European standards have been honed to ensure a comprehensive approach to the design of safety-critical components such as wheelsets. This has helped European suppliers succeed in exporting axles, wheels and wheeisets to railways on other continents. European railways were developed when the continent was already quite densely populated, with main lines built to connect existing cities. The European approach to wheelset design was therefore influenced by several factors: (1) railways are geared towards passenger travel, requiring not just high operating speeds but also rapid acceleration and deceleration; (2) passenger operations are not always segregated from freight, and freight trains have to run at relatively high speeds in order not to restrict line capacity; (3) operation at high speeds and the requirement for high deceleration with the tread braking commonly used meant that wheelset materials had to be able to withstand repeated high heat loads. European standards define four basic materials for solid wheels. The carbon content in European materials ranges from 0-48% for ER6 to 0-6% for ER9. The success of European wheelset standards in the rest of the world can be attributed to long experience which allows suppliers to assure their customers of trouble-free operation. It is no coincidence that the nature of European railway standards reflects the local way of life, where the railway is seen as having an important role in passenger transport. This is reflected in speeds, axleloads and wheel materials. For this reason European standards are very suitable for countries that are developing rapidly and which have a high population density. Recent European standards provide a comprehensive approach to wheelset design. For example, EN13103 for calculating the design of non-powered axles and EN13104 for powered axles have no American equivalents. This is why new wheelsets for American customers have been designed on the basis of European standards.
Designing wheelsets to suit the global market
Railway Gazette International ; 169 , 9 ; 66-69
2013
4 Seiten, 7 Bilder
Article (Journal)
English
SAGE Publications | 1990
|British Library Online Contents | 2000
|Engineering Index Backfile | 1968
Engineering Index Backfile | 1964