An investigation into the effect of resilient wheel stiffness on the dynamic behaviour of a metro vehicle running along a tangent track

Resilient wheels are extensively used for trams due to the noise reduction they can achieve. However, the effect of the resilient wheels on vehicle dynamics has not been adequately studied. An effort is presented in this paper, trying to bridge this gap. To simulate interactions between vehicle and track, the resilient wheel is modelled as a multi-rigid body system consisting of a rigid wheel core and a rigid rim between which a rubber layer is inserted. The rubber layer is regarded as three-directional spring-damper units, allowing the rim and core to have relative motions, so that the flexibility of the resilient wheel provided by the rubber layer is fully simulated. Then, the dynamics of a vehicle-track coupling system integrated with this resilient wheel model is simulated and compared with in-situ measurement. The simulation results show that, compared with a conventional solid wheel, the vertical vibration of the wheel core is much reduced in the frequency range of 70–300 Hz while the lateral vibration is much reduced in the frequency range of 90–300 Hz. The paper continues with the recommendation of the radial and axial stiffnesses, two key parameters of the resilient wheel, aiming to lower the wheel-rail contact force and carbody vibration.