Electromagnetic Tomography System for Defect Detection of High-Speed Rail Wheel

A novel electromagnetic tomography(EMT)system for defect detection of high-speed rail wheel is proposed,which differs from traditional electromagnetic tomography systems in its spatial arrangements of coils.A U-shaped sensor array was designed,and then a simulation model was built with the low frequency electromagnetic simulation software.Three different algorithms were applied to perform image reconstruction,therefore the defects can be detected from the reconstructed images.Based on the simulation results,an experimental system was built and image reconstruction were performed with the measured data.The reconstructed images obtained both from numerical simulation and experimental system indicated the locations of the defects of the wheel,which verified the feasibility of the EMT system and revealed its good application prospect in the future.

Research on the strain gauge mounting scheme of track wheel force measurement system based on high-speed wheel/rail relationship test rig

Purpose-This paper aims to analyze the stress and strain distribution on the track wheel web surface and study the optimal strain gauge location for force measurement system of the track wheel.Design/methodology/approach-Finite element method was employed to analyze the stress and strain distribution on the track wheel web surface under varying wheel-rail forces.Locations with minimal coupling interference between vertical and lateral forces were identified as suitable for strain gauge installation.Findings-The results show that due to the track wheel web’s unique curved shape and wheel-rail force loading mechanism,both tensile and compressive states exit on the surface of the web.When vertical force is applied,Mises stress and strain are relatively high near the inner radius of 710 mm and the outer radius of 1110mmof the web.Under lateral force,high Mises stress and strain are observed near the radius of 670mmon the inner and outer sides of the web.As the wheel-rail force application point shifts laterally toward the outer side,the Mises stress and strain near the inner radius of 710 mm of the web gradually decrease under vertical force while gradually increasing near the outer radius of 1110 mm of the web.Under lateral force,the Mises stress and strain on the surface of the web remain relatively unchanged regardless of the wheel-rail force application point.Based on the analysis of stress and strain on the surface of the web under different wheel-rail forces,the inner radius of 870 mm is recommended as the optimal mounting location of strain gauges for measuring vertical force,while the inner radius of 1143 mm is suitable for measuring lateral force.Originality/value-The research findings provide valuable insights for determining optimal strain gauge locations and designing an effective track wheel force measurement system.

Dynamic analysis of axle box bearings on the high-speed train caused by wheel-rail excitation

To explore the impact of wheel-rail excitation on the dynamic performance of axle box bearings,a dynamic model of the high-speed train including axle box bearings is developed.Subsequently,the dynamic response characteristics of the axle box bearing are examined.The investigation focuses on the acceleration characteristics of bearing vibration under excitation of track irregularities and wheel flats.In addition,experiments on both normal and faulty bearings are conducted separately,and the correctness of the model and some conclusions are verified.According to the research,track irregularity is unfavorable for bearing fault detection based on resonance demodulation.Under the same speed conditions,the acceleration peak of bearing is inversely proportional to the length of the wheel flat and directly proportional to its depth.The paper will contribute to a deeper understanding of the dynamic performance of axle box bearings.

Human intrusion detection for high-speed railway perimeter under all-weather condition

Purpose – The paper aims to solve the problem of personnel intrusion identification within the limits of highspeed railways. It adopts the fusion method of millimeter wave radar and camera to improve the accuracy ofobject recognition in dark and harsh weather conditions.Design/methodology/approach – This paper adopts the fusion strategy of radar and camera linkage toachieve focus amplification of long-distance targets and solves the problem of low illumination by laser lightfilling of the focus point. In order to improve the recognition effect, this paper adopts the YOLOv8 algorithm formulti-scale target recognition. In addition, for the image distortion caused by bad weather, this paper proposesa linkage and tracking fusion strategy to output the correct alarm results.Findings – Simulated intrusion tests show that the proposed method can effectively detect human intrusionwithin 0–200 m during the day and night in sunny weather and can achieve more than 80% recognitionaccuracy for extreme severe weather conditions.Originality/value – (1) The authors propose a personnel intrusion monitoring scheme based on the fusion ofmillimeter wave radar and camera, achieving all-weather intrusion monitoring;(2) The authors propose a newmulti-level fusion algorithm based on linkage and tracking to achieve intrusion target monitoring underadverse weather conditions;(3) The authors have conducted a large number of innovative simulationexperiments to verify the effectiveness of the method proposed in this article.

