Experimental and Analytical Ride Comfort Evaluation of a Railway Coach

K. V. Gangadharan
Mechanical Engineering Department, National Institute of Technology Karnataka, Surathkal,
Srinivasnagar 575025, India. Email: kvganga@nitk.ac.in or gangadharankv@yahoo.com
C.Sujatha*
Machine Dynamics Lab., Applied Mechanics Department, Indian Institute of Technology
Madras, Chennai, 600 036, India. Email: sujchand@hotmail.com or sujatha@iitm.ac.in
V. Ramamurti
Machine Dynamics Lab., Applied Mechanics Department, Indian Institute of Technology
Madras, Chennai, 600 036, India. Email: ramamurti@hotmail.com
(* Corresponding author)
ABSTRACT
The dynamic performance of a railroad vehicle as related to safety is evaluated in terms of specific performance
indices like ride quality. The ride quality is interpreted as the capability of the railroad vehicle suspension to
maintain the motion within the range of human comfort and or within the range necessary to ensure that there is
no damage to the cargo it carries. The recent trend in dynamic analysis is to make use of finite element (FE)
models, which are closer to the real systems than conventional rigid body models. Experimental and analytical
evaluation of Sperlings ride index and ISO 2631 ride comfort analysis of a suburban railroad vehicle using an
elaborate finite element model is presented in this paper. The track power spectral densities (PSDs) were used as
inputs to the system and the response predictions were carried out using random vibration theory. Measurements
were also made at different parts on the coach and bogie of an electrical multiple unit trailer (AC/EMU/T) running
on a broad gauge (1676 mm) suburban track to obtain the dynamic response under normal operating conditions.
A comparison of predicted ride index and measured ride index has been presented. A through parametric study
has brought out possible design modifications for better ride index and ride comfort.
KEY WORDS
Railroad vehicle, ride index, ride comfort, dynamic response, finite element modeling, track irregularities, power
spectral density
NOTATION
a peak acceleration S
p
(f) force power spectral density (if) receptance
B acceleration weighting factor S
x
(f) displacement power spectral density roll
f frequency (Hz) Wz Sperlings ride index pitch
[K] stiffness matrix {x} displacement vector
[M] mass matrix z bounce
1 INTRODUCTION
The dynamic performance of a railroad vehicle as related to safety is evaluated in terms of specific performance
indices. The quantitative measure of ride quality is one of such performance indices. Ride quality is interpreted as
the capability of the railroad vehicle suspension to maintain the motion within the range of human comfort and or
within the range necessary to ensure that there is no damage to the cargo it carries. The ride quality of a vehicle
depends on displacement, acceleration, rate of change of acceleration and other factors like noise, dust, humidity
and temperature. EERI report B 153/RP21 [1] gives a detailed comparison of different methods used for
evaluation of ride index. There are two approaches generally used to evaluate the ride quality of a vehicle: the
ride index method and the fatigue time method. The Sperlings ride index (Wz) is the ride index used by Indian
Railways to evaluate ride quality and ride comfort. Ride comfort implies that the vehicle is being assessed
according to the effect of the mechanical vibrations on the human body, whereas ride quality implies that the
vehicle itself is being judged. According to International Standards Organisation (ISO), the influence of vibration
on the human body is expressed by the fatigue time T. ISO 2631 (1985) [2] defines three levels of fatigue time T:
fatigue decreased proficiency, exposure limits and reduced comfort boundary.
Safety, ride comfort and economy are the major factors behind any successful transportation business.
Elmaraghy [3] presented a computer program developed in FORTRAN, to find the ride quality of a rail vehicle
considering analytical track PSDs as input. Lyon [4] described the experimental methods used for dynamic
measurement in rail vehicle research and emphasised the importance of response measurement along the length
of the coach for accurate ride quality calculation. Sujatha et al. [5] conducted experimental and analytical studies
on a typical Indian bus to evaluate whole body vibration exposure of the occupants and the driver. Finite element
(FE) models were used for the analytical studies. Suzuki [6] presented a review of various ride comfort evaluation
methods and relevant research carried out in Japan. Hariharan [7] estimated the ride index of a high power diesel
multiple unit rail coach of Indian Railways. He used the multibody simulation package, ADAMS/Rail for ride index
estimation.
This paper presents the ride index evaluation and comparison of reduced comfort boundary curves with
analytically and experimentally determined dynamic response of the Electrical Multiple Unit/Trailer (EMU/T) coach
and also presents a parametric study to evaluate possible design changes to improve ride comfort of a suburban
railroad vehicle.
2 MATHEMATICAL MODELS OF VEHICLE /TRACK SYSTEM
Sub structure
Car body
Bogie
Primary suspension
Wheel and axle
Track
Figure 1 A railway vehicle component description
Secondary suspension
An EMU/T coach running on broad gauge (1676 mm) suburban Indian track has been modelled. The vehicle
consists of a car body, two bogies per car, four wheels and two axles for each bogie (Figure 1). The vehicle has
two tier suspension bogies. The car body is connected to the bogies through the secondary suspension, which
has four sets of coil springs and two dampers in the vertical direction. Wheels and axles are connected to the
bogies through the primary suspension system. Four coil springs, two on either side of the wheel constitute the
primary suspension. These springs are vertically guided using dashpots fixed in the centre of the coil springs. Two
approaches used for modelling the track vehicle system are those using the finite element model and the rigid
body model.
2.1 Finite element models
Three different FE models were generated with increasing levels of sophistication. The simplest is the model
where the underframe alone was modelled by lumping the superstructure mass and inertia. The next level was
achieved by adding the superstructure framework on to the underframe model, neglecting the sheet metal
covering the framework. The last and most elaborate FE model is the one where the superstructure framework
and the sheet metal panels were also modelled. Details of the model developed and relevant dynamic parameters
have been presented by the one of the authors in an earlier work [8]. A brief explanation of the FE model used
has been presented in this paper.
In the FE model, the rail has been treated as a beam on elastic foundations (BEF), ie. the track has been
considered as an Euler Bernoulli beam resting on Winklers foundation with vertical translation and rotation about
lateral axis being present. The primary and secondary suspensions were modelled as springs with vertical
degrees of freedom (dof) in the case of the vertical model and as springs with vertical and lateral dof in the case
of the combined vertical and lateral model. The axle, bogie frame and underframe with sole bar, cross bearer and
superstructure framework were modelled with 3D beam elements with all the six dof present. All sheet metal
panels were modelled using triangular plate elements. The model has 576 nodes, 866 beam elements and 768
triangular plate elements. It has 3080 active dof and a bandwidth of 216. Mass and stiffness matrices were
assembled in banded form to save core and labour. The problem size is 3080 216 for the vertical and lateral
combined model (Figure 2)
Z
X
Z
Y
Y
X
Figure 2 FE model of vehicle / track system UFBP model.
2.2 Rigid body model
A rigid body model for vertical dynamics studies was developed, consisting of seven rigid bodies ie. car body, two
bogies, four wheels and axles and stiffness of primary and secondary suspensions. Degrees of freedom
considered are the bounce (z), pitch () and roll () of the car body and bogie. Besides, the wheel and axle's
bounce and roll are also taken into account adding up to 17 degrees of freedom (Figure 3). The equations of
motion were written for all the masses and moments of inertia and are rearranged in matrix form [9]
| |{ } | |{ } { } 0 x K x M = + & & (1)
z
c
z
b1
z
w1

