Definition of "non-contact"

Since the first G.W.R. equipment was installed there has been much development of A.T.C. systems which do not depend on contact between the track apparatus and an attachment on the locomotive. Such non-contact systems have been of special interest to countries where severe weather may interfere with picking up current from a ramp or similar device.

1950 August, B. K. Cooper, “British A.T.C. Systems Compared”, in Railway Magazine, page 518