Papers by Keyword: Rail-Wheel Interaction

Abstract: Measurement of wheel/rail contact forces is of importance. Traditional methods for wheel/rail interaction force measurement all need strain gauges on wheel sets and/or rails. Because strain gauges have the performances of zero-drift, poor anti-interference property and instability of test system, they can’t meet wheel/rail force test requirements in high-speed and heavy haul railways. A new method based on PVDF piezoelectric sensing technology is presented for the test of vertical and horizontal wheel/rail force in this paper. Firstly, based on the wheel/rail interaction characteristics, the restriction condition of track and strain sensing principle of PVDF films, principle for measuring vertical and lateral wheel/rail interaction forces is proposed. Then a series of tests were carried out to compare the performance of PVDF strain sensors with the one of strain gauges. The results show that the PVDF strain sensor has better reliability in wheel/rail force monitoring. Finally numerical analysis by Finite Element Method has been carried out to verify the feasibility of the method presented in this paper.

Abstract: This work presents the results of field measurements and laboratory studies carried out with a view to developing ways to monitor rail-wheel interaction using Acoustic Emission. It is known that impact, wear and cracking generate AE and it is therefore expected that axle loads, wheel out-of-roundness, speed and traction will influence the AE generated by an interaction. It is hoped that the extent of the effect might be sufficient to permit a measure of “interaction intensity” that could be used to quantify cumulative damage by wear and contact fatigue. In the field measurements, AE was acquired as a train with 20 moving sources of AE (20 wheels) passed a single sensor position and a laboratory rig has been devised which uses a single wheel whose condition, speed and loading can conveniently be modified. Simulated source tests have indicated that the AE wave characteristics on real rails are similar to those in the laboratory rig. A simplified analytical model, devised for AE waves propagating from a moving source(s), based on a ‘vehicle’ speed and wave damping coefficients, has been compared to measured results. As a wheel rolls towards a sensor and then away from the sensor the measured AE generally rises and falls in a predictable way. The effects of wheel and rail surface features appear to complicate the results by introducing sharp spikes in the signals. The numerical model for AE wave propagation from the moving sources (wheels) shows good agreement with the more slowly changing envelope of the signals.