06-16-2017, 05:27 AM
(06-15-2017, 10:36 PM)jamincan Wrote: Aren't diesel locomotives actually driven by electric motors too? I always thought the main benefit came when you had EMUs.
Yes! Reason being it's easier to stick electric motors in the bogies and control them electronically than other methods of transmission (gearboxes, drive shafts, etc.). So in a Diesel locomotive, the engine drives a generator, which makes electricity. The electricity is controlled via electronics to power the traction motors.
Those big dump trucks you see in open pit mines work the same way. It's easier to stick 4 torque hubs with the motors on each wheel than it would be to make some kind of absolutely massive mechanical transmission.