Study on control of air suspension system for railway vehicle to prevent wheel load reduction at low-speed transition curve negotiation

Abstract

This article presents the curving performance of railway vehicles with air suspensions. Air suspensions sometimes cause reduction of wheel load at transition curve, which will reduce the margin for the safety of curve passing. And it may be the reason of derailment. In this study, the reduction of wheel load was restrained by using the new concept devices. The proposed active control device can supply air to, or exhaust air from, air springs by manipulating the levelling valve (LV), which is the core component of the current air suspension system, so that the distribution of pressure to each air spring can be controlled, and the reduction of wheel load can be prevented. At the same time, the proposed system is secured from electronic fail because the current air suspension system can be restored mechanically. Computer simulation and bench experiments were practised, and the expected control performance was obtained. As a result, the reduction of wheel load was restrained, and the safety of running was enhanced.