Multiphysic modelling of railway vehicles equipped with pneumatic suspensions

This article presents a multidisciplinary approach of railway pneumatic suspension modelling: both multibody and pneumatic aspects are taken into account. The work aims at obtaining a realistic model of the secondary suspension and coupling it with a multibody model of a train. Various components of the pneumatic circuit such as bellows, tanks, pipes and valves are taken into account. The article focuses on the bellow-pipe-tank subsystem for which several modelling approaches are presented and compared. Differences between differential and algebraic models are highlighted, and an application-dependent choice between them is suggested. A complete model of the pneumatic circuit is then obtained and coupled with a multibody model of the train. As a result, the behaviour of a suburban train equipped with a pneumatic secondary suspension is analysed, in particular undesired oscillating motions which affect the comfort. Topological modifications and improvements of the suspension are also investigated and discussed.     

Total cost analysis: An alternative to benefit-cost analysis in evaluating transportation alternatives

This paper explains the theory in support of total cost analysis (TCA) to compare transportation system alternatives. The full costs of each alternative are first aggregated, including travel time costs and monetizable environmental and social costs. Many costs which are considered on the benefits side of the equation in benefit-cost analysis (BCA) as "cost savings" are brought over to the costs side. Total cost differences among alternatives are then traded off against their estimated non-monetized benefits or impacts, just as a consumer trades off product quality against cost before deciding which product he or she will buy. One advantage of TCA over traditional BCA is that the concept of "total cost" is more easily understood by the public and by political decision-makers than BCA concepts such as "net present worth", "benefit-cost ratio" and "internal rate of return". A second advantage is that there is no suggestion that all "benefits" have been considered; decision-makers are free to use their own value judgements to trade off total cost against non-monetizable social, environmental and economic impacts, just as they trade off quality and convenience against cost when purchasing goods and services in their roles as consumers. The TCA approach is demonstrated in this paper through a case study of two systemwide alternatives for the Baltimore, MD urban area.     

地铁站环控系统控制方案的节能对比研究

为明确常见的地铁车站环控系统控制方案的用能表现和节能潜力,为地铁车站节能降碳提供参考和指导,以北京、上海和广州分别作为寒冷、夏热冬冷和夏热冬暖地区的代表性城市,在 TRNSYS 软件中搭建屏蔽门地铁站模型,探究增设自控系统和优化时刻表控制这 2 种优化方案相比于当前常规的时刻表控制方案在站内环境控制、节能潜力、改造成本方面的表现。结果显示,采用 2 种优化方案均可有效提高站内空调控制温度,实现类似的站内温度控制效果。用能方面,相比于当前的时刻表控制方案,增设自控系统可为各气候区地铁站环控系统降低41%～49%的年能耗,优化时刻表控制方案可降低 38%～48%的年能耗。改造成本方面,优化时刻表控制方案仅需要提高管理水平,无需增加设备和系统,而增设自控系统方案的设备成本和后期运维管理成本较高。因此,综合考虑站内环境控制效果、能耗情况和改造成本,建议地铁站采用优化时刻表控制方案进行节能运行优化,以实现节能目标。     

集通铁路长大隧道GSM-R冗余方案研究

针对集通铁路的长大隧道,论述分布式基站和数字光纤直放站的两种冗余方案,通过分析比较两种方案的单网交织以及同站址双网冗余覆盖方式,推荐采用分布式基站单网交织冗余方案.     

Wear simulation for the centre plate arrangement of a freight car

The bodies of many railway freight cars in many countries of the world are coupled to the running gear by means of a body centre plate that makes a friction pair with a centre bowl. During motion, the bogie is rotated and moved with respect to the car body. This leads to wear on the contact surfaces. Lubrication is inexpedient in this case because the friction forces damp the vibrations (so-called bogie hunting) during motion. Usually, centre plates exhibit noticeable wear after two years of operation. Reducing wear requires knowing details of the wear process which, in turn, requires computer simulation of freight car motion for an operation period of 10–15 years. The purpose of this paper is to develop a universal method for wear simulation of friction pairs that could be used, in particular, for the centre plate of a freight car.     

Inventory,Classification, and Analysis of Special Management Areas Associated with U.S. Coastal Programs

Area-based management approaches may be beneficial in integrating sectoral, single-purpose laws and regulations; however, these benefits may not be attained if special area designations are equally sectoral or single-purpose in nature. Over 60 types of special management areas were documented under U.S. coastal programs, and a new classification scheme was developed to allow comparisons and analyses across programs. Results indicate that requirements and incentives for special area designations under the Coastal Zone Management Act did little to standardize or influence area-based management systems associated with state and territory coastal programs. Further, the absence of clear patterns within and between coastal programs with respect to special area policies suggests a limited commitment to this important aspect of coastal management. Continued research is needed to document the effectiveness of the various area-based management approaches presented in this article.     

地铁通风小系统风机送电调试的探讨

通过6个案例分析,从不同调试故障的处理方法,归纳出3类常见调试问题,进而提出分3步进行的送电调试,为快速、高效地完成通风小系统风机送电调试任务提供了一条可行的便利途径。     

Application of time-variant predictive control to modelling driver steering skill

The paper addresses the need for improved mathematical models of human steering control. A multiple-model structure for a driver's internal model of a nonlinear vehicle is proposed. The multiple-model structure potentially offers a straightforward way to represent a range of driver expertise. The internal model is combined with a model predictive steering controller. The controller generates a steering command through the minimisation of a cost function involving vehicle path error. A study of the controller performance during an aggressive, nonlinear steering manoeuvre is provided. Analysis of the controller performance reveals a reduction in the closed-loop controller bandwidth with increasing tyre saturation and fixed controller gains. A parameter study demonstrates that increasing the multiple-model density, increasing the weights on the path error, and increasing the controller knowledge range all improved the path following accuracy of the controller.     

Influence of some vehicle and track parameters on the environmental vibrations induced by railway traffic

A study is performed on the influence of some typical railway vehicle and track parameters on the level of ground vibrations induced in the neighbourhood. The results are obtained from a previously validated simulation framework considering in a first step the vehicle/track subsystem and, in a second step, the response of the soil to the forces resulting from the first analysis. The vehicle is reduced to a simple vertical 3-dof model, corresponding to the superposition of the wheelset, the bogie and the car body. The rail is modelled as a succession of beam elements elastically supported by the sleepers, lying themselves on a flexible foundation representing the ballast and the subgrade. The connection between the wheels and the rails is realised through a non-linear Hertzian contact. The soil motion is obtained from a finite/infinite element model. The investigated vehicle parameters are its type (urban, high speed, freight, etc.) and its speed. For the track, the rail flexural stiffness, the railpad stiffness, the spacing between sleepers and the rail and sleeper masses are considered. In all cases, the parameter value range is defined from a bibliographic browsing. At the end, the paper proposes a table summarising the influence of each studied parameter on three indicators: the vehicle acceleration, the rail velocity and the soil velocity. It namely turns out that the vehicle has a serious influence on the vibration level and should be considered in prediction models.