b1

w1

b1

c
Figure 3 Seventeen dof vertical rigid body model of vehicle / track system
3 SPERLINGS RIDE INDEX (Wz)
The ride index Wz was introduced by Sperling, in order to evaluate ride quality and ride comfort of a railroad
vehicle [10]. The vehicle itself is judged by the ride quality and ride comfort implies that the vehicle is assessed
according to the effect of mechanical vibration on the occupant.
Ride quality, ( )
10 / 1 3
896 . 0 f a Wz = (2)
Ride comfort, ( ) | |
10 / 1
3
) ( 896 . 0 f F f a Wz = (3)
where a is the peak acceleration in cm/s
2
, f the frequency in Hz and F(f) the frequency dependent weighting factor
that expresses human vibration sensitivity. F(f) is different for vertical and horizontal vibration components. Table
1 gives the ride index evaluation scale. Equations (2) and (3) were rewritten without changing their contents, to
suit the use of electronic instrumentation directly to evaluate the ride index.
( )
10 / 1
3 3
B a Wz =
( )
67 . 6 / 1
2 2
B a Wz = (4)
where a is the amplitude of acceleration in cm/s
2
and B the acceleration weighting factor (Figure 4). The
frequency weighting factors are defined for ride quality and ride comfort in different directions as follows.
The weighting function B for vehicle ride quality is
( ) ( ) ( ) | |
( ) ( ) | |( )
2 / 1
2
2
3
2
2
2 2
2
2
55 . 3 1 00444 . 0 547 . 1 252 . 0 1
35 . 3 0645 . 0 056 . 0 1
14 . 1
(
(

