A strategy for lightweight designing of a railway vehicle car body including composite material and dynamic structural optimization

Rolling stock manufacturers are finding structural solutions to reduce power required by the vehicles,and the lightweight design of the car body represents a possible solution.Optimization processes and innovative materials can be combined in order to achieve this goal.In this framework,we propose the redesign and optimization process of the car body roof for a light rail vehicle,introducing a sandwich structure.Bonded joint was used as a fastening system.The project was carried out on a single car of a modern tram platform.This preliminary numerical work was developed in two main steps:redesign of the car body structure and optimization of the innovated system.Objective of the process was the mass reduction of the whole metallic structure,while the constraint condition was imposed on the first frequency of vibration of the system.The effect of introducing a sandwich panel within the roof assembly was evaluated,focusing on the mechanical and dynamic performances of the whole car body.A mass saving of 63%on the optimized components was achieved,corresponding to a 7.6%if compared to the complete car body shell.In addition,a positive increasing of 17.7%on the first frequency of vibration was observed.Encouraging results have been achieved in terms of weight reduction and mechanical behaviour of the innovated car body.

Object-Oriented Modeling of the Variation of Acceleration and Deceleration Characteristics in Relation to Speed Bands for Railway Vehicles

Automated operation and artificial intelligence technology have become essential for ensuring the safety, efficiency, and punctuality of railways, with applications such as ATO (Automatic Train Operation). In this study, the authors propose a method to efficiently simulate the kinematic characteristics of railroad vehicles depending on their speed zone. They utilized the function overloading function supported by a programming language and applied the fourth-order Lunge-Kutta method for dynamic simulation. By constructing an object model, the authors calculated vehicle characteristics and TPS and compared them with actual values, verifying that the developed model represents the real-life vehicle characteristics accurately. The study highlights potential improvements in automated driving and energy consumption optimization in the railway industry.

A novel anti-slip control approach for railway vehicles with traction based on adhesion estimation with swarm intelligence

Anti-slip control systems are essential for railway vehicle systems with traction.In order to propose an effective anti-slip control system,adhesion information between wheel and rail can be useful.However,direct measurement or observation of adhesion condition for a railway vehicle in operation is quite demanding.Therefore,a proportional–integral controller,which operates simultaneously with a recently proposed swarm intelligencebased adhesion estimation algorithm,is proposed in this study.This approach provides determination of the adhesion optimum on the adhesion-slip curve so that a reference slip value for the controller can be determined according to the adhesion conditions between wheel and rail.To validate the methodology,a tram wheel test stand with an independently rotating wheel,which is a model of some low floor trams produced in Czechia,is considered.Results reveal that this new approach is more effective than a conventional controller without adhesion condition estimation.

Stochastic dynamic simulation of railway vehicles collision using data-driven modelling approach

Using stochastic dynamic simulation for railway vehicle collision still faces many challenges,such as high modelling complexity and time-consuming.To address the challenges,we introduce a novel data-driven stochastic process modelling(DSPM)approach into dynamic simulation of the railway vehicle collision.This DSPM approach consists of two steps:(i)process description,four kinds of kernels are used to describe the uncertainty inherent in collision processes;(ii)solving,stochastic variational inferences and mini-batch algorithms can then be used to accelerate computations of stochastic processes.By applying DSPM,Gaussian process regression(GPR)and finite element(FE)methods to two collision scenarios(i.e.lead car colliding with a rigid wall,and the lead car colliding with another lead car),we are able to achieve a comprehensive analysis.The comparison between the DSPM approach and the FE method revealed that the DSPM approach is capable of calculating the corresponding confidence interval,simultaneously improving the overall computational efficiency.Comparing the DSPM approach with the GPR method indicates that the DSPM approach has the ability to accurately describe the dynamic response under unknown conditions.Overall,this research demonstrates the feasibility and usability of the proposed DSPM approach for stochastic dynamics simulation of the railway vehicle collision.

A Brief Introduction to Changchun Railway Vehicle Co.,Ltd.

