Better Trains Through Virtual Test Drives with MBS Models

The ideal vision of rail travel? Fast, quiet, comfortable, reliable. To ensure that the passenger notices as little as possible of the rough wind outside the wagon or that goods, for example, reach their destination safely over many years of use, a great deal of development work has to be carried out long before the train comes onto the rails. In addition to comfort, safety, wear, and noise reduction play a central role.

Offer & Consulting

FMD simulation of a locomotive under consideration of the relevant elastic modes

With the help of multibody simulation, new carriage concepts for modern and efficient rail transport can be optimally developed. Virtual test drives can save costly trials with physical prototypes. Based on an exact MBS model of the locomotive, wagon and wheel truck, numerous application scenarios such as, for example, a switch crossing under various driving conditions can be simulated very efficiently. Parallel to the analysis of the driving dynamics, the chassis parameters can be optimized and the wear of wheel and rail can be investigated. Simulation models are becoming more and more important in supporting the verification of vehicle technology, which can even partially be replaced.

Our rail service portfolio

Driving simulation	Simulation for determining the driving characteristics of railway vehicles according to DIN EN 14363: Simulation of track tests Assessment of the dynamic driving behavior Safety measures against derailment Evaluation of vehicle stability via force and vibration analysis Validation of simulation models
Ride comfort	Evaluation and optimization of the ride comfort in the interior (passengers, train conductor, personnel) DIN EN 12299
Clearance profil & vehicle gauge	Simulation of the clearance gauge for planning and for the determination of the vehicle gauge according to DIN EN 15273 (EBO, BOStrab, internal company guidelines)
Wheel-to-rail-contact	Simulation and optimization of the wheel-to-rail contact for Evaluation of wear on rail and track Optimization of the chassis to reduce wear of components
Proof of strength	Proof of strength for components within the scope of approval and component analysis for optimal and safe design
Crosswind / Wind characteristics	Calculation of wind characteristics according to RIL807.04, EN 14067-6 and TSI HS RST Consultation on crosswind detection of passenger vehicles Preparation of expert assessments for the crosswind verification of passenger vehicles e.g. according to RIL 807.04, EN 14067-6 or TSI HS RST
Accident cause analysis	Accident analysis via simulation and preparation of expert assessments
Infrastructure	Simulation of switches and track in connection with vehicle dynamics

For our services in rail vehicle technology, we cooperate with the company Simtes, which has many years of simulation expertise in the rail vehicle sector. In particular, we rely on the expertise of Prof. Rolf Naumann and Simtes for approval-relevant simulations, the calculation of wind characteristics, crosswind verifications and the preparation of expert assessments.