Dynamic Analysis of Tram Vehicles Coupled With the Track System Based on Staggered Iterative Algorithm

Abstract

In recent years, a large number of tram–tracks have been constructed in typical soft soil area of China. Infrastructure defects due to the differential foundation settlement are serious issues in this area. To ensure the operation safety of the tram, the influence of different infrastructure defects on the dynamic response of the tram–track system has been investigated in this paper. A dynamic model of a five-module 100% low-floor tram vehicle coupled with a slab track system is developed based on a finite element (FE) method and multibody kinematics. The articulation between different vehicle modules, the wheel–rail nonlinear contact, pad failures, and a cavity in the subgrade have been taken into account in this model. The dynamic response of the vehicle–track coupling system to different operation speeds and infrastructure defects are calculated. Results indicate that the vibration energy of the vehicle body is mainly distributed in the frequency range below 1.5 Hz. This frequency range should be paid special attention in the durability design for the vehicle structure. When the number of the failure pads is larger than 3, the pad failure in tram–track has significant influence on the system dynamic response. A cavity in subgrade has a limited effect on high frequency vibrations (above 100 Hz) of the rail, while the low frequency vibrations (below 75 Hz) of the rail can be obviously increased by cavities in subgrade. The model can be used in the optimization of suspension parameters and the tram vehicle–track coupled vibration analysis.