+ +
+
=
f f f f
f f
B (5)
The weighting factor B for ride comfort in the horizontal direction is given by
( )
( ) ( )
2 / 1
2
3
2
2
2
2 2
0368 . 0 563 . 1 277 . 0 1
25 . 0 911 . 1
737 . 0
(
(

+
+
=
f f f
f f
B
w
(6)
The weighting factor B for ride comfort in the vertical direction is given by
( )
( ) ( )
2 / 1
2
3
2
2
2
2 2
0368 . 0 563 . 1 277 . 0 1
25 . 0 911 . 1
588 . 0
(
(

+
+
=
f f f
f f
B
s
(7)
Hence
s w
B B 25 . 1 = (8)






0 5 10 15 20 25 30
0.0
0.2
0.4
0.6
0.8
1.0
Ride comfort horizontal
Ride comfort vertical
Ride quality

W
e
i
g
h
t
i
n
g

f
a
c
t
o
r

B
Frequency Hz
Figure 4 Sperlings ride index frequency weighting curves
The vehicle body vibration is not at a single frequency, but encompasses a whole spectrum of frequencies in
which the natural frequencies of the vehicle are very much pronounced. In such cases, the ride index calculation
has to be done for the entire spectrum. The Wz ride factor is determined for each individual frequency from
Equation (4) and the total Wz factor is calculated as
( )
10 / 1
10 10
3
10
2
10
1 n total
Wz Wz Wz Wz Wz + + + + = (9)
or
( )
67 . 6 / 1
67 . 6 67 . 6
3
67 . 6
2
67 . 6
1 n total
Wz Wz Wz Wz Wz + + + + = (10)
The vibration spectrum of the vehicle is not discrete, but a continuous function of frequency. The total Wz ride
index can be obtained for a continuous spectrum by integration over the given range of frequencies.

10 / 1
3 3
2
1
|
|
.
|

\
|
=
f
f
df B a Wz (11)
where f
1
and f
2
are the lower and upper end of the range of frequencies considered.
Table 1 Ride evaluation scales ride quality and ride comfort [10]
Ride index Wz Ride quality
1 Very good
2 Good
3 Satisfactory
4 Acceptable for running
4.5 Not acceptable for running
5 Dangerous
Ride Index Wz Ride comfort
1 Just noticeable
2 Clearly noticeable
2.5 More pronounced but not unpleasant
3 Strong, irregular, but still tolerable
3.25 Very irregular
3.5 Extremely irregular, unpleasant, annoying;
prolonged exposure intolerable
4 Extremely unpleasant ; prolonged exposure
harmful
3.1 Ride Index Analytical Response
The ride index (both ride comfort and ride quality) was calculated from the predicted dynamic response. A railroad
vehicle can be treated as a system with eight random loadings, i.e. random input disturbances due to the track
irregularities at each of the eight rail wheel contact points. If the input from the left rail is completely correlated
with that of the right rail, then the system can be simplified to a case of four random loadings. For a single random
loading to a system, the response is given by the following equation.
) ( ) ( ) (
2
f S if f S
p x
= (12)
Equation (12) gives the simple relationship between the spectral densities of excitation and response. Here S
x
(f)
is the output displacement power spectral density, S
p
(f) is the input force power spectral density and (if) is the
ratio of displacement at any point to a unit sinusoidal force as the input. This equation can be extended for four
random loadings. The dynamic response of different points on the coach floor was predicted using the FE model
with the track irregularity PSD as input. Track PSDs of the Indian rail tracks were obtained from Iyengar and
Jaiswal [11], the origin of which can be traced to Research and Design Standards Organisation (RDSO),
Government of India, Ministry of Railways. The track PSDs used for the present work have been shown in Figure
5 as spatial PSDs.
The dynamic response at four points on the central line of the coach as indicated in Figure 6 has been
determined. Table 2 shows the ride index (vertical direction) at four different points on the coach. The table shows
both ride comfort and ride quality at different speeds. As shown in Figure. 7, the response at different points on
the coach varies at different speeds. This variation is reflected in the ride index also. In all the cases, the extreme
end of the coach has higher vibration and hence higher ride index. The pattern of variation of vertical acceleration
response along the length of the coach is not same at all speeds. This is seen from the variation of ride index at
different points too. For the coach analysed, upto 60 kmph, ride comfort value is less than 2, i.e. in the just
noticeable to clearly noticeable region. From 75 kmph to 150 kmph, ride comfort is in the range of more
pronounced but not unpleasant to strong, irregular, but still tolerable region. Similarly, ride quality upto 60 kmph
varies from good to satisfactory and 75 kmph to 150 kmph, it is in the range of satisfactory to acceptable for
running. It is to be stressed that the coach used for the analysis is a suburban coach which runs at an average
speed of 45 kmph. From the lateral acceleration response, ride index in the lateral direction was calculated and
tabulated in Table 3. The lateral acceleration levels were higher than the vertical acceleration and at speeds
above 75 kmph, the vehicle showed acceleration levels and ride indices higher than the acceptable limits. The
lateral rms acceleration does not vary along the length of the coach and hence same ride indices were found at
different locations on the coach floor.




