KL-SG High-Speed Rail-a catalyst for national economic development Sri Viknesh Permalu and Karthigesu Nagarajoo

Purpose-In an increasingly interconnected world,transportation infrastructure has emerged as a critical determinant of economic growth and global competitiveness.High-speed rail(HSR),characterized by its exceptional speed and efficiency,has garnered widespread attention as a transformative mode of transportation that transcends borders and fosters economic development.The Kuala Lumpur-Singapore(KL-SG)HSR project stands as a prominent exemplar of this paradigm,symbolizing the potential of HSR to serve as a catalyst for national economic advancement.Design/methodologylapproach-This paper is prepared to provide an insight into the benefits and advantages of HSR based on proven case studies and references from global HSRs,including China,Spain,France and Japan.Findings-The findings that have been obtained focus on enhanced connectivity and accessibility,attracting foreign direct investment,revitalizing regional economies,urban development and city regeneration,boosting tourism and cultural exchange,human capital development,regionai integration and environmental and sustainability benefits.Originality/value-The KL-SG HSR,linking Kuala Lumpur and Singapore,epitomizes the potential for HSR to be a transformative agent in the realm of economic development.This project encapsulates the aspirations of two dynamic Southeast Asian economies,united in their pursuit of sustainable growth,enhanced connectivity and global competitiveness.By scrutinizing the KLSG High-Speed Rail through the lens of economic benchmarking,a deeper understanding emerges of how such projects can drive progress in areas such as cross-border trade,tourism,urban development and technological innovation.

On the Polygonal Wear Evolution of Heavy-Haul Locomotive Wheels due to Wheel/Rail Flexibility and Its Mitigation Measures

Wheel polygonal wear can immensely worsen wheel/rail interactions and vibration performances of the train and track,and ultimately,lead to the shortening of service life of railway components.At present,wheel/rail medium-or high-frequency frictional interactions are perceived as an essential reason of the high-order polygonal wear of railway wheels,which are potentially resulted by the flexible deformations of the train/track system or other external excitations.In this work,the effect of wheel/rail flexibility on polygonal wear evolution of heavy-haul locomotive wheels is explored with aid of the long-term wheel polygonal wear evolution simulations,in which different flexible modeling of the heavy-haul wheel/rail coupled system is implemented.Further,the mitigation measures for the polygonal wear of heavy-haul locomotive wheels are discussed.The results point out that the evolution of polygonal wear of heavy-haul locomotive wheels can be veritably simulated with consideration of the flexible effect of both wheelset and rails.Execution of mixed-line operation of heavy-haul trains and application of multicut wheel re-profiling can effectively reduce the development of wheel polygonal wear.This research can provide a deep-going understanding of polygonal wear evolution mechanism of heavy-haul locomotive wheels and its mitigation measures.

A critical review of wheel/rail high frequency vibration-induced vibration fatigue of railway bogie in China

Purpose–This review aims to give a critical view of the wheel/rail high frequency vibration-induced vibration fatigue in railway bogie.Design/methodology/approach–Vibration fatigue of railway bogie arising from the wheel/rail high frequency vibration has become the main concern of railway operators.Previous reviews usually focused on the formation mechanism of wheel/rail high frequency vibration.This paper thus gives a critical review of the vibration fatigue of railway bogie owing to the short-pitch irregularities-induced high frequency vibration,including a brief introduction of short-pitch irregularities,associated high frequency vibration in railway bogie,typical vibration fatigue failure cases of railway bogie and methodologies used for the assessment of vibration fatigue and research gaps.Findings–The results showed that the resulting excitation frequencies of short-pitch irregularity vary substantially due to different track types and formation mechanisms.The axle box-mounted components are much more vulnerable to vibration fatigue compared with other components.The wheel polygonal wear and rail corrugation-induced high frequency vibration is the main driving force of fatigue failure,and the fatigue crack usually initiates from the defect of the weld seam.Vibration spectrum for attachments of railway bogie defined in the standard underestimates the vibration level arising from the short-pitch irregularities.The current investigations on vibration fatigue mainly focus on the methods to improve the accuracy of fatigue damage assessment,and a systematical design method for vibration fatigue remains a huge gap to improve the survival probability when the rail vehicle is subjected to vibration fatigue.Originality/value–The research can facilitate the development of a new methodology to improve the fatigue life of railway vehicles when subjected to wheel/rail high frequency vibration.

