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Development of a new analytical model for a railway vehicle equipped with independently rotating wheels

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Abstract

The urban tram introduced recently has a low-floor structure for the convenience of passengers getting on and off. To adjust the low-floor level and improve performance on curves, most low-floor trams have IRWs (independently rotating wheels) with no central axle between the two wheels. Eliminating the central axle, however, creates several inherent problems, such as insufficient guiding force and excessive wear. To analyze these problems, a new analytical model is described in this paper to describe the dynamic characteristics of IRWs more precisely. This analytical model is developed to consider the effects of longitudinal creep in particular, which have been ignored in conventional analytical models of IRWs. In addition, a running stability analysis based on the newly developed analytical model is conducted to compare the critical speeds of IRW-axle vehicles and rigid-axle vehicles. The dynamic characteristics of an initial disturbance are compared to verify that the analytical model is effective in expressing the dynamic characteristics of IRWs.

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Abbreviations

mw :

wheelset mass, mt: Bogie frame mass

mc :

car body mass

Iwx :

roll moment of inertia of the wheelset

Iwy :

spin moment of inertia of the wheelset

Iwz :

yaw moment of inertia of the wheelset

Iw1 :

roll moment of inertia of the wheel

Itx :

roll moment of inertia of the bogie frame

Itz :

yaw moment of inertia of the bogie frame

Icz :

yaw moment of inertia of the car body

r0 :

Wheel radius, a: Half of the truck gauge

b1 :

half of the primary longitudinal spring arm

b2 :

half of the secondary longitudinal spring arm

b3 :

half of the secondary vertical damping arm

L1 :

half of the primary lateral spring arm

L2 :

half of the primary lateral damping arm

LC :

half of the distance between bogie center

λ :

wheel conicity

Kpx :

longitudinal stiffness of the 1st suspension

Kpy :

lateral stiffness of the 1st suspension

Kpz :

vertical stiffness of the 1st suspension

Cpx :

longitudinal damping of the 1st suspension

Cpy :

lateral damping of the 1st suspension

Cpz :

vertical damping of the 1st suspension

Csx :

longitudinal damping of the 2nd suspension

Csy :

lateral damping of the 2nd suspension

Ksx :

longitudinal stiffness of the 2nd suspension

Ksy :

lateral stiffness of the 2nd suspension

f11 :

lateral creep force coefficient

f12 :

lateral/spin creep force coefficient

f22 :

spin creep force coefficient

f33 :

longitudinal creep force coefficient

WA :

axle load

FLx, FLy, FRx and FRy :

Kalker’s creep force

MLx, MRx, MLy and MRy :

Kalker’s creep moment

Ft :

Flange contact force, Kr: Lateral rail stiffness

μ:

Friction coefficient, δ: Flange clearance

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Virtual Engineering, University of Science and Technology, Daejeon, 305-3502, Korea

    Y. Cho

  2. Korea Railroad Research Institute, 360-1 Woram-dong, Uiwang-si, Gyeonggi, 437-757, Korea

    J. Kwak

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  1. Y. Cho
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  2. J. Kwak
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Correspondence to J. Kwak.

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Cho, Y., Kwak, J. Development of a new analytical model for a railway vehicle equipped with independently rotating wheels. Int.J Automot. Technol. 13, 1047–1056 (2012). https://doi.org/10.1007/s12239-012-0107-3

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s12239-012-0107-3

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