An inverse shape design method for railway wheel profiles

Optimisation of a railway vehicle–track system is a complex process. The paper presents a procedure for optimal design of a wheel profile based on geometrical wheel/rail contact characteristics such as the rolling radii difference (RRD). The procedure uses optimality criteria based on an RRD function. The criteria account for stability of wheelset, cost efficiency, minimum wear of wheels and rails as well as safety requirements. The shape of the wheel profile approximated by a piecewise cubic Hermite interpolating polynomial is varied during the optimisation process to satisfy the optimality criteria. A numerical technique called multipoint approximations based on response surface fitting (MARS) has been chosen as an optimisation method. The proposed optimum design procedure has been applied to improve the performance of metro trains in Rotterdam (RET), The Netherlands. The trains were suffering from severe wheel tread wear and as a result of that from lateral vibrations (hunting). Using the proposed procedure, a new wheel profile has been obtained and applied to the RET metro trains. The results of the optimisation have shown that the performance of a railway vehicle can be improved by improving the contact properties of the wheel and rail. After the application of the optimised wheel profile, the instability of the metro trains has been eliminated and the lifetime of the wheels has been increased from 15,000 to 120,000 km.     

Wheel/rail contact dynamics in turnout negotiations with combined nodal and non-conformal contact approach

In railroad turnouts, geometries of tongue and crossing rails are very complex and their shapes are changing along the track. Therefore, wheels are subjected to not only tread and flange contacts, but also the back-of-flange and top-of-flange contacts in the case of spring switches of tram vehicles. For this reason, one needs to deal with significant jumps in contact points for solving wheel/rail contact problems in turnout, and an accurate prediction of jumps in contact points is one of the most important issues that need to be carefully handled in the dynamic simulation of vehicle/turnout interactions. In this investigation, a numerical procedure that can be used for solving such a complex wheel/rail contact problem in turnout is proposed. In particular, a combined nodal and non-conformal contact approach is developed such that significant jumps in contact points are detected using the nodal search, while the exact location of contact point is then determined with continuous surface parameterizations using non-conformal contact equations. With this combined nodal and non-conformal contact approach for the contact geometry analysis of vehicle/turnout interactions, multiple look-up contact tables can be generated in an efficient way without losing accuracy. Since detailed contact search is performed off-line to obtain look-up contact tables, significant changes in contact points in turnout can be efficiently predicted on-line with tabular data to be interpolated in a standard way. Several numerical examples are presented in order to demonstrate the use of the numerical procedure developed in this investigation.     

基于多体动力学的车辆道岔通过性能研究

道岔复杂的轮轨关系及其变截面特性是车辆通过道岔时引起振动甚至脱轨的关键因素.根据60kg/m钢轨18号可动心轨道岔设计布置图,在多体动力学软件中建立车辆—道岔耦合系统模型,在此基础上对车辆—道岔系统模型进行验证,仿真计算车辆侧向和直向通过道岔的动力学响应.结果表明转辙器区、辙叉区轨道截面变化和轮轨型面匹配是影响车辆动力学性能的主要因素.最后,对车辆侧向通过离散轨道模型工况下的动力学响应进行仿真计算,讨论道岔轨下整体刚度和阻尼对模型动力学性能的影响,为改善车辆通过道岔时的动力学性能、道岔轨下刚度与阻尼参数匹配提供理论基础.     

Synergetic control of asynchronous electric traction drives of locomotives

The problem of synthesis of the control system of locomotive asynchronous electric traction drives with regard to processes in the wheel-rail contact. In this system, the wheels can slip relative to the rail, and the excessive slippage has a negative effect on the locomotive traction properties and increases the wear of the wheel pair and rail surface. Modern techniques of solving this problem are based on the forced increase of the coefficient of traction in the wheel-rail contact and on tracking the acceleration of the wage wheels rotation rate as the wheel slip development is evaluated. A new approach to the synthesis of locomotive traction controllers is proposed that is based on the theory of synergetic control. The proposed traction controller ensures a prescribed slip rate of the wage wheels relative to the rail thus ensuring the maximum traction; furthermore, this controller minimizes the loss of energy in the power unit of the electric traction drive.     