Wireless channel estimation for high-speed rail communications:Challenges,solutions and future directions

With the development of High-Speed Rail(HSR),countries and individual passengers alike have enjoyed far ranging benefits as a result-economic,social,environment and in added convenience.One of the important parts of HSR construction is the signaling system,where wireless communications play a key role in the transmission of train control data.Channel estimation has a significant impact on the quality of the wireless communication,however,whose performance is degraded due to the fast mobility of HSR.This paper focuses on the channel estimation technology in HSR.We first summarize the key challenges for HSR channel estimation,especially the Inter-Carrier Interference(ICI)faced by Orthogonal Frequency Division Multiplexing(OFDM)systems.Then we provide a comprehensive review of existing pilot-aided channel estimation schemes from three points:channel model,estimation algorithm,joint channel estimation and ICI mitigation schemes.Lastly,we present the challenges of channel estimation for the Orthogonal Time Frequency Space(OTFS)system and Reconfigurable Intelligent Surface(RIS),which are promising techniques for HSR systems in the future sixth Generation(6G)wireless communication.

A review of high performance computing applications in high-speed rail systems

Further improving the railway innovation capacity and technological strength is the important goal of the 14th Five-Year Plan for railway scientific and technological innovation.It includes promoting the deep integration of cutting-edge technologies with the railway systems,strengthening the research and application of intelligent railway technologies,applying green computing technologies and advancing the collaborative sharing of transportation big data.The high-speed rail system tasks need to process huge amounts of data and heavy workload with the requirement of ultra-fast response.Therefore,it is of great necessity to promote computation efficiency by applying High Performance Computing(HPC)to high-speed rail systems.The HPC technique is a great solution for improving the performance,efficiency,and safety of high-speed rail systems.In this review,we introduce and analyze the application research of high performance computing technology in the field of highspeed railways.These HPC applications are cataloged into four broad categories,namely:fault diagnosis,network and communication,management system,and simulations.Moreover,challenges and issues to be addressed are discussed and further directions are suggested.

Study on wear characteristics and authorized limits of switch rails of high-speed turnout

Purpose-It is quite universal for high-speed turnouts to be exposed to the wear of the stock rail of the switch rail during the service process.The wear will cause the change of railhead profile and the relative positions of the switch rail and the stock rail,which will directly affect the wheel-rail contact state and wheel load transition when a train passes the turnout and will further impose serious impacts on the safety and stability of train operation.The purpose of this paper is to provide suggestions for wear management of high-speed turnout.Design/methodology/approach-The actual wear characteristics of switch rails of high-speed turnouts in different guiding directions were studied based on the monitoring results on site;the authorized wear limits for the switch rails of high-speed turnout were studied through derailment risk analysis and switch rail strength analysis.Findings-The results show that:the major factor for the service life of a curved switch rail is the lateral wear.The wear characteristics of the curved switch rail of a facing turnout are significantly different from those of a trailing turnout.To be specific,the lateral wear of the curved switch rail mainly occurs in the narrower section at its front end for a trailing turnout,but in the wider section at its rear end when for a facing turnout.The maximum lateral wear of a dismounted switch rail from a trailing turnout is found on the 15-mm wide section and is 3.9 mm,which does not reach the specified limit of 6 mm.For comparison,the lateral wear of a dismounted switch rail from a facing turnout is found from the 35-mm wide section to the full-width section and is greater than 7.5 mm,which exceeds the specified limit.Based on this,in addition to meeting the requirements of maintenance rules,the allowed wear of switch rails of high-speed turnout shall be so that the dangerous area with a tangent angle of wheel profile smaller than 43.68 will not contact the switch rail when the wheel is lifted by 2 mm.Accordingly,the lateral wear limit at the 5-mm wide section of the curved switch rail shall be reduced from 6 mm(as specified)to 3.5 mm.Originality/value-The work in this paper is of reference significance to the research on the development law of rail wear in high-speed turnout area and the formulation of relevant standards.

Investigation into rail corrugation in high-speed railway tracks from the viewpoint of the frictional self-excited vibration of a wheel–rail system

A finite element vibration model of a multiple wheel-rail system which consists of four wheels, one rail, and a series of sleepers is established to address the problem of rail corrugation in high-speed tracks. In the model, the creep forces between the wheels and rail are considered to be saturated and equal to the normal contact forces times the friction coefficient. The oscillation of the rail is coupled with that of wheels in the action of the saturated creep forces. When the coupling is strong, self- excited oscillation of the wheel-rail system occurs. The self-excited vibration propensity of the model is analyzed using the complex eigenvalue method. Results show that there are strong propensities of unstable self-excited vibrations whose frequencies are less than 1,200 Hz under some conditions. Preventing wheels from slipping on rails is an effective method for suppressing rail corrugation in high-speed tracks.

