Wear/comfort Pareto optimisation of bogie suspension

Pareto optimisation of bogie suspension components is considered for a 50 degrees of freedom railway vehicle model to reduce wheel/rail contact wear and improve passenger ride comfort. Several operational scenarios including tracks with different curve radii ranging from very small radii up to straight tracks are considered for the analysis. In each case, the maximum admissible speed is applied to the vehicle. Design parameters are categorised into two levels and the wear/comfort Pareto optimisation is accordingly accomplished in a multistep manner to improve the computational efficiency. The genetic algorithm (GA) is employed to perform the multi-objective optimisation. Two suspension system configurations are considered, a symmetric and an asymmetric in which the primary or secondary suspension elements on the right- and left-hand sides of the vehicle are not the same. It is shown that the vehicle performance on curves can be significantly improved using the asymmetric suspension configuration. The Pareto-optimised values of the design parameters achieved here guarantee wear reduction and comfort improvement for railway vehicles and can also be utilised in developing the reference vehicle models for design of bogie active suspension systems.     

Robustness analysis of bogie suspension components Pareto optimised values

Bogie suspension system of high speed trains can significantly affect vehicle performance. Multiobjective optimisation problems are often formulated and solved to find the Pareto optimised values of the suspension components and improve cost efficiency in railway operations from different perspectives. Uncertainties in the design parameters of suspension system can negatively influence the dynamics behaviour of railway vehicles. In this regard, robustness analysis of a bogie dynamics response with respect to uncertainties in the suspension design parameters is considered. A one-car railway vehicle model with 50 degrees of freedom and wear/comfort Pareto optimised values of bogie suspension components is chosen for the analysis. Longitudinal and lateral primary stiffnesses, longitudinal and vertical secondary stiffnesses, as well as yaw damping are considered as five design parameters. The effects of parameter uncertainties on wear, ride comfort, track shift force, stability, and risk of derailment are studied by varying the design parameters around their respective Pareto optimised values according to a lognormal distribution with different coefficient of variations (COVs). The robustness analysis is carried out based on the maximum entropy concept. The multiplicative dimensional reduction method is utilised to simplify the calculation of fractional moments and improve the computational efficiency. The results showed that the dynamics response of the vehicle with wear/comfort Pareto optimised values of bogie suspension is robust against uncertainties in the design parameters and the probability of failure is small for parameter uncertainties with COV up to 0.1.     

Pareto optimisation of railway bogie suspension damping to enhance safety and comfort

This paper presents the optimisation of damping characteristics in bogie suspensions using a multi-objective optimisation methodology. The damping is investigated and optimised in terms of the resulting performances of a railway vehicle with respect to safety, comfort and wear considerations. A complete multi-body system model describing the railway vehicle dynamics is implemented in commercial software Gensys and used in the optimisation. In complementary optimisation analyses, a reduced and linearised model describing the bogie system dynamics is also utilised. Pareto fronts with respect to safety, comfort and wear objectives are obtained, showing the trade-off behaviour between the objectives. Such trade-off curves are of importance, especially in the design of damping functional components. The results demonstrate that the developed methodology can successfully be used for multi-objective investigations of a railway vehicle within models of different levels of complexity. By introducing optimised passive damping elements in the bogie suspensions, both safety and comfort are improved. In particular, it is noted that the use of optimised passive damping elements can allow for higher train speeds. Finally, adaptive strategies for switching damping parameters with respect to different ride conditions are outlined and discussed.     

Hierarchical optimisation on scissor seat suspension characteristic and structure

Scissor seat suspension has been applied widely to attenuate the cab vibrations of commercial vehicles, while its design generally needs a trade-off between the seat acceleration and suspension travel, which creates a typical optimisation issue. A complexity for this issue is that the optimal dynamics parameters are not easy to approach solutions fast and unequivocally. Hence, the hierarchical optimisation on scissor seat suspension characteristic and structure is proposed, providing a top-down methodology with the globally optimal and fast convergent solutions to compromise these design contradictions. In details, a characteristic-oriented non-parametric dynamics model of the scissor seat suspension is formulated firstly via databases, describing its vertical dynamics accurately. Then, the ideal vertical stiffness-damping characteristic is cascaded via the characteristic-oriented model, and the structure parameters are optimised in accordance with a structure-oriented multi-body dynamics model of the scissor seat suspension. Eventually, the seat effective amplitude transmissibility factor, suspension travel and the CPU time for solving are evaluated. The results show the seat suspension performance and convergent speed of the globally optimal solutions are improved well. Hence, the proposed hierarchical optimisation methodology regarding characteristic and structure of the scissor seat suspension is promising for its virtual development.     