车轮滑行轮轨热接触耦合有限元分析

为研究轮轨接触温升和热应力规律,用有限元法分别建立锥型踏面车轮和磨耗型踏面车轮在60kg／m钢轨上滑行的三维热接触耦合模型．考虑温度场与结构场相互影响、相关材料参数随温度变化以及轮轨接触问题,对在一定速度下抱死滑行时轮轨温度场和应力场的热一结构直接耦合进行分析．结果表明磨耗型踏面车轮的接触斑面积大于锥型踏面车轮的接触斑面积,且前者接触斑趋近于圆形,后者接触斑为细长椭圆形;材料参数随温度的变化对轮轨温度场和应力场影响很大,不可忽略;温度场对应力场的影响很大,温度升高的趋势与应力升高的趋势相同;磨耗型踏面对轮轨的热损伤比锥型踏面小很多．     

Wheel-rail contact elements incorporating irregularities

The aim of this study is to simulate the dynamic vertical response of a vehicle traversing rigid rails and a railway bridge. This is achieved by using the authors' wheel-rail contact element (WRC) to model the dynamic interaction that exists between a sprung wheel, using a Hertzian spring, and the rail. The objective in creating these elements was to model the rail and wheel irregularities, which was not a feature of the contact elements within the ANSYS finite element program. In this paper the numerical results generated using the authors' WRC element are identical to the results generated using the commercial contact element of ANSYS for a smooth rail condition. In the case of irregular rails, the numerical results generated using the authors' WRC elements compare very favourably with the results from the literature.     

长春轻轨3号线钢轨轨底坡对列车车轮磨耗的影响

摘要： 为探究小半径曲线钢轨轨底坡对车轮磨耗的影响规律,建立长春市轻轨3号线70%低地板轻轨列车车轮磨耗预测分析模型,包括独立旋转轮对的车辆 轨道耦合动力学计算模型、轮轨接触模型和Archard材料磨耗模型,并采用这些模型分析轻轨列车通过小半径曲线轨道时轨底坡对车轮磨耗的影响。分析结果表明：轻轨列车通过小半径曲线轨道时,动车轮对的磨耗程度比拖车轮对更严重,动车轮对总磨耗量为拖车轮对总磨耗量的159%;从轮对自身来看,内侧车轮的磨耗均比外侧车轮的磨耗严重,内侧车轮总磨耗量为外侧车轮总磨耗量的165%;钢轨轨底坡对车轮磨耗的影响显著,车轮踏面最大磨耗量出现位置随轨底坡变化的规律较为复杂,车轮轮缘磨耗量在轨底坡为1/20时最小。     

钢轨波磨对地铁车辆动力学响应的影响

建立地铁车辆-轨道耦合动力学模型,将钢轨视为弹性离散点支撑的无限长Timoshenko梁,将实测钢轨短波波磨不平顺数据作为不平顺激励.通过数值计算得到在科隆蛋扣件线路上不平顺发展过程中车辆动力学响应的变化情况.随着短波波磨不平顺幅值的增大,轮对和转向架的横、垂向加速度以及轮轨横、垂向力均呈增大趋势,且受不平顺程度的影响较大.结果表明钢轨波磨主要影响车辆系统的垂向振动.     

A new method for modelling and simulation of the dynamic behaviour of the wheel-rail contact

This paper presents a new method for modelling and simulation of the dynamic behaviour of the wheel-rail contact. The proposed dynamic wheel-rail contact model comprises wheel-rail contact geometry, normal contact problem, tangential contact problem and wheelset dynamic behaviour on the track. This two-degree of freedom model takes into account the lateral displacement of the wheelset and the yaw angle. Single wheel tread rail contact is considered for all simulations and Kalker s linear theory and heuristic non-linear creep models are employed. The second order differential equations are reduced to first order and the forward velocity of the wheelset is increased until the wheelset critical velocity is reached. This approach does not require solving mathematical equations in order to estimate the critical velocity of the dynamic wheel-rail contact model. The mathematical model is implemented in Matlab using numerical differentiation method. The simulated results compare well with the estimated results based on classical theory related to the dynamic behaviour of rail-wheel contact so the model is validated.     

Wheel/rail contact geometry on tight radius curved track: simulation and experimental validation

In this investigation, a numerical procedure for wheel/rail one and two-point contact geometry analysis is developed for predicting the location of contact points in curved negotiations on a tight radius curved track. The proposed method accounts for the change in the longitudinal location of contact point along the curved track as well as the circumferential contact point on the wheel flange. For the purpose of validation, simulation results for one and two-point contact scenarios are compared with those obtained using the experiment. The experiment is performed on a test track of R48 curve using an actual truck, and the location of contact points for given lateral and yaw displacements are measured on the tight radius curved track. It is demonstrated that good agreements are obtained between the simulation and experimental results in tread and flange contacts.     