Changchun Railway Vehicle Co.,Ltd.(CRC) was founded in March 2002.Initiated by China's North Locomotive & Rolling Stock Industry (group) Corporation,and based on the main business as well as the capital of the former Changchun Car Company,CRC was founded as new joint-stock company,

Fusion of Model-Based and Data Driven Based Fault Diagnostic Methods for Railway Vehicle Suspension

Transportation of freight and passengers by train is one of the oldest types of transport, and has now taken root in most of the developing countries especially in Africa. Recently, with the advent and development of high-speed trains, continuous monitoring of the railway vehicle suspension is of significant importance. For this reason, railway vehicles should be monitored continuously to avoid catastrophic events, ensure comfort, safety, and also improved performance while reducing life cycle costs. The suspension system is a very important part of the railway vehicle which supports the car-body and the bogie, isolates the forces generated by the track unevenness at the wheels and also controls the attitude of the car-body with respect to the track surface for ride comfort. Its reliability is directly related to the vehicle safety. The railway vehicle suspension often develops faults;worn springs and dampers in the primary and secondary suspension. To avoid a complete system failure, early detection of fault in the suspension of trains is of high importance. The main contribution of the research work is the prediction of faulty regimes of a railway vehicle suspension based on a hybrid model. The hybrid model framework is in four folds;first, modeling of vehicle suspension system to generate vertical acceleration of the railway vehicle, parameter estimation or identification was performed to obtain the nominal parameter values of the vehicle suspension system based on the measured data in the second fold, furthermore, a supervised machine learning model was built to predict faulty and healthy state of the suspension system components (damage scenarios) based on support vector machine (SVM) and lastly, the development of a new SVM model with the damage scenarios to predict faults on the test data. The level of degradation at which the spring and damper becomes faulty for both primary and secondary suspension system was determined. The spring and damper becomes faulty when the nominal values degrade by 50% and 40% and 30% and 40% for the secondary and primary suspension system respectively. The proposed model was able to predict faulty components with an accuracy of 0.844 for the primary and secondary suspension system.

Comprehensive modeling strategy for thermomechanical tribological behavior analysis of railway vehicle disc brake system

A comprehensive modeling strategy for studying the thermomechanical tribological behaviors is proposed in this work.The wear degradation considering the influence of temperature(T)is predicted by Archard wear model with the help of the UMESHMOTION subroutine and arbitrary Lagrangian–Eulerian(ALE)remeshing technique.Adopting the proposed method,the thermomechanical tribological behaviors of railway vehicle disc brake system composed of forged steel brake disc and Cu-based powder metallurgy(PM)friction block are studied systematically.The effectiveness of the proposed methodology is validated by experimental test on a self-designed scaled brake test bench from the perspectives of interface temperature,wear degradation,friction noise and vibration,and contact status evolution.This work can provide an effective way for the investigation of thermomechanical tribological behaviors in the engineering field.

Impact vibration behavior of railway vehicles:a state-of-the-art overview

Excessive vibrations of railway vehicles induced by dynamic impact loadings have a significant impact on train operating safety and stability;however,due to the complexity and diversity of railway lines and service environment,they are extremely difficult to eliminate.A comprehensive overview of recent studies on the impact vibration behavior of railway vehicles was given in this paper.First,the sources of impact excitations were categorized in terms of wheel-rail contact irregularity,aerodynamic loads,and longitudinal impulses by train traction/braking.Then the main research approaches of vehicle impact vibration were briefly introduced in theoretical,experimental,and simulation aspects.Also,the impact vibration response characteristics of railway vehicles were categorized and examined in detail to various impact excitation sources.Finally,some attempts of using the railway vehicle vibration to detect track defects and the possible mitigation measures were outlined.