A comparative study on fault detection methods of rail vehicle suspension systems based on acceleration measurements

Reliability of the railway vehicle suspension system is of critical importance to the safety of the vehicle. On-line health condition monitoring for the suspension system of rail vehicles offers a number of benefits such as preventing further deterioration of vehicle performance, enhancing vehicle safety, increasing operational reliability and availability, and reducing maintenance costs. It is desirable to timely detect the fault and monitor the performance degradation of vehicle suspension systems. In this paper, a comparative study on fault detection methods of urban rail vehicle suspension systems is considered. A novel sensor configuration is proposed where the underlying vehicle system is equipped with only acceleration sensors in the four corners of the carbody, the leading and trailing bogie, respectively. A mathematical model is developed for the considered vehicle suspension system. Both model-based and data-driven approaches are studied for the suspension fault detection problem. The robust observer, the Kalman filter combined with the generalised likelihood ratio test method, the dynamical principle components analysis and the canonical variate analysis approaches are applied to the fault detection problem. The simulation is carried out by means of the professional multi-body simulation tool, SIMPACK. In addition, the advantages and disadvantages of these methods are compared. The simulation results show that the data-driven methods outperform the model-based methods.     

The effect of spring pads in the secondary suspension of railway vehicles on bogie yaw resistance

This paper deals with properties of bogie yaw resistance of an electric locomotive with secondary suspension consisting of flexi-coil springs supplemented with tilting spring pads. Transversal stiffness of a sample of a spring/pad assembly was measured on a dynamic test stand of the University of Pardubice (Czech Republic) and the results were applied into a multi-body model of the locomotive created in the simulation tool ‘SJKV’. On the basis of the simulation results, a detailed analysis of the bogie yaw resistance was performed in order to explain the effect in dynamic behaviour of the locomotive when the moment against bogie rotation (and therefore the distribution of guiding forces on individual wheels, as well) is influenced with the vehicle speed in a certain curve. Results of this analysis show that the application of suspension elements with strongly directionally dependent transversal stiffness into the secondary suspension can just lead to a dependency of the bogie yaw resistance on cant deficiency, i.e. on the vehicle speed in curve. This fact has wide consequences on the vehicle dynamics (especially on the guiding behaviour of the vehicle in curves) and it also points out that the current method of evaluation of the bogie yaw resistance according to relevant standards, which is related with assessment of the quasistatic safety of a railway vehicle against derailment, is not objective enough.     

A semi-active control suspension system for railway vehicles with magnetorheological fluid dampers

The high-speed train has achieved great progress in the last decades. It is one of the most important modes of transportation between cities. With the rapid development of the high-speed train, its safety issue is paid much more attention than ever before. To improve the stability of the vehicle with high speed, extra dampers (i.e. anti-hunting damper) are used in the traditional bogies with passive suspension system. However, the curving performance of the vehicle is undermined due to the extra lateral force generated by the dampers. The active suspension systems proposed in the last decades attempt to solve the vehicle steering issue. However, the active suspension systems need extra actuators driven by electrical power or hydraulic power. There are some implementation and even safety issues which are not easy to be overcome. In this paper, an innovative semi-active controlled lateral suspension system for railway vehicles is proposed. Four magnetorheological fluid dampers are fixed to the primary suspension system of each bogie. They are controlled by online controllers for enhancing the running stability on the straight track line on the one hand and further improving the curving performance by controlling the damper force on the other hand. Two control strategies are proposed in the light of the pure rolling concept. The effectiveness of the proposed strategies is demonstrated by SIMPACK and Matlab co-simulation for a full railway vehicle with two conventional bogies.     