0.01 0.1 1
10
-1
10
0
10
1
10
2
10
3
Track vertical profile PSD
V
e
r
t
i
c
a
l

p
r
o
f
i
l
e

m
m

2

/

(
c
/
m
)
Frequency c/m
0.01 0.1 1
10
-2
10
-1
10
0
10
1
10
2
10
3
10
4
Track alignment PSD
A
l
i
g
n
m
e
n
t

m
m

2

/

(
c
/
m
)
Frequency c/m
0.01 0.1 1
10
-2
10
-1
10
0
10
1
10
2
10
3
10
4
Track Cross level PSD
C
r
o
s
s

l
e
v
e
l


m
m

2

/

(
c
/
m
)
Frequency c/m
0.01 0.1 1
10
-2
10
-1
10
0
10
1
10
2
10
3
10
4
Track gauge PSD
G
a
u
g
e


m
m

2

/

(
c
/
m
)
Frequency c/m
Figure 5 Geometrical track irregularity PSDs in spatial domain (mm
2
/(cycle/m) vs cycle/meter)
1 3 5
7
2 4 6 8
Longitudinal
L
a
t
e
r
a
l
Figure 6 Measurement points on the floor of the coach (Top view of the floor)







0 4000 8000 12000 16000 20000
0.00
0.02
0.04
0.06
0.08
0.10
150
120
90
75
60
45
30
15
Vertical rms acceleration along solebar length

