Design and Simulation of a Railway Vehicle for the Transport of People with Reduced Mobility

Abstract

One of the most important aspects of the design activity of passenger railway vehicles is the optimization of the comfort level that is often in contrast with other requirements, such as low weight, to reduce energy consumption, and high and flexible seating capacity. Due to the coach weight reduction, the car body structure becomes more susceptible to structural vibrations that affect the passenger comfort. In modern vehicles, seats are important elements to achieve the desired comfort, but in order to design and estimate the actual comfort level, the whole system must be considered, including the track excitations, a vehicle detailed dynamic model, and the coach and the seat flexibility. This paper describes a numerical model of a double-deck vehicle developed using a MB code that considers measured track irregularities, a detailed vehicle model, and a transfer function of the seat obtained by experimental tests on an optimized seat. In order to make the numerical model more realistic, the coach has been modeled as a flexible body to consider the effect of its natural frequencies. The work has been performed within the "CARITAS" project, whose aim is the design of a high comfort vehicle for people with reduced mobility.

An Estimation of the Energy Savings of a Mainline Diesel Locomotive Equipped with an Energy Storage Device

“…where FL-traction force of the locomotive in traction or electrodynamic braking m MLk-mass of the locomotive section; An analysis of works devoted to the research of new technologies on rolling stock shows that mathematical modeling is used in the initial stages [16,19]. Modeling is important in creating modern equipment for vehicles [31,32] and rail transport systems in general [32][33][34]. Mathematical modeling is widely used, in particular, for the study of rolling stock [35][36][37], traction power supply systems [38][39][40], infrastructure objects [41][42][43], traffic safety assessment [44,45], transportation process management [46], etc.…”

Railways Passenger Comfort/Discomfort: Objective Evaluation

“…Derived from wheel-track interaction and rail motion, vibration is the critical factor affecting users' comfort and health, limiting their performance. Therefore, evaluating the vibration transmission in a rail environment is fundamental to quantify passengers' comfort levels and assess the harmful consequences of vibration [31][32][33][34][35].…”

Kinematic running resistance of an urban rail vehicle undercarriage: a study of the impact of wheel design

“…In principle, the height of the passengers' compartment floor in urban rail vehicles is mainly determined by the undercarriage design, including the layout of wheelsets, drivetrain, and brake system 23 , 24 . Tram undercarriage designs, which have adopted independently rotating wheels instead of standard wheels mounted on a common axle, are referred to as wheel kits or blocks due to their unique nature 25 , 26 .…”