Attached is a file containing the combined offerings of the participants at the recent Mod1/Mod7 Exam Workshop who attempted this question.
The trap that everyone fell into was to describe points as if this had been a module 5 question. Although it is important to display technical knowledge, the focus should have been on the key elements needed to permit a train to pass through safely at speed; this is what the question asked for and indeed the focus on hazards, risk and the management of safety should certainly be "read into" every module 1 question.
Having said that the diagrams were mainly not good; that for attempt B was the best by a long way. The question asked not just for the point machine and its connections but the entire point, so the depiction of the crossing with associated wing rails and check rails was certainly essential and depiction of back-drive and supplementary detector also important for points designed for traversal at significant speed. So although there wouldn't have been many marks to gain from the sketch, the candidates did tend to show up their ignorance and there were some peculiar mechanical arrangements depicted that seemed to show lack of understanding. Although primarily produced from a Mod 5 (and lesser extent mod 3) perspective, if you are rather hazy about pointwork, suggest you study the download available at: http://db.tt/ucDqnf0c
The trap that everyone fell into was to describe points as if this had been a module 5 question. Although it is important to display technical knowledge, the focus should have been on the key elements needed to permit a train to pass through safely at speed; this is what the question asked for and indeed the focus on hazards, risk and the management of safety should certainly be "read into" every module 1 question.
Having said that the diagrams were mainly not good; that for attempt B was the best by a long way. The question asked not just for the point machine and its connections but the entire point, so the depiction of the crossing with associated wing rails and check rails was certainly essential and depiction of back-drive and supplementary detector also important for points designed for traversal at significant speed. So although there wouldn't have been many marks to gain from the sketch, the candidates did tend to show up their ignorance and there were some peculiar mechanical arrangements depicted that seemed to show lack of understanding. Although primarily produced from a Mod 5 (and lesser extent mod 3) perspective, if you are rather hazy about pointwork, suggest you study the download available at: http://db.tt/ucDqnf0c
PJW