S
p
e
e
d

k
m
p
h
Distance along solebar mm
V
e
r
t
i
c
a
l

r
m
s

a
c
c
e
l
e
r
a
t
i
o
n

g
Figure 7 The vertical rms acceleration response along solebar length
Table 2 Ride index predicted (vertical direction) at different speeds
Ride quality
(at locations 2, 4, 6 and 8 on floor)
Ride comfort
(at locations 2, 4, 6 and 8 on floor)
Speed
kmph 2 4 6 8 2 4 6 8
15 1.26 1.22 1.30 1.36 1.43 1.36 1.46 1.56
30 1.90 1.38 2.03 1.47 2.31 1.51 2.46 1.66
45 1.84 1.56 1.96 1.64 2.20 1.64 2.37 1.82
60 1.84 1.81 1.84 1.87 2.01 1.91 1.94 2.02
75 2.15 2.10 2.24 2.22 2.38 2.23 2.51 2.37
90 2.56 2.51 2.72 2.72 2.83 2.70 3.03 2.92
120 2.80 2.78 2.94 3.20 3.03 2.99 3.17 3.24
150 2.73 2.65 2.79 2.84 3.07 2.96 3.14 3.18
Table 3 Ride index predicted (lateral direction) at different speeds
Ride quality
(at locations 2, 4, 6 and 8 on floor)
Ride comfort
(at locations 2, 4, 6 and 8 on floor)
Speed
kmph 2 4 6 8 2 4 6 8
15 2.26 2.26 2.26 2.26 2.58 2.58 2.58 2.59
30 2.31 2.31 2.31 2.31 2.65 2.65 2.65 2.65
45 2.06 2.06 2.06 2.06 2.40 2.40 2.40 2.40
60 2.02 2.02 2.02 2.02 2.29 2.29 2.29 2.29
75 2.81 2.81 2.81 2.81 3.22 3.22 3.22 3.22
3.2 Ride Index Measured Response
The ride comfort and the ride quality were calculated from the measured acceleration responses at different
points on the coach. The measurements were carried out at different stretches of suburban track at about 45
kmph speed as explained in [12]. Table 4 shows the comparison of the ride index calculated from the analytical
response and the measured response in the vertical direction and Table 5 shows the comparison of lateral ride
indices. The ride index obtained from measured response has the same pattern of variation as the analytical ride
index with 10 to 30 % higher magnitudes. The measured dynamic response also has the same level of higher
values; this can be attributed to incomplete inputs used for analytical prediction, system parameter variation and
possible small speed variations during measurement. Along with the track irregularities, irregularities on wheels
like wheel flats might have been present in the normal running condition. The coaches used for measurement
were the same as the one modelled, but a difference in system properties due to extensive use might have been
present. The track PSD used for analysis was measured on a continuously welded main line track [11], whereas
the response measurements were carried out on suburban tracks with short welded rails. It has been found that
there are variations in the response amplitude for different stretches of the track. Tables 4 and 5 give two sets of
ride indices calculated from the dynamic response measured on different stretches of the track.
The FE model was used to predict the ride index of the railroad vehicle at different locations of the coach floor.
There exist considerable variation of the ride indices calculated from one end of the coach to the middle of the
coach (Table 2). The measured response and corresponding ride indices verified these analytical findings. A rigid
body model cannot predict the variation in the ride index along the length of the coach. This emphasises the need
for using an FE model for ride index analysis. The measured ride indices show that the ride comfort at 45 kmph is
in the range of clearly noticeable to more pronounced but not unpleasant. It has been found that the end of the
coach has higher vibration levels than the rest of it. The analytical studies show that the car cg can have higher or
lower amplitude of vertical acceleration response compared to other points on the coach depending on the
location in the coach and speed (Figure 7). This has been clearly brought out in the analytical ride indices shown
in Table 2.
Table 4 Comparison of analytical and experimental ride indices at 45 kmph vertical
Analytical Experimental* Location
on the
coach
Ride quality Ride comfort Ride quality Ride comfort
2 1.84 2.20 2.58
2.59
2.82
2.84
4 1.56 1.64 2.01
2.02
2.21
2.26
6 1.96 2.37 2.36
2.16
2.71
2.23
8 1.64 1.82 2.19
2.02
2.44
2.26
Table 5 Comparison of analytical and experimental ride indices at 45 kmphlateral
Analytical Experimental* Location
on the
coach
Ride quality Ride comfort Ride quality Ride comfort
2 2.06 2.40 3.09
3.07
3.34
3.32
4 2.06 2.40 3.12
3.10
3.37
3.36
6 2.06 2.40 3.00.
3.15
3.11
3.38
8 2.06 2.40 3.01
3.06
3.14
3.21
* Two sets of values for two similar stretches of track indicated
4 COMFORT GUIDELINES ISO 2631
The evaluation of ride comfort involves assessment of human sensitivity to vibration, which depends not only on
the physiological and biomechanical response of the human body, but also on a number of psychological and
environmental factors. The human reaction to vibration is a function of the amplitude and frequency of
acceleration applied to the body, the direction (vertical and horizontal) and character of the motion (linear or
rotation). Extensive research has been conducted on human sensitivity to vibration and its results have been
reviewed in literature [13]. The International Standards Organisation [2] has specified numerical values for limits
of exposure to vibrations transmitted from a solid surface to the human body in the frequency range of 1 80 Hz.
These limits cover human sensitivity to vertical and lateral vibration to periodic vibration exposure time ranging
from 1 minute to 24 hours.
Figure 8 shows the predicted vertical rms acceleration response of car cg in onethird octave bands at different
speeds, superimposed over ISO curves for 1 hour and 8 hour reduced comfort boundaries. It can be seen from
the figure that upto 90 kmph, the response acceleration levels are below the 1 hour curve. The frequency range of
the analytical response increases with speed as the input temporal track PSD has larger frequency components
at higher speeds. Predicted vertical acceleration response of four different points on the coach floor has been
plotted along with ISO curves in Figure 9. The rms acceleration values in onethird octave bands of the measured
acceleration response in the vertical direction, of four different points on the coach floor were calculated and
plotted along with ISO curves in Figures 10









