Locomotive Control Compartment Safety Program: Locomotive Heavy Axle Load Tests

摘要

The Federal Railroad Administration sponsored a program to evaluate the wheel onrail dynamic safety performance of locomotives with increased cab weight at the Transportation Test Center, Pueblo, Colorado. The increased weight represents the weight of a cab reinforced to protect the occupants in the case of an accident. The program consisted of on-track tests to evaluate the safety performance, and assembly and validation of a mathematical model of the locomotive to be used to extend the scope of the track tests. Tests were performed to measure the suspension characteristics of a locomotive. The data was used as input to a mathematical model that could be used to simulate the locomotive under a wide range of track conditions. The model was verified by comparison with the results of the on-track tests.