We are pleased to announce that the Scientific Council of the IPPT PAN has awarded Dariusz Kalinowski the degree of Doctor in Engineering and Technical Sciences, in the discipline of Mechanical Engineering. The title of his dissertation is: “Research on the safety conditions against derailment of modern tram vehicles by means of computer simulation” The supervisor of the dissertation was Prof. Tomasz Szolc from IPPT PAN.
Research on the safety conditions against derailment of modern tram vehicles by means of computer simulation
Railway rolling stock engineering and testing is subject to numerous European standards. Thanks to this, it is repeatable, the values of the evaluated limit parameters are strictly defined, and the tests and approval process (certification) of a particular vehicle in a particular country can be carried out in another country according to the same standards.
The issue mentioned above is different for tram vehicles. There are no dedicated international standards for testing and engineering trams only. Criteria for operational tests and safety against derailment are often adapted from existing standards for railway vehicles. However, this is not the correct approach, because trams are operated on a different infrastructure than in the case of railway vehicles. The track gauge and the tolerances for its construction and maintenance are different. The tram networks are independent of each other. Nearly each city has various vehicle kinematic gauge requirements. The profiles of the wheel and rails are also different.
The aim of this work was to develop a new and universal methodology for simulation tests of tram vehicles, regardless of the configuration of the vehicle and taking into account the specificity of its operation and infrastructure. This methodology enables a qualitative comparison of trams with various sets of car-bodies in terms of safety against derailment.
In order to confirm the significant impact of the configuration of tram car-bodies and bogies on the level of safety against derailment, a number of simulations were performed using the developed methodology. Seven configurations of tram car-bodies with identical running gear were prepared. Each of them was tested on a track gauge of 1435 mm or 1000 mm with various curve radii. The behaviour of vehicles equipped with classic wheelsets and independently rotating wheels was also compared, taking into account the group control o
