Simulation of dynamic interaction between train and railway turnout

Dynamic train–track interaction is more complex in railway turnouts (switches and crossings) than that in ordinary tangent or curved tracks. Multiple contacts between wheel and rail are common, and severe impact loads with broad frequency contents are induced, when nominal wheel–rail contact conditions are disturbed because of the continuous variation in rail profiles and the discontinuities in the crossing panel. The absence of transition curves at the entry and exit of the turnout, and the cant deficiency, leads to large wheel–rail contact forces and passenger discomfort when the train is switching into the turnout track. Two alternative multibody system (MBS) models of dynamic interaction between train and a standard turnout design are developed. The first model is derived using a commercial MBS software. The second model is based on a multibody dynamics formulation, which may account for the structural flexibility of train and track components (based on finite element models and coordinate reduction methods). The variation in rail profile is accounted for by sampling the cross-section of each rail at several positions along the turnout. Contact between the back of the wheel flange and the check rail, when the wheelset is steered through the crossing, is considered. Good agreement in results from the two models is observed when the track model is taken as rigid.     

Mathematical modelling of train–turnout interaction

The paper proposes a mathematical model of train–turnout interaction in the mid-frequency range (0–500 Hz). The model accounts for the effects of rail profile variation along the track and of local variation of track flexibility. The proposed approach is able to represent the condition of one wheel being simultaneously in contact with more than one rail, allowing the accurate prediction of the effect of wheels being transferred from one rail to another when passing over the switch toe and the crossing nose. Comprehensive results of train–turnout interaction during the negotiation of the main and the branch lines are presented, including the effect of wear of wheel/rail profiles and presence of track misalignment. In the final part of the paper, comparisons are performed between the results of numerical simulations and line measurements performed on two different turnouts for urban railway lines, showing a good agreement between experimental and numerical results.     

两种舰船—飞机耦合系统的降阶建模方法

舰船的运动和甲板的变形，对着舰飞机的冲击载荷会产生影响，而该冲击载荷又会直接影响飞行甲板的变形，因此两者的运动是耦合的，需要把它们作为一耦合系统进行分析。本文对该耦合系统提出了两种降阶建模方法。该方法首先对飞行甲板进行动力缩聚，使其只包含在整个降落过程中会与飞机起落架的运动发生耦合的所有自由度，然后把降阶了的模型与飞机一起建工耦合动力学方程。运用该方法建立起来的动力学方程规模将大大减小。通过对某型号飞机及舰船计算表明，本文提出的方法是可行的。     

Simultaneous observation of the wheels’ torques and the vehicle dynamic state

The goal of the present study is to show how it is possible to estimate online the individual torques applied at each wheel of an automotive vehicle by using an unknown input observer together with a simple nonlinear state-space model. The necessary measurements are the steering angle, the usual rotation speed of each wheel plus the vertical load at the centre of each wheel. By doing this, this study anticipates the affordability of a new generation of wheel bearing with embedded measurements of transmitted forces. Successful simulated experimentations using a realistic simulator are shown. Validations are done using classical case studies of longitudinal, lateral and coupled dynamics. The present limits and some possible improvements of the proposed method are also discussed.     

A design methodology for mechatronic vehicles: application of multidisciplinary optimization,multibody dynamics and genetic algorithms

A design methodology for mechatronic vehicles is presented. With multidisciplinary optimization (MDO) methods, strongly coupled mechanical, control and other subsystems are integrated as a synergistic vehicle system. With genetic algorithms (GAs) at the system level, the mechanical, control and other relevant parameters can be optimized simultaneously. To demonstrate the feasibility and efficacy of the proposed design methodology for mechatronic vehicles, it is used to resolve the conflicting requirements for ride comfort, suspension working spaces and unsprung mass dynamic loads in the optimization of half-vehicle models with active suspensions. Both deterministic and random road excitations, both rigid and flexible vehicle bodies and both perfect measurement of full state variables and estimated limited state variables are considered. Numerical results show that the optimized vehicle systems based on the methodology have better overall performance than those using the linear quadratic Gaussian (LQG) controller. It is shown that the methodology is suitable for complex design optimization problems where: (1) there is interaction between different disciplines or subsystems; (2) there are multiple design criteria; (3) there are multiple local optima; (4) there is no need for sensitivity analysis for the optimizer at the system level; and (5) there are multiple design variables.     

Generalised multi-axle vehicle handling

The familiar two-axle bicycle model and associated basic concepts of vehicle handling are reviewed and used to introduce minor changes in convention from the literature. The two-axle model is extended to a three-axle vehicle to illustrate the effectiveness of the notation combined with a simplifying mathematical identity found in the two-axle vehicle literature. A generalised model is then developed that produces dynamic equations of motion by inspection for a vehicle with an arbitrary number of steerable and non-steerable axles. Furthermore, the vehicle dynamic concepts of understeer and wheelbase are generalised and can be directly computed for various arbitrary vehicle configurations.     

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.     

A nonlinear virtual rider for motorcycles

This work presents a virtual rider for the guidance of a nonlinear motorcycle model. The target motion is defined in terms of roll angle and speed. The virtual rider inputs are the steering torque, the rear-wheel driving/braking torque and front-wheel braking torque. The virtual rider capability is assessed by guiding the nonlinear motorcycle model in demanding manoeuvres with roll angles of 50° and longitudinal accelerations up to 0.8 g. Considerations on the effective preview distance used by the virtual rider are included.     

内侧轴箱式转向架曲线通过性能研究

内侧轴箱式转向架是一种新型结构模式的转向架。文章通过动力学仿真软件对该结构转向架的曲线通过性能进行了计算,并在与传统转向架动力学性能对比的基础上,进一步研究了内侧轴箱式转向架的曲线通过性能。     

泥石流作用下桥墩的动力响应分析

由于部分山区桥梁跨越发育冲沟,会受到泥石流的冲击作用,基于桥梁构件能力保护原则,对泥石流作用下桥梁动力响应分析的研究就显得尤为重要。应用有限元动态接触方法对碰撞过程进行数值模拟,选取某高速公路30 m实心T墩建立三维实体有限元模型,分析其在泥石流作用下的动力响应情况。研究表明,在泥石流冲击作用下,块石与桥墩接触区及下部构件连接处应力较大,墩顶位移随上部荷载压力增大而不断减小,即设计应考虑分别提高桥墩的承载能力及其构件连接处的变形能力。