Dynamic interaction between train and railway turnout: full-scale field test and validation of simulation models

Abstract

Results from an extensive field test performed in a UIC60-760-1:15 turnout on Svealandsbanan in Sweden are reported. Lateral and vertical wheel-rail contact forces were measured by a wheelset instrumented with strain gauges on the wheel discs. The test train with axle load 25 tonnes passed through the turnout in the main and diverging routes and in the facing and trailing moves. The influences of train speed and moving direction on the magnitude and the position of the maximum lateral contact force in the diverging route of the switch panel, and the influences of train speed, moving direction and route on the maximum vertical contact force in the crossing panel, are investigated. Measured contact forces are compared with calculated forces for a validation of two previously developed numerical models. The magnitude and position of the calculated maximum lateral contact forces are in good agreement with the corresponding measured values. Both measurements and numerical simulations show an increase in maximum lateral contact force with increasing train speed in both the facing and trailing moves. The facing move of the diverging route leads to the highest lateral contact forces in the switch panel. The maximum vertical contact force is not influenced significantly by whether the train is moving in the facing or trailing moves. However, the train route (main or diverging) has a large influence on the maximum vertical contact force at the crossing.