Dynamics of Railway Vehicle Systems

Dynamics of Railway Vehicle Systems offers a comprehensive and analytical treatment of the rail-wheel interaction problem and its effect on vehicle dynamics. The development of mathematical models and their applications to dynamic analyses and the design of railway vehicles are discussed. This book consists of 11 chapters and opens with an overview of the background material required to study the dynamics of railway vehicles, with emphasis on analytical techniques used to determine the dynamic response of single- and multiple-degree-of-freedom systems. Numerical solutions of linear and nonlinear dynamic systems are also given, and various problems associated with the dynamic behavior of railway vehicles are addressed. Several mathematical models are proposed to study these problems. The following chapters focus on the wheel-rail rolling contact theories being applied in railway vehicle dynamics problems; modeling of the vehicle and its components on both tangent and curved railroad tracks; and the interaction between railway vehicles and bridges. The final chapter underscores the needs for validating mathematical models that are used to study the dynamic behavior of railway vehicles and train consists. This monograph will be of value to design and research engineers, transportation officials, mathematicians, analysts, and research workers interested in the dynamics of railway vehicle systems.