I often see or hear discussions about the future of model railroading, but these frequently center around what new models might become available. There’s a far more exiting prospect in the not-too-distant future that has the potential of eliminating one of the major PITA (Pains In The A**) of our hobby.
Imagine how great it would be to not rely on the rails to transmit power. I mean NO electrical connections to the rails at all (except perhaps for signaling circuits.) Forget all that wiring and rail soldering. Forget blocks. Forget worries about frogs. Forget insulated wheels. Forget short circuits. Even worry less about clean rails.
The era of the DMFC is near. For over five years, Motorola, Duracell, Toshiba and NEC (and perhaps others) have been developing the Direct Methanol Fuel Cell - also known as the micro fuel cell - which will likely replace batteries in the near future. These are little things, which produce more power for far longer than batteries can store. And this is not pie-in-the-sky “future speak”. You can expect to see them in laptop computers in about 12 months!
It will take a while to get them downsized enough for the smaller scales, but within a year or so they’ll likely be practical for O scale and larger, and since they are intended to eventually eliminate the need for all batteries in just about all applications, they should fit into HO locos in the not-to-distant future.
I imagine that DCC will still communicate through the rails, but this wouldn’t require insulated rails or wheels, and certainly radio control will be the way to go in the long run. This is a sort of full circle thing. Back in the 1940's, model railroaders gave up the simplicity and advantages of third rail for the realism (but complexities) of two-rail. Soon we’ll be able to have the best of both worlds.
BillS
Imagine how great it would be to not rely on the rails to transmit power. I mean NO electrical connections to the rails at all (except perhaps for signaling circuits.) Forget all that wiring and rail soldering. Forget blocks. Forget worries about frogs. Forget insulated wheels. Forget short circuits. Even worry less about clean rails.
The era of the DMFC is near. For over five years, Motorola, Duracell, Toshiba and NEC (and perhaps others) have been developing the Direct Methanol Fuel Cell - also known as the micro fuel cell - which will likely replace batteries in the near future. These are little things, which produce more power for far longer than batteries can store. And this is not pie-in-the-sky “future speak”. You can expect to see them in laptop computers in about 12 months!
It will take a while to get them downsized enough for the smaller scales, but within a year or so they’ll likely be practical for O scale and larger, and since they are intended to eventually eliminate the need for all batteries in just about all applications, they should fit into HO locos in the not-to-distant future.
I imagine that DCC will still communicate through the rails, but this wouldn’t require insulated rails or wheels, and certainly radio control will be the way to go in the long run. This is a sort of full circle thing. Back in the 1940's, model railroaders gave up the simplicity and advantages of third rail for the realism (but complexities) of two-rail. Soon we’ll be able to have the best of both worlds.
BillS