轴箱内置与外置直线电机地铁车辆曲线通过性能对比

为比较轴箱内置与外置直线电机地铁车辆的曲线通过性能,建立直线电机地铁车辆-无砟轨道耦合动力学模型.模型将直线电机定子和转子考虑为Euler梁,将定子与转子之间的垂向电磁力作为气隙的函数,将轨道系统简化为梁-三维实体有限元模型.详细比较轴箱内置与外置直线电机车辆曲线通过时的轮对冲角、轮轨横向力、脱轨因数、运行平稳性和车轮磨耗指数.结果表明:在不同的曲线半径和行车速度以及车轮踏面周向存在非均匀磨耗的状态下,轴箱内置直线电机车辆的曲线通过性能均优于轴箱外置车辆;随着曲线半径增加,轴箱外置直线电机车辆动力学性能迅速减小,而轴箱内置式车辆缓慢减小.     

Influence of track conditions and wheel wear state on the loads imposed on the infrastructure by railway vehicles

Nowadays, one of the most sensible issues in the railway industry is the damage on vehicles caused by the track conditions and the infrastructure deterioration due to the trains’ passage. Therefore, it is essential to acquire a better understanding on how the operation conditions influence the wear evolution of the railway wheels and the consequences of their changing profiles on vehicle–track interaction forces. In this work, a computational tool is used to simulate the dynamic performance of integrated railway systems and to predict the wear evolution of wheel profiles. The tool is applied to realistic operational scenarios with the purpose to evaluate the influence of the track conditions, defined by the track geometry and by its irregularities, on the wear progression of railway wheels. The loads imposed to the railway infrastructure by a trainset running at different velocities, on a track with and without irregularities, and equipped with wheelsets having new and worn profiles is also studied. The studies performed here show that the levels of track irregularities considered have a negligible influence on the wear progression. Furthermore, the loads imposed to the track during trainset operation are not affected by the wear state of the wheels. On the other hand, the track imperfections can affect significantly the vehicle–track interaction forces.     

Effect of tangent track buckle on vehicle derailment

In order to investigate the effect of a tangent track buckle on the dynamic derailment of a railway vehicle, a coupled vehicle/track dynamics model is developed, in which the vehicle is modeled as a 35 D.O.F. multibody system and the track is modeled as a 3-layer discrete elastic support model. Rails are assumed to be Timoshenko beams supported by discrete sleepers, and the effects of vertical and lateral motions and rolling of the rail on the wheel/rail creepages are taken into account. The sleepers are treated as Euler beams on elastic foundation for the vertical vibration, while as lumped masses in the lateral direction. A moving sleeper support model is developed to simulate the effect of the periodical discrete sleepers on the vehicle/track interaction. The vehicle and the track are coupled by wheel/rail contacts whereas the normal forces and the creep forces are calculated using the Hertzian contact theory and the nonlinear creep theory by Shen et al., respectively. The equations of motion of the coupled vehicle/track system are solved by means of an explicit integration method. A tangent track buckle is simulated with a cosine function, which describes the misalignment of the track with different lengths due to its buckling. In the analysis the effects of the buckle wavelength and amplitude and of the vehicle speed on the dynamic behavior of the coupled vehicle/track system are considered. The present paper analyzes in detail the conventional derailment coefficients which include the ratio of the wheel/rail lateral force to the vertical force, the wheel load reduction, and the new criteria indicating the wheel/rail contact point traces and the wheel rise with respect to the rail. These criteria are simultaneously used to evaluate the risk of derailment of the whole vehicle. The numerical results obtained indicate that the track misalignment caused by the buckle and the vehicle speed have a great influence on the whole vehicle running safety when the vehicle passes through the buckled tangent track.     

轻轨线路曲线半径对车轮磨耗的影响

为分析线路曲线半径对轻轨列车车轮磨耗的影响,以长春市轻轨3号线70％低地板轻轨列车车轮为研究对象,建立独立旋转轮对的轻轨车辆-轨道耦合动力学计算模型、轮轨接触模型和Archard材料磨耗模型,对轻轨列车车轮磨耗进行仿真分析.计算结果表明:轻轨列车通过半径为50 m的曲线时,圆曲线上的车轮磨耗比缓和曲线更严重,整体轮对比独立轮对磨耗更严重;曲线半径大于150 m时,内、外侧车轮磨耗随着曲线半径增大而减小,并且在曲线半径相同的条件下,独立轮对各车轮磨耗量均比整体轮对各车轮磨耗量约大2 ～3 mm;随着列车行驶里程的增加,车轮磨耗率有先增大后减小的变化趋势,即可以将车轮磨耗分为快速磨耗和稳定磨耗2个阶段.轻轨车辆外侧车轮的磨耗率大于内侧车轮,说明车轮磨耗主要发生在外侧车轮.     