Hybrid modelling and damping collaborative optimisation of Five-suspensions for coupling driver-seat-cab system

For the complex structure and vibration characteristics of coupling driver-seat-cab system of trucks, there is no damping optimisation theory for its suspensions at present, which seriously restricts the improvement of vehicle ride comfort. Thus, in this paper, the seat suspension was regarded as ‘the fifth suspension’ of cab, the ‘Five-suspensions’ for this system was proposed. Based on this, using the mechanism modelling method, a 4 degree-of-freedom coupling driver-seat-cab system model was presented; then, by the tested cab suspensions excitation and seat acceleration response, its parameters identification mathematical model was established. Based on this, taking optimal ride comfort as target, its damping collaborative optimisation mathematical model was built. Combining the tested signals and a simulation model with the mathematical models of parameters identification and damping collaborative optimisation, a complete flow of hybrid modelling and damping collaborative optimisation of Five-suspensions was presented. With a practical example of seat and cab system, the damping parameters were optimised and validated by simulation and bench test. The results show that the model and method proposed are correct and reliable, providing a valuable reference for the design of seat suspension and cab suspensions.     

Non-linear modelling and control of semi-active suspensions with variable damping

Electro-hydraulic dampers can provide variable damping force that is modulated by varying the command current; furthermore, they offer advantages such as lower power, rapid response, lower cost, and simple hardware. However, accurate characterisation of non-linear f–v properties in pre-yield and force saturation in post-yield is still required. Meanwhile, traditional linear or quarter vehicle models contain various non-linearities. The development of a multi-body dynamics model is very complex, and therefore, SIMPACK was used with suitable improvements for model development and numerical simulations. A semi-active suspension was built based on a belief–desire–intention (BDI)-agent model framework. Vehicle handling dynamics were analysed, and a co-simulation analysis was conducted in SIMPACK and MATLAB to evaluate the BDI-agent controller. The design effectively improved ride comfort, handling stability, and driving safety. A rapid control prototype was built based on dSPACE to conduct a real vehicle test. The test and simulation results were consistent, which verified the simulation.     

Parameters optimisation of a vehicle suspension system using a particle swarm optimisation algorithm

The purpose of this paper is to determine the lumped suspension parameters that minimise a multi-objective function in a vehicle model under different standard PSD road profiles. This optimisation tries to meet the rms vertical acceleration weighted limits for human sensitivity curves from ISO 2631 [ISO-2631: guide for evaluation of human exposure to whole-body vibration. Europe; 1997] at the driver's seat, the road holding capability and the suspension working space. The vehicle is modelled in the frequency domain using eight degrees of freedom under a random road profile. The particle swarm optimisation and sequential quadratic programming algorithms are used to obtain the suspension optimal parameters in different road profile and vehicle velocity conditions. A sensitivity analysis is performed using the obtained results and, in Class G road profile, the seat damping has the major influence on the minimisation of the multi-objective function. The influence of vehicle parameters in vibration attenuation is analysed and it is concluded that the front suspension stiffness should be less stiff than the rear ones when the driver's seat relative position is located forward the centre of gravity of the car body. Graphs and tables for the behaviour of suspension parameters related to road classes, used algorithms and velocities are presented to illustrate the results. In Class A road profile it was possible to find optimal parameters within the boundaries of the design variables that resulted in acceptable values for the comfort, road holding and suspension working space.     

Optimal selection of suspension parameters in large scale vehicle models

Optimum values are selected for the suspension damping and stiffness parameters of complex car models, subjected to road excitation, by applying suitable numerical methodologies. These models result from a detailed finite-element discretisation and possess a relatively large number of degrees of freedom. They also involve strongly nonlinear characteristics, due mostly to large rigid body rotation of some of their components and the properties of the connection elements. First, attention is focused on gaining some insight into the dynamics of the mechanical models examined, resulting when the vehicle passes over roads involving typical geometric profiles. Then, the emphasis is shifted to presenting results obtained by applying appropriate optimisation methodologies. For this purpose, three classes of design criteria are first set up, referring to passenger ride comfort, suspension travel and car road holding and yielding the most important suspension stiffness and damping parameters. Originally, the optimisation is performed by forming a composite cost function and employing a single-objective optimisation method. Since the design criteria are conflicting, a multi-objective optimisation methodology is also set up and applied subsequently.     