2 5 12.5 31.5
0.001
0.010
0.100









2 5 12.5 31.5
0.001
0.010
0.100









2 5 12.5 31.5
0.001
0.010
0.100









2 5 12.5 31.5
0.001
0.010
0.100









2 5 12.5 31.5
0.001
0.010
0.100









2 5 12.5 31.5
0.001
0.010
0.100
ISO 1 Hr
ISO 8 Hr
30 kmph
Frequency Hz
ISO 1 Hr
ISO 8 Hr
90 kmph
R
m
s

a
c
c
e
l
e
r
a
t
i
o
n


g
R
m
s

a
c
c
e
l
e
r
a
t
i
o
n


g
Frequency Hz
ISO 1 Hr
ISO 8 Hr
120 kmph
R
m
s

a
c
c
e
l
e
r
a
t
i
o
n


g
Frequency Hz
ISO 1 Hr
ISO 8 Hr
45 kmph
R
m
s

a
c
c
e
l
e
r
a
t
i
o
n


g
R
m
s

a
c
c
e
l
e
r
a
t
i
o
n


g
Frequency Hz
ISO 1 Hr
ISO 8 Hr
60 kmph
R
m
s

a
c
c
e
l
e
r
a
t
i
o
n


g
Frequency Hz
ISO 1 Hr
ISO 8 Hr
150 kmph
Frequency Hz
Figure. 8 Analytical vertical response (1/3 octave rms acceleration) and ISO curves for reduced comfort boundary
for 1 hour and 8 hours at various speed.






2 5 12.5 31.5
1E-3
0.01
0.1






2 5 12.5 31.5
1E-3
0.01
0.1






2 5 12.5 31.5
1E-3
0.01
0.1






2 5 12.5 31.5
1E-3
0.01
0.1
ISO 1 hr
ISO 8 hr
45 kmph
R
m
s

a
c
c
e
l
e
r
a
t
i
o
n

g
Verrtical rms acceleration at point 2
R
m
s

a
c
c
e
l
e
r
a
t
i
o
n

g
Frequency Hz
ISO 1 hr
ISO 8 hr
45 kmph
R
m
s

a
c
c
e
l
e
r
a
t
i
o
n

g
R
m
s

a
c
c
e
l
e
r
a
t
i
o
n

g

Frequency Hz
Verrtical rms acceleration at point 4
ISO 1 hr
ISO 8 hr
45 kmph

Frequency Hz
Verrtical rms acceleration at point 6
ISO 1 hr
ISO 8 hr
45 kmph
Frequency Hz
Verrtical rms acceleration at point 8
Figure. 9 Analytical vertical response (1/3 octave rms acceleration) of different points on a coach floor and ISO
curves for reduced comfort boundary for 1 hour and 8 hours






