovel, because it wouldn't be prototypical to empty the pan electronically.
