<p>Safety and comfort are more important factors prior to efficient and economic travel for any passenger train. &nbsp;Due to the wheel-rail interaction in a rail vehicle running at high speed, high amplitude vibrations occur that deteriorate the ride comfort of the passengers. So, it is significant to focuses on higher comfort level and safety of the passengers and staff. Therefore, the design of a robust suspension system is important. In comparison to a passive suspension, a semiactive system is more responsive and adaptable. In order to investigate the implication of a semiactive system, for example, a magneto-rheological (MR) damper, in an existing passive suspension it is necessary to create a model based on multibody dynamics and validate this model with oscillation test trial reports. In case of rail vehicle dynamics, due to a random track profile, it is difficult to match the acceleration profile. However, a comparison based on ride indices, such as ride comfort and ride quality are more meaningful and informative for evaluating the vehicle for the safety and comfort of passengers. The ride comfort entails that the rail vehicle is being assessed according to the effect of the mechanical vibrations exposed to the human body, whereas in case of ride quality, the rail vehicle itself is judged. There are several methods to evaluate the ride indices such as Sperling’s ride index, ISO 2631and UIC (International Union of Railways) 513R etc. Sperling’s ride index has been widely used, also by the Indian railway, due to its direct dependence on the vibration of the vehicle.</p><p>In this paper, an Indian rail vehicle multi-body dynamic model is developed by using Adams/VI-Rail software. Actual parameters of track and train coach are considered to simulate the rail vehicle model. This model is used to evaluate the ride quality and ride comfort in a passenger train where both vertical and lateral wheel-rail interaction forces are generated due to the random track irregularities. Lateral and vertical acceleration responses of the train’s carbody are also discussed in detail. Sperling’s ride index (Wz) method is used to determine the ride comfort and quality index values at a different speed&nbsp;and track irregularity. The proposed multibody dynamic model is analysed and the results are compared with oscillation test trials performed and reported by the Research Design and Standards Organisation (RDSO). The validated model can be extended for studying the improvement in the ride quality and ride comfort by introducing a semiactive suspension system based on a MR damper.</p>

Validation of an Indian Rail Vehicle Model Using Ride Indices From Oscillation Test Trials

Paper Proceedings: https://asmedigitalcollection.asme.org/IMECE/IMECE2021/volume/85543

ASME 2021 International Mechanical Engineering Congress and Exposition (IMECE2021)

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