Characteristics of wheel-rail vibration of the vertical section in high-speed railways

In order to analyze the characteristics of wheel-rail vibration of the vertical section in a high-speed railway, a vehicle-line dynamics model is established using the dynamics software SIMPACK. Through this model, the paper analyzes the influence of vertical section parameters, including vertical section slope and vertical curve radius, on wheel-rail dynamics interaction and the acting region of wheel-rail vibration. In addition, the characteristics of wheel- rail vibration of the vertical section under different velocities are investigated. The results show that the variation of wheel load is not sensitive to the vertical section slope but is greatly affected by the vertical curve radius. It was also observed that the smaller the vertical curve radius is, the more severe the interaction between the wheel and rail be- comes. Furthermore, the acting region of wheel-rail vibration expands with the vertical curve radius increasing. On another note, it is necessary to match the slope and vertical curve radius reasonably, on account of the influence of operation speed on the characteristics of wheel-rail vibration. This is especially important at the design stage of vertical sec- tions for lines of different grades.

Beam-track interaction of high-speed railway bridge with ballast track

Based on the construction bridge of Xiamen-Shenzhen high-speed railway(9-32 m simply-supported beam + 6×32 m continuous beam),the pier-beam-track finite element model,where the continuous beam of the ballast track and simply-supported beam are combined with each other,was established.The laws of the track stress,the pier longitudinal stress and the beam-track relative displacement were analyzed.The results show that reducing the longitudinal resistance can effectively reduce the track stress and the pier stress of the continuous beam,and increase the beam-track relative displacement.Increasing the rigid pier stiffness of continuous beam can reduce the track braking stress,increase the pier longitudinal stress and reduce the beam-track relative displacement,Increasing the rigid pier stiffness of simply-supported beam can reduce the track braking stress,the rigid pier longitudinal stress and the beam-track relative displacement.

Sensitive factors research for track-bridge interaction of Long-span X-style steel-box arch bridge on high-speed railway

X-style arch bridge on high-speed railways(HSR)is one kind of complicated long-span structure,and the track-bridge interaction is essential to ensure the safety and smoothness of HSR.Taking an X-style steel-box arch bridge with a main span of450 m on HSR under construction for example,a new integrative mechanic model of rail-stringer-cross beam-suspenderpier-foundation coupling system was established,adopting the nonlinear spring element simulating the longitudinal resistance between track and bridge.The transmission law of continuous welded rail(CWR)on the X-style arch bridge was researched,and comparative study was carried out to discuss the influence of several sensitive factors,such as the temperature load case,the longitudinal resistance model,the scheme of longitudinal restraint conditions,the introverted inclination of arch rib,the stiffness of pier and abutment and the location of the rail expansion device.Calculating results indicate that the longitudinal resistance has a significant impact upon the longitudinal forces of CWR on this kind of bridge,while the arch rib’s inclination has little effect.Besides,temperature variation of arch ribs and suspenders should be taken into account in the calculation.Selecting the restraint system without longitudinally-fixed bearing and setting the rail expansion devices on both ends are more reasonable.

Dispatch coordination between high-speed and conventional rail systems

Cross-line trains, as a link between high-speed and conventional rail networks, will increase the complexity of transport organization and lead to significant challenges in dispatch coordination between the two systems. Based on the characteristics of high-speed transport organization, this paper deals with the necessity of dispatch coordination between high-speed and conventional lines from the following two perspectives： the operation of cross-line trains and work coordination in connection stations. An adjustment model for the operation of high-speed trains, taking cross-line trains into account, is established. Finally, the dispatch system is described in terms of construction and process. Methods for organizing dispatch are proposed, and the processes of coordination adjustment under normal and unexpected situations are analyzed. The discussion in this paper may serve as a theoretical basis for the development of high-speed rail dispatch systems.

Regression model for daily passenger volume of high-speed railway line under capacity constraint

A non-linear regression model is proposed to forecast the aggregated passenger volume of Beijing-Shanghai high-speed railway(HSR) line in China. Train services and temporal features of passenger volume are studied to have a prior knowledge about this high-speed railway line. Then, based on a theoretical curve that depicts the relationship among passenger demand, transportation capacity and passenger volume, a non-linear regression model is established with consideration of the effect of capacity constraint. Through experiments, it is found that the proposed model can perform better in both forecasting accuracy and stability compared with linear regression models and back-propagation neural networks. In addition to the forecasting ability, with a definite formation, the proposed model can be further used to forecast the effects of train planning policies.

