Lateral Stability of High-Speed Trains at Unsteady Crosswind

Abstract: Crosswind stability of rail vehicles has been a research area for several decades,mainly motivated by vehicle overturning accidents and higher speeds, but in recenttimes also by issues of lower energy consumption and track maintenance costsdemanding lower vehicle weights. During everyday operation, rail vehicles are subjectedto large lateral influences from track irregularities, track curves and crosswind,leading to large suspension deflections and increased crosswind sensitivity.Also unsteady crosswind like gusts calls for attention. Simulations of possible vehicleoverturning are necessary, but need to take large deflections and high shear inthe suspension into account. If delivering reasonable results, simulations representan important tool for overturning prediction of the vehicle.In the present work, multibody simulations of a high-speed vehicle at large lateralinfluences from track curves and track irregularities have been carried out, using ahalf-vehicle model in 2D and a model of a whole vehicle in 3D. The vehicle modelsalso include different suspension models. Corresponding field measurements ofthe relative lateral and vertical deflections in the secondary suspension have beenperformed on a fast train and used for validation of the multibody simulations,resulting in good agreement between measurements and simulations.The 3D vehicle model was further used to study the vehicle response to unsteadycrosswind during curve negotiation where aerodynamic loads obtained by unsteadyComputational Fluid Dynamics, namely Detached Eddy Simulations, representingthree types of gusts were used. In addition, the method of Quasi Transient GustModelling was evaluated in terms of overturning risk. Strong lateral and roll responsesof the vehicle and influences of the gust duration and the relative differencebetween mean and maximum wind speed were observed. Further, variations of suspensionand mass properties of the vehicle were performed to study the influenceon crosswind sensitivity. The position of the centre of mass of the carbody and thelateral bumpstop clearance showed significant influence on the crosswind stability.