Hierarchical optimisation of the design parameters of a vehicle suspension system

This paper presents a design methodology for the mechanical systems entitled First Design. It is based on a hierarchical organisation of the design, taking into account the notion of robustness at an early phase of the project. The aim is to improve the quality of the system in order to make it robust, less sensitive to the variability of the external parameters and design parameters. We distinguish two main stages of the design cycle: one concerning functional parameters and another concerning physical parameters. The methodology is based on simplified models, on sensitivity analysis and on robust multi-objective optimisation. As an example, the methodology will be applied to the optimisation of vehicle suspension system design parameters. For each stage of the hierarchical design, adapted simplified models, sensitivity analyses and optimisation processes will be studied and applied to our vehicle suspension system.     

Hierarchical optimisation of the design parameters of a vehicle suspension system

This paper presents a design methodology for the mechanical systems entitled First Design. It is based on a hierarchical organisation of the design, taking into account the notion of robustness at an early phase of the project. The aim is to improve the quality of the system in order to make it robust, less sensitive to the variability of the external parameters and design parameters. We distinguish two main stages of the design cycle: one concerning functional parameters and another concerning physical parameters. The methodology is based on simplified models, on sensitivity analysis and on robust multi-objective optimisation. As an example, the methodology will be applied to the optimisation of vehicle suspension system design parameters. For each stage of the hierarchical design, adapted simplified models, sensitivity analyses and optimisation processes will be studied and applied to our vehicle suspension system.     

Railway vehicle performance optimisation using virtual homologation

Unlike regular automotive vehicles, which are designed to travel in different types of roads, railway vehicles travel mostly in the same route during their life cycle. To accept the operation of a railway vehicle in a particular network, a homologation process is required according to local standard regulations. In Europe, the standards EN 14363 and UIC 518, which are used for railway vehicle acceptance, require on-track tests and/or numerical simulations. An important advantage of using virtual homologation is the reduction of the high costs associated with on-track tests by studying the railway vehicle performance in different operation conditions. This work proposes a methodology for the improvement of railway vehicle design with the objective of its operation in selected railway tracks by using optimisation. The analyses required for the vehicle improvement are performed under control of the optimisation method global and local optimisation using direct search. To quantify the performance of the vehicle, a new objective function is proposed, which includes: a Dynamic Performance Index, defined as a weighted sum of the indices obtained from the virtual homologation process; the non-compensated acceleration, which is related to the operational velocity; and a penalty associated with cases where the vehicle presents an unacceptable dynamic behaviour according to the standards. Thus, the optimisation process intends not only to improve the quality of the vehicle in terms of running safety and ride quality, but also to increase the vehicle availability via the reduction of the time for a journey while ensuring its operational acceptance under the standards. The design variables include the suspension characteristics and the operational velocity of the vehicle, which are allowed to vary in an acceptable range of variation. The results of the optimisation lead to a global minimum of the objective function in which the suspensions characteristics of the vehicle are optimal for the track, the maximum operational velocity is increased while the safety and ride quality measures of the vehicle, as defined by homologation standards, are either maintained in acceptable values or improved.     

Linear matrix inequality based control of vehicle active suspension system

Linear matrix inequality (LMI) methods, novel techniques in solving optimisation problems, were introduced as a unified approach for vehicle's active suspension system controller design. LMI methods were used to provide improved and computationally efficient controller design techniques. The active suspension problem was formulated as a standard convex optimisation problem involving LMI constraints that can be solved efficiently using recently developed interior point optimisation methods. An LMI based controller for a vehicle system was developed. The controller design process involved setting up an optimisation problem with matrix inequality constraints. These LMI constraints were derived for a vehicle suspension system. The resulting LMI controller was then tested on a quarter-car model using computer simulations. The LMI controller results were compared with an optimal PID controller design solution. The LMI controller was further tested by incorporating a nonlinear term in the vehicle's suspension model; the LMI's controller degraded response was enhanced by using gain-scheduling techniques. The LMI controller with gain-scheduling gave good results in spite of the unmodelled dynamics in the suspension system, which was triggered by large deflections due to off-road driving.     