Dynamic responses of bridge-approach embankment transition section of high-speed rail

Based on the vehicle track coupling dynamics theory, a new spatial dynamic numerical model of vehicle track subgrade coupling system was established considering the interaction among different structural layers in the subgrade system. The dynamic responses of the coupled system were analyzed when the speed of train was 350 km/h and the transition was filled with graded broken stones mixed with 5% cement. The results indicate that the setting form of bridge-approach embankment section has little effect on the dynamic responses, thus designers can choose it on account of the practical circumstances. Because the location about 5 m from the bridge abutment has the greatest deformation, the stiffness within 0 5 m zone behind the abutment should be specially designed. The results of the study from vehicle track dynamics show that the maximum allowable track deflection angle should be 0.09% and the coefficient of subgrade reaction(K30) is greater than 190 MPa within the 0 5 m zone behind the abutment and greater than 150 MPa in other zones.

Parameters studies for rail wear in high-speed railway turnouts by unreplicated saturated factorial design

Rail wear is one of the main reasons for reducing the service life of high-speed railway turnouts in China. The rail wear characteristics of high-speed railway turnouts are influenced by a large number of input parameters of the complex train-turnout system. To reproduce the actual operation conditions of railway turnouts, random distributions of these inputs need to be considered in rail wear simulation. For a given nominal layout of the high-speed railway turnout, 19 input parameters for rail wear simulation in high-speed railway turnouts are investigated based on orthogonal design of experiment. Three dynamic responses(wheel-rail friction work, normal contact force and size of contact patch) are defined as observed values and the significant factors(direction of passage, axle load, running speed, friction coefficient, and wheel and rail profiles) are determined by two unreplicated saturated factorial design methods, including the half-normal probability plot method and Dong 93 method. As part of the associated rail wear simulation, the influence of the wear models and the local elastic deformation on the rail wear was separately investigated. The calculation results for the wear models are quite different, especially for large creep mode. The local elastic deformation has a large effect on the sliding speed and rail wear and needs to be considered in the rail wear simulation.

Prediction of high-speed train delay propagation based on causal text information

The delay-causing text data contain valuable information such as the specific reasons for the delay,location and time of the disturbance,which can provide an efficient support for the prediction of train delays and improve the guidance of train control efficiency.Based on the train operation data and delay-causing data of the Wuhan-Guangzhou high-speed railway,the relevant algorithms in the natural language processing field are used to process the delay-causing text data.It also integrates the train operatingenvironment information and delay-causing text information so as to develop a cause-based train delay propagation prediction model.The Word2vec model is first used to vectorize the delay-causing text description after word segmentation.The mean model or the term frequency-inverse document frequency-weighted model is then used to generate the delay-causing sentence vector based on the original word vector.Afterward,the train operating-environment features and delay-causing sentence vector are input into the extreme gradient boosting(XGBoost)regression algorithm to develop a delay propagation prediction model.In this work,4 text feature processing methods and 8 regression algorithms are considered.The results demonstrate that the XGBoost regression algorithm has the highest prediction accuracy using the test features processed by the continuous bag of words and the mean models.Compared with the prediction model that only considers the train-operating-environment features,the results show that the prediction accuracy of the model is significantly improved with multi-ple regression algorithms after integrating the delay-causing feature.

Network analysis and spatial agglomeration of China’s high-speed rail: A dual network approach

China has the largest high-speed railway(HSR) system in the world, and it has gradually reshaped the urban network.The HSR system can be represented as different types of networks in terms of the nodes and various relationships(i.e.,linkages) between them. In this paper, we first introduce a general dual network model, including a physical network(PN)and a logical network(LN) to provide a comparative analysis for China’s high-speed rail network via complex network theory. The PN represents a layout of stations and rail tracks, and forms the basis for operating all trains. The LN is a network composed of the origin and destination stations of each high-speed train and the train flows between them. China’s high-speed railway(CHSR) has different topological structures and link strengths for PN in comparison with the LN. In the study, the community detection is used to analyze China’s high-speed rail networks and several communities are found to be similar to the layout of planned urban agglomerations in China. Furthermore, the hierarchies of urban agglomerations are different from each other according to the strength of inter-regional interaction and intra-regional interaction, which are respectively related to location and spatial development strategies. Moreover, a case study of the Yangtze River Delta shows that the hub stations have different resource divisions and are major contributors to the gap between train departure and arrival flows.