变轨距货车转向架的动力学分析

建立了考虑轮轴间隙的三大件式变轨距货车转向架动力学模型,研究车辆在准轨和宽轨线路上的动力学性能和LM踏面在不同轨距线路上的轮轨接触关系.考虑轨距为1435mm和1520mm、轨底坡为1/40和1/20、标准和打磨后的多种钢轨廓形与LM踏面匹配,发现LM踏面对两种轨底坡的兼容性较好,而踏面磨耗后对轨底坡变化较敏感;LM踏面在准轨线路上对轮轴横向间隙比较敏感,而在宽轨线路上则不存在这个问题.轮轴之间的横向和旋转间隙会导致车辆临界速度降低,建议控制间隙在0.6mm和0.5mrad以内;轮轴间隙不影响车辆运行安全性和平稳性,且在准轨和宽轨线路上的动力学指标基本无差异.变轨距车辆运行过程中,轮轨横向力和纵向蠕滑力会导致轮轴横向间隙和旋转间隙动态变化,变化量为间隙值;给出轮轴间隙与轮轨载荷的正态分布统计,发现轮轴间隙载荷与轮轨载荷相当.     

A contribution to the calculation of the contact stress distribution between two elastic bodies of revolution with non-elliptical contact area

A numerical method is presented for calculating the contact area and the normal stress distribution between two elastic bodies of revolution with parallel axes. For the discretization of the Fredhom integral equation the contact area is divided into strips perpendicular to the axes of revolution. The stress distribution in each strip is assumed to be semi-elliptical in the strip direction and constant in the other direction. The contact area is calculated iteratively by satisfying the contact condition and the stress condition. In addition for a given total normal force an additional iteration is required to improve the value obtained for the rigid-body approach. The contact area and the stress distribution between two ellipsoids are compared with Hertzian solutions. To investigate the non-Hertzian contact problem a number of cases of wheel-rail contact are considered.     

基于Gocator视觉传感器的轨头参数计算

轮轨间紧密接触使轨头轮廓产生不规则变化,传统钢轨检测方法主要测量钢轨的垂直磨耗和水平磨耗,不能全面反映钢轨横截面的轮廓信息。基于Gocator视觉传感器采集、拼接得到的完整轨头轮廓数据及标准钢轨轨头轮廓曲线解析式,提出计算轨头剩余面积、轨头45°角磨耗和轨头角度参数的计算方法。该方法通过传感器拼接得到的离散点数据,采用优化分段三次的拟合方法进行多项式拟合,依次对多项式积分得到整个轨头剩余面积;通过轨头45°角所在直线与测量轮廓的交点计算其磨耗;通过计算轨头圆弧相交点处切线斜率得到轨头角度。实验数据表明,在钢轨同一截面计算得到的参数误差小,精度高,计算速度快,这些参数的有效测量值为钢轨自动化打磨维护提供指导意义。     

Decision on economical rail grinding interval for controlling rolling contact fatigue

Rail players around the world have been increasing axle loads to improve the productivity of freight and heavy haul operations. This has increased the risk of surface cracks at curves because of rolling contact fatigue. Rail grinding has been considered an effective process for controlling these cracks and reducing risks of rail breaks. The complexity of deciding the optimal rail grinding intervals for improving the reliability and safety of rails is because of insufficient understanding of the various factors involved in the crack initiation and propagation process. This paper focuses on identifying the factors influencing rail degradation, developing models for rail failures and analyzing the costs of various grinding intervals for economic decision making. Various costs involved in rail maintenance, such as rail grinding, downtime, inspection, rail failures and derailment, and replacement of worn‐out rails, are incorporated into the total cost model developed in this paper. Field data from the rail industry have been used for illustration.     

滚动接触疲劳载荷对铁轨表面接触疲劳裂纹应力强度系数的影响

为研究轮轨滚动接触疲劳(Rolling Contact Fatigue,RCF)载荷对铁轨表面裂纹应力强度系数的影响,以UIC60铁轨轮廓尺寸为依据建立轮轨接触的三维有限元模型,通过改变RCF载荷大小、轮轨表面摩擦因数和接触中心位置等轮轨接触的输入参数,计算铁轨表面接触裂纹尖端的应力强度系数,分析RCF载荷对铁轨表面接触疲劳裂纹的影响.结果表明RCF载荷作为控制铁轨表面接触裂纹的重要因素,其变化直接导致裂纹尖端应力强度系数的变化,从而改变裂纹的扩展状况.为减缓铁轨表面裂纹的扩展,可以针对载荷采取均匀分布载重量、使用润滑剂降低轮轨摩擦因数等相应措施.