PREDICTION OF GROUND VIBRATION FROM TRAINS USING A MULTI-BODY VEHICLE MODEL COUPLED TO A 2.5D FE/BE MODEL OF THE TRACK AND GROUND

摘要

Ground vibration from trains is a growing environmental problem, especially as the speed and traffic intensity of trains increase. In order to predict vibration, and the influence of vehicle, track and ground parameters, a detailed numerical model is required. A model of the track and ground is presented based on the wavenumber domain finite element/boundary element (FE/BE) method. This so-called 2.5D approach is more efficient than a fully three-dimensional approach. The wavenumber resolution required to achieve good predictions is shown to depend on frequency and the wave speed in the ground. However, for the rail receptance it is necessary to include sufficiently high wavenumbers to capture the static deflection shape. The vehicle is represented by a multi-body model which is coupled to the track through contact springs and excited by the surface roughness. The same roughness excites each wheel/rail contact with appropriate time delay. The effect of different levels of detail in the vehicle model is studied as well as the influence of coupling between the contact points through the track/ground model. Results are presented for an example track and ground and they show good agreement with other modelling approaches.