Assessment of overturning risk of railway vehicles in crosswinds

This paper presents an analytical method for calculating the stability of rolling stock to address some overturning problems associated with the railway vehicles in crosswinds. Based on the quasi-steady theory, a calculation formula with consideration of the effects of different turbulent components and various incoming wind direction, is proposed to predict the aerodynamic forces on the moving vehicle. A steady overturning model and the dynamic multi-body simulation (MBS) are then set up to calculate the wheel unloading factor of railway vehicles. Furthermore, the characteristic wind curves (CWC) for determining the crosswind stability of vehicles are given. It is found that higher mean wind and vehicle speeds generally increase the risk of overturning. The result obtained from the static analysis can be used as an approximate overturning assessment due to the simple model and built-in margins. The dynamic effects of the track irregularity and wind turbulence make the critical wind speed in the MBS method is possible to be more precise. The calculated CWC in the study case can guide the operation and management of railway vehicles in a strong crosswind environment.