Stability enhancement of a high-speed train bogie using active mass inertial actuators

In this study, a method regarding frame lateral vibration control based on the state feedback of an additional oscillator is proposed, so as to improve the bogie hunting stability. The multi-objective optimisation method (MOOP), with two objective functions of the stability index and control effort, is solved by the NSGA-II algorithm to obtain the feedback gains. The frame lateral vibration control can effectively improve the bogie hunting stability according to the linear and non-linear analysis of a high-speed train bogie, in which a fault of the yaw damper and time delay in the control system are considered. The effect of the oscillator suspension parameters and time delay on the system stability and robustness are analysed. The results show that the damped vibration frequency of the oscillator should be equal to the bogie hunting frequency, but a harder oscillator suspension can be used to improve the hunting critical speed margin of the bogie control system. However, just as how the feeding the frame states back directly, a hard oscillator suspension will lead to instability in the control system at a certain time delay. Therefore, the improvement of bogie hunting stability and reduction of control system stability must be considered when optimising the oscillator parameters. For the 350?km/h train bogie covered in this study, the optimal mass, natural frequency and damping ratio of the additional oscillator are acquired.     

基于遗传算法和LQG控制的汽车半主动悬架结构和控制参数的集成优化研究

传统半主动悬架的设计是先设计其结构参数后设计其控制器参数，这样易造成系统失去全局最优性能。针对这一问题，本文提出一种基于遗传算法和LQG控制的集成优化半主动悬架结构参数和控制参数的方法，通过理论分析和仿真结果表明此方法与传统优化方法相比，对改善汽车行驶平顺性和提高汽车行驶安全性具有较优的效果。     

Design optimisation of switch rails in railway turnouts

Inspired by a manufacturing process of switch rails for railway turnouts, a method for the optimisation of switch rail profile geometry is presented. The switch rail profile geometry is parameterised with four design variables to define a B-spline curve for the milling tool profile, and two design variables to prescribe the deviation from the nominal vertical path of the milling tool. The optimisation problem is formulated as a multi-objective minimisation problem with objective functions based on the contact pressure and the energy dissipation in the wheel–rail contact. The front of Pareto optimal solutions is determined by applying a genetic type optimisation algorithm. The switch rail profile designs are evaluated by simulations of dynamic train–turnout interaction. It is concluded that the obtained set of Pareto optimal solutions corresponds to a rather small variation in design variables where increased profile height and increased profile shoulder protuberance are preferred for both objectives. The improvement in the objectives comes at the cost of an earlier wheel transition to the switch rail and thus increased vertical loading at a thinner rail cross-section. The performance of the optimised geometry is evaluated using a set of 120 measured wheel profiles, and it is shown that the optimised geometry reduces damage also for this large load collective. It is concluded that accurate limits on switch rail loading need to be established to determine the feasible design space for switch rail geometry optimisation.     

Sensitivity analysis and optimisation of suspension bushing using Taguchi method and grey relational analysis

In this paper, a novel method is presented for investigating suspension bushing based on mechanical properties of the bushing, their effective directions, spring stiffness and damping coefficient of bushing. The vehicle vibration model and suspension geometry parameters are used to optimise the vehicle suspension based on multi-body dynamics simulation (ADAMS/CAR) initially. Several experiment tests based on ISO 4128 and ISO 7401 have been performed in one of main Iranian automaker (SAIPA) in order to verify the ADAMS/CAR model. The grey relational analysis based on using Taguchi L27 orthogonal array is used to obtain the optimum suspension. Then the bushing characteristics are optimised considering the indicated method. This method considers a combination of ride comfort and handling qualities of vehicle as objective functions simultaneously. The results of optimum suspension are compared with typical Renault Logan which declares the accuracy and efficiency of this method in optimising suspension bushing.     

Analytical solutions for optimal ride comfort and tyre grip for passive vehicle suspensions

The paper derives analytical solutions for the global optimum of the ride comfort and tyre grip performance measures for a quarter-car vehicle model optimised both individually and in combination. The solutions are derived for six simple suspension networks comprising one or two springs, one damper and possibly one inerter. The solutions are functions of four vehicle parameters: the sprung mass, the unsprung mass, the tyre stiffness and the static stiffness, of the suspension.