Lap Bar
   HOME

TheInfoList



OR:

A roller coaster train is a
vehicle A vehicle (from la, vehiculum) is a machine that transports people or cargo. Vehicles include wagons, bicycles, motor vehicles (motorcycles, cars, trucks, buses, mobility scooters for disabled people), railed vehicles (trains, trams), wa ...
made up of two or more
cars A car or automobile is a motor vehicle with wheels. Most definitions of ''cars'' say that they run primarily on roads, seat one to eight people, have four wheels, and mainly transport people instead of goods. The year 1886 is regarded as t ...
connected by specialized
joint A joint or articulation (or articular surface) is the connection made between bones, ossicles, or other hard structures in the body which link an animal's skeletal system into a functional whole.Saladin, Ken. Anatomy & Physiology. 7th ed. McGraw ...
s which transports
passenger A passenger (also abbreviated as pax) is a person who travels in a vehicle, but does not bear any responsibility for the tasks required for that vehicle to arrive at its destination or otherwise operate the vehicle, and is not a steward. The ...
s around a roller coaster's circuit. It is called a
train In rail transport, a train (from Old French , from Latin , "to pull, to draw") is a series of connected vehicles that run along a railway track and Passenger train, transport people or Rail freight transport, freight. Trains are typically pul ...
because the cars follow one another around the track, the same reason as for a railroad train. Individual cars vary in design and can carry from one to eight or more passengers each. Many roller coasters operate more than one train, sometimes several, simultaneously. Typically they operate two trains at a time, with one train loading and unloading while the other train runs the course. On the
Rock 'n' Roller Coaster Rock 'n' Roller Coaster Starring Aerosmith is an enclosed, launched roller coaster located at Disney's Hollywood Studios within Walt Disney World. Manufactured by Vekoma, the roller coaster opened to the public on July 29, 1999. It uses linear ...
at Walt Disney World, for example, there are five trains, but only four operate at a time (the trains are rotated out on a regular basis for safety reasons).


Basic safety features


Wheels

Roller coaster trains have
wheel A wheel is a circular component that is intended to rotate on an axle Bearing (mechanical), bearing. The wheel is one of the key components of the wheel and axle which is one of the Simple machine, six simple machines. Wheels, in conjunction wi ...
s that run on the sides (side friction or guide wheels) and underneath the track (upstop, underfriction, or underlocking wheels) as well as on top of it (road or running wheels); these lock the train to the tracks and prevent it from jumping the track. The side wheels can be mounted on the outside or inside of the train, depending on the manufacturer (although outside-mounted wheels are more common). The wheels are sometimes located between the cars, as well as at the front and rear of the entire train.


Restraints

Roller coaster trains also have restraints that keep the passengers in their seats. There are two major types of restraints: lap bar and over-the-shoulder. (Most modern over-the-shoulder restraints come into contact with riders at the lap; however, older so-called "horsecollar" ones actually restrain riders by the shoulders). Restraints always use two locking mechanisms, one on each side, for redundancy. If one fails, the restraint will remain locked. Most modern roller coasters also have seat belts that may act as secondary safety devices. On over-the-shoulder restraints, this seatbelt is mostly cosmetic as the restraint locks on its own. Lap bars were first used in 1907 with the Coney Island coaster
Drop the Dip Drop the Dip, later known as Trip to the Moon, was a wooden roller coaster that operated at several locations in Coney Island, Brooklyn, New York, in the early 20th century. The coaster is considered by some to be the first truly high-speed r ...
. Lap bar restraints consist of a padded bar mounted to the floor or side of the train that swings backwards into the rider's lap. These restraints are usually found on roller coasters that lack inversions. Some inverting roller coasters, notably ones created by
Anton Schwarzkopf Anton Schwarzkopf (8 July 1924 – 30 July 2001) was a German engineer who founded Schwarzkopf Industries GmbH, a German manufacturer of roller coasters and other amusement rides that were sold to amusement parks and travelling funfairs ...
safely operate without the need for shoulder restraints. Historically, inverting roller coasters with lap bars could only perform vertical loops, as the higher centripetal force (and low lateral force) exerted while traversing a simple clothoid loop helps to keep riders safely in the train. However, with modern advances in engineering, more roller coasters with complicated inversions are able to run without over-the-shoulder restraints. For example, most of
Premier Rides Premier Rides is an amusement ride manufacturer based in the United States. The company was the first to use Linear Induction Motors (LIMs) on their roller coasters. Jim Seay has been the sole owner and company president since 1996. The first r ...
' LIM-launched roller coasters (the vast majority of which have multiple inverting elements) operate with only lap bars. Lap bar restraints, like
buzz bars This list of roller coaster elements contains the individual parts of roller coaster design and operation. Introduction Roller coaster elements are the individual parts of roller coaster design and operation, such as a track, hill, loop, or turn. ...
give the rider much greater freedom of movement than over-the-shoulder restraints, enhancing the feeling of danger for some. Over-the-shoulder restraints, the most common type, consist of a roughly U-shaped padded bar mounted to the top of each seat that swings downward. Roller coasters that have inversions usually have this type of restraint. Additionally, almost all inverted and
floorless roller coaster A Floorless Coaster is a type of steel roller coaster manufactured by Bolliger & Mabillard where riders sit with no floor underneath them, allowing their feet to swing freely just above the track. Development of the Floorless Coaster model began ...
s have this type of restraint, since it is difficult to mount a lap bar restraint. One disadvantage of over-the-shoulder restraints is that they can provide discomfort to the rider (known among coaster enthusiasts as headbanging), especially on rougher roller coasters. It is recommended that earrings should be removed before riding roller coasters with over-the-shoulder restraints. Some rides, such as
Maverick Maverick, Maveric or Maverik may refer to: History * Maverick (animal), an unbranded range animal, derived from U.S. cattleman Samuel Maverick Aviation * AEA Maverick, an Australian single-seat sportsplane design * General Aviation Design Bureau ...
at
Cedar Point Cedar Point is a amusement park located on a Lake Erie peninsula in Sandusky, Ohio, United States. Opened in 1870, it is considered the second-oldest operating amusement park in the U.S. behind Lake Compounce. Cedar Point is owned and op ...
, require that guests must remove earrings before riding. However, there are some operating roller coasters that do not have either restraint systems. Rollo Coaster at Idlewild and Soakzone is a good example of this. Usually roller coasters with little to no air-time (being lifted out of your seat) do not have restraints. Until early 2006, The Rollercoaster at
Blackpool Pleasure Beach Blackpool Pleasure Beach is an amusement park situated on Blackpool's South Shore, in the county of Lancashire, North West England. It operates as a secure facility, and has introduced epayments via smartphones for admission charges, replacin ...
in the UK also operated without any restraints, although seatbelts were added to the ride in the 2007 season. During 2008, trains from the
Big Dipper The Big Dipper ( US, Canada) or the Plough ( UK, Ireland) is a large asterism consisting of seven bright stars of the constellation Ursa Major; six of them are of second magnitude and one, Megrez (δ), of third magnitude. Four define a "bowl" ...
Rollercoaster were installed on the ride. "The Rollercoaster" now operates with lap bars, although the original train is still stored on the transfer track in the station.


References

{{roller coaster Roller coaster elements Trains