2 5 12.5 31.5
1E-3
0.01
0.1






2 5 12.5 31.5
1E-3
0.01
0.1






2 5 12.5 31.5
1E-3
0.01
0.1






2 5 12.5 31.5
1E-3
0.01
0.1
ISO 1 hr
ISO 8 hr
45 kmph
R
m
s

a
c
c
e
l
e
r
a
t
i
o
n

g
Verrtical rms acceleration at point 2
R
m
s

a
c
c
e
l
e
r
a
t
i
o
n

g
Frequency Hz
ISO 1 hr
ISO 8 hr
45 kmph
R
m
s

a
c
c
e
l
e
r
a
t
i
o
n

g
R
m
s

a
c
c
e
l
e
r
a
t
i
o
n

g

Frequency Hz
Verrtical rms acceleration at point 4
ISO 1 hr
ISO 8 hr
45 kmph

Frequency Hz
Verrtical rms acceleration at point 6
ISO 1 hr
ISO 8 hr
45 kmph
Frequency Hz
Verrtical rms acceleration at point 8
Figure. 10 Measured vertical response (1/3 octave rms acceleration) of different points on a coach floor and ISO
curves for reduced comfort boundary for 1 hour and 8 hours
5 PARAMETRIC STUDY
A parametric study was undertaken to find the influence of different suspension parameters on the dynamic
response or ride index. This study was carried out using the 17 dof vertical rigid body model and track PSD as
inputs. The parameters considered for the analysis were primary stiffness, primary damping, secondary stiffness,
secondary damping and car mass (tare gross).
These parameters were varied by 25% of their present values in steps of 5%, except for the car mass, which
was varied from tare mass to gross mass, in order to find the influence of loading on ride index. The vehicle
speeds considered for the analysis were 15 to 150 kmph in steps of 15 kmph. The performance indices
considered for the study were RMS acceleration at car cg and bogie cg, RMS displacement at car cg and bogie
cg and ride index at car cg
The results of the parametric study have been plotted in terms of performance index versus vehicle parameter.
Figures 11 and 12 show the variation of different performance indices as a function of primary stiffness and
secondary stiffness respectively. Remaining parameters and its influence have been summarised in the next
section (graphs are not presented)
























1800 2000 2200 2400 2600 2800
0.00
0.05
0.10
0.15
0.20
0.25
Boige cg
Car cg
Primary stiffness N/mm
Rms acceleration at bogie cg vs. primary stiffness
R
M
S

a
c
c
e
l
e
r
a
t
i
o
n

g
1800 2000 2200 2400 2600 2800
0.00
0.05
0.10
0.15
0.20
Car cg
kmph
15
30
45
60
75
90
105
120
135
150
Rms acceleration at car cg vs. primary stiffness
R
M
S

a
c
c
e
l
e
r
a
t
i
o
n

g
Primary stiffness N/mm
1800 2000 2200 2400 2600 2800
20
30
40
50
Boige cg
Primary stiffness N/mm
R
M
S

d
i
s
p
l
a
c
e
m
e
n
t

m
m
Rms displacement at car cg vs. primary stiffness
Rms displacement at bogie cg vs. primary stiffness
1800 2000 2200 2400 2600 2800
12
14
16
18

Primary stiffness N/mm
kmph
15
30
45
60
75
90
105
120
135
150
R
M
S

d
i
s
p
l
a
c
e
m
e
n
t

m
m
Figure. 11 The influence of primary stiffness
























2400 2600 2800 3000 3200 3400 3600 3800 4000
0.00
0.05
0.10
0.15
0.20
0.25
Bogie cg
Rms acceleration at bogie cg vs. secondary stiffness
R
M
S

a
c
c
e
l
e
r
a
t
i
o
n

g
2400 2600 2800 3000 3200 3400 3600 3800 4000
0.00
0.05
0.10
0.15
0.20
Car cg
Secondary stiffness N/mm Secondary stiffness N/mm
Secondary stiffness N/mm
kmph
15
30
45
60
75
90
105
120
135
150
Rms acceleration at car cg vs. secondary stiffness
R
M
S

a
c
c
e
l
e
r
a
t
i
o
n

g
Secondary stiffness N/mm
2400 2600 2800 3000 3200 3400 3600 3800 4000
20
30
40
50
60
Bogie cg
R
M
S

d
i
s
p
l
a
c
e
m
e
n
t

m
m
Rms displacement at car cg vs. secondary stiffness Rms displacement at bogie cg vs. secondary stiffness
2400 2600 2800 3000 3200 3400 3600 3800 4000
12
14
16
18
Car cg
kmph
15
30
45
60
75
90
105
120
135
150
R
M
S

d
i
s
p
l
a
c
e
m
e
n
t

m
m
Figure. 12 The influence of secondary stiffness
5.1 Observations from the Parametric Study
The increase in the primary suspension stiffness reduces the rms acceleration levels at the car cg and bogie cg
marginally upto a speed of 105 kmph. It has been found that increasing the primary stiffness reduces the
displacement response at the car cg and the bogie cg considerably at all the speeds. The influence of secondary
stiffness has been found to be just the opposite of that of the primary stiffness. A reduction of the secondary
stiffness value from the present value reduces the acceleration and the displacement response at the car cg and
the bogie cg at all the speeds. The variation of the primary damping is seen to have little influence on the
response at the car cg or at the bogie cg. At speeds above 90 kmph, increase in the primary damping is shown to
produce marginal reduction in the response amplitudes at the car cg and bogie cg. The secondary damping