Evaluation of power regeneration in primary suspension for a railway vehicle

To improve the fuel economy of rail vehicles,this study presents the feasibility of using power regenerating dampers(PRDs)in the primary suspension systems of railway vehicles and evaluates the potential and recoverable power that can be obtained.PRDs are configured as hydraulic electromagnetic-based railway primary vertical dampers and evaluated in parallel and series modes(with and without a viscous damper).Hydraulic configuration converts the linear behavior of the track into a unidirectional rotation of the generator,and the electromagnetic configuration provides a controllable damping force to the primary suspension system.In several case studies,generic railway vehicle primary suspension systems that are configured to include a PRD in the two configuration modes are modeled using computer simulations.The simulations are performed on measured tracks with typical irregularities for a generic UK passenger route.The performance of the modified vehicle is evaluated with respect to key performance indicators,including regenerated power,ride comfort,and running safety.Results indicate that PRDs can simultaneously replace conventional primary vertical dampers,regenerate power,and exhibit desirable dynamic performance.A peak power efficiency of 79.87%is theoretically obtained in series mode on a top-quality German Intercity Express track(Track 270)at a vehicle speed of 160 mile/h(~257 km/h).

Modeling and simulation of railway vehicle vertical dynamic behavior by considering the effect of passenger-carbody coupling vibration

In order to reflect the vertical random vibration characteristics of railway vehicles more truly and effectively,this paper regards the human body as a single-degree-of-freedom system attached to the bottom of the carriage,and establishes a vertical dynamic model of railway vehicles by considering the influence of the coupling vibration effect between the passenger and the car body.The correctness of the model is verified by the real vehicle test.Then,the influence of the passengers on the vertical vibration characteristics of railway vehicles is analyzed,and the influence of the railway vehicle vibration on the vertical vibration characteristics of passengers is discussed in this paper.The research made in this paper can provide an effective model reference for the analysis of the vertical random vibration characteristics of railway vehicles and passengers,and for the optimization design of the suspension system parameters.

Polygonisation of railway wheels:a critical review

Polygonisation is a common nonuniform wear phenomenon occurring in railway vehicle wheels and has a severe impact on the vehicle–track system,ride comfort,and lineside residents.This paper first summarizes periodic defects of the wheels,including wheel polygonisation and wheel corrugation,occurring in railways worldwide.Thereafter,the effects of wheel polygonisation on the wheel–rail interaction,noise and vibration,and fatigue failure of the vehicle and track components are reviewed.Based on the different causes,the formation mechanisms of periodic wheel defects are classified into three categories:(1)initial defects of wheels,(2)natural vibration of the vehicle–track system,and(3)thermoelastic instability.In addition,the simulation methods of wheel polygonisation evolution and countermeasures to mitigate wheel polygonisation are presented.Emphasis is given to the characteristics,effects,causes,and solutions of wheel polygonisation in metro vehicles,locomotives,and highspeed trains in China.Finally,the guidance is provided on further understanding the formation mechanisms,monitoring technology,and maintenance criterion of wheel polygonisation.

Simulation of wheel and rail profile wear:a review of numerical models

The development of numerical models able to compute the wheel and rail profile wear is essential to improve the scheduling of maintenance operations required to restore the original profile shapes.This work surveys the main numerical models in the literature for the evaluation of the uniform wear of wheel and rail profiles.The standard structure of these tools includes a multibody simulation of the wheel-track coupled dynamics and a wear module implementing an experimental wear law.Therefore,the models are classified according to the strategy adopted for the worn profile update,ranging from models performing a single computation to models based on an online communication between the dynamic and wear modules.Nevertheless,the most common strategy nowadays relies on an iteration of dynamic simulations in which the profiles are left unchanged,with co-simulation techniques often adopted to increase the computational performances.Work is still needed to improve the accuracy of the current models.New experimental campaigns should be carried out to obtain refined wear coefficients and models,while strategies for the evaluation of both longitudinal and transversal wear,also considering the effects of tread braking,should be implemented to obtain accurate damage models.

Bogie's Rotational Resistance Coefficient Analysis Based on Novel Parallel Mechanism

In this paper,a novel parallel mechanism which can be used to evaluate body-to-bogie yawtorque is proposed.It can satisfy experimental testing for rotation resistance coefficient(RRC) with various types of bogies,different rotational speeds,and different states of air spring.Aiming at the problem that computing speed of Newton iterative method for solving rotational angle is incompetence to meet the real-time requirements,and also that other methods adopting physical device such as laser displacement sensor to solve rotational angle possess larger measurement error,the analytical techniques method used for solving rotational angle is presented.Finally,by using the upper-single-6-DOF motion platform as an authentic urging mean to simulate a real vehicle,the test was carried out under the speeds of 0.2 and 1.0(°)/s,with the air spring at the inflated and deflated states,respectively.The results showthat the RRC of the bogie under various conditions is less than 0.06,which meets the standard requirement EN-14363.It was also found that the speed of vehicles moving along curves and the state of air spring were key factors influencing the RRC.The feasibilities of this model and test method are verified in this study.

