@Bossman284 posted:Can this cars be programmed to make routine stops?
The car is equipped with a magnetic reed-switch "stop sensor." This sensor is placed away from the center-line of the vehicle so as not to interfere with the steering magnetics. Then, an electromagnet coil, like the uncoupling coil in a UCS track, is buried in the road bed where you want to stop. Apply power to the coil and any passing car will then stop. Release coil power and car starts moving again.
I don't know about the O-gauge implementations but in the HO version there is even a so-called "parking" coil. This operates backwards so to speak; that is you apply power to the coil to release the car from stop. This way you don't burn coil power for a car that is parked (stopped) for long periods.
Again, I don't know about O-gauge but in HO it's a DIY'ers dream coming up with stopping scenarios. For example, detecting that a bus is coming and only turning on the coil at bus stops. Or detecting that a school bus is approaching a grade crossing and momentarily turning on the stop coil so the driver can look both ways before proceeding.
