There is an increasing demand for railway vehicles with passive safety features. The basic contradiction between crashworthiness and the high static longitudinal compression strength of the car body structure is well-known. A very similar situation has repeatedly been found in the development of crash modules: The modules have to absorb energy and have to withstand transversal loads. The problem of this contradiction is discussed in detail in this paper. Furthermore, three design solutions are presented. Finally, an overview of the methods established at MTS for the investigation of crash modules is given. The principle of passive safety has two major objectives: -Maximum of energy absorption; -Minimum of crash forces and accelerations. In order to achieve these goals, it is necessary to optimise the structural behaviour. One possibility is the attachment of crash modules at the front or rear end of a vehicle. The central car body itself is not assumed to contribute to the overall crashworthiness. The body shell with the passenger compartments is solely designed to withstand the required static compression loads and the maximum crash forces of the modules. Consequently, the controlled structural energy absorption will only happen within the crash modules. This design concept has frequently been chosen for the following reasons: -Demanding static requirements; -Improvement of existing vehicle concepts; -Easy exchange of damaged modules. Static load requirements for railway vehicles are defined in EN 12663 and in UIC 566. Some of these requirements are very demanding and not always compatible to the general concept of passive safety. Especially the traditional US design requirements based on corner and collision posts do not allow for energy absorption at the low crash forces necessary for light railway vehicles (LRV). In order to absorb the energy required without contribution of the very stiff car body, it is necessary to arrange the crash modules at the very end of the car body. Usually, two crash modules are bolted to the car body laterally to the coupler. The presented concepts for aluminium crash modules are suitable for a controlled energy absorption between about 100 and 600 kJ per module. Therefore, such modules can guarantee the required passive safety for a light railway vehicle. Even if the railway vehicles have to be adopted to high energy collisions it might be reasonable to use replaceable crash modules for low speed impacts.


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    Title :

    On the design requirements for aluminium crash modules: energy absorption, global stability and static strength


    Additional title:

    Erfordernisse für die Auslegung verformbarer Sicherheitsstrukturen aus Aluminium: Energieabsorption, globale Stabilität und statische Festigkeit


    Contributors:
    Gmür, A. (author) / Starlinger, A. (author)


    Publication date :

    2002


    Size :

    11 Seiten, 10 Bilder


    Type of media :

    Conference paper


    Type of material :

    Print


    Language :

    English






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