Feasibility study of a diesel-powered hybrid DMU

Nowadays,the interest in hybrid vehicles is constantly increasing,not only in the automotive sector,but also in other transportation systems,to reduce pollution and emissions and to improve the overall efficiency of the vehicles.Although railway vehicles are typically the most eco-friendly transportation system,since commonly their primary energy source is electricity,they can still gain benefits from hybrid technologies,as many lines worldwide are not electrified.In fact,hybrid solutions allow ICEpowered(internal combustion engine)railway vehicles,such as diesel multiple units(DMUs),to operate in fullelectric mode even when the track lacks electrification.The possibility to switch to full electric mode is of paramount importance when the vehicle runs on urban or underground track sections,where low or zero emission levels are required.We conduct the feasibility study of hybridization of an existing DMU vehicle,designed by Blue Engineering S.r.l.,running on the Aosta–Torino Italian railway line,which includes a non-electrified urban track section and an electrified underground section.The hybridization is obtained by replacing one of the diesel generators installed on the original vehicle with a battery pack,which ensures the vehicle to operate in full-electric mode to complete its mission profile.The hybridization is also exploited to implement a regenerative braking strategy,which allows an increase in the energetical efficiency of the vehicle up to 18%.This work shows the sizing of the battery pack based on dynamic simulations performed on the Turin underground track section,and the results demonstrate the feasibility of the hybridization process.

Bogie active stability simulation and scale rig test based on frame lateral vibration control

This paper puts forward a high-speed train bogie active stability method,based on frame lateral vibration control,for improving the stability and critical speed of railway vehicles at high speeds.Two inertial actuators apply active control forces to the front and rear end beams of the bogie frame.A scale model of bogie lateral dynamics is established,as well as the state space equation of the control system.Also,the multi-objective optimization is used to construct state feedback parameters,which take hunting stability and control effort into account.Furthermore,the effects of time-delay in the control system and suspension parameters on bogie hunting stability are studied.The dynamic behaviors and the stability mechanism of the bogie control system are analyzed.Finally,a 1:5 scale test rig is used to conduct a bogie active stability experiment.The results reveal that active control of frame lateral vibration can effectively improve the bogie system's hunting stability margin at high speeds,but time-delay in the control system cannot be ignored.

Surface wear evolution of traction motor bearings in vibration environment of a locomotive during operation

Wear is a major cause of bearing failure,however,compared with other impact failures,smooth wear is often neglected because of its slow gradualness.In a locomotive,under the effect of the intensified wheel-rail interaction and gear mesh,the surface wear can increase the radial clearances of motor bearings,trigger abnormal vibration and noise,and adversely affect the efficiency and safety of the traction motor.In this study,considering the mechanical structure of the traction motor,a locomotive-track spatially coupled dynamics model with traction power transmissions(LTMM)is adopted to provide accurate dynamic loads and obtain the dynamic responses of the system.From the perspective of contact stress and relative skidding at the roller-race interface,the causes and evolution of motor bearings surface wear are analyzed.The results indicate that the wear of inner races of motor bearings is uniform.The outer races of the driving/non-driving end bearings(DB or NDB)are worn in the loaded/main loadbearing regions.The increasing surface wear can increase the internal dynamic forces(e.g.,the centrifugal force of rotor and unbalanced magnetic pull)induced by the instantaneous eccentricity of the rotor,intensify the interactions between the roller and races,and deteriorate the vibrations of the traction motor and its neighboring components in the locomotive.In addition,the effects of the friction coefficient at the roller-race interface and track random irregularity are analyzed.This study offers a theoretical basis in service life prediction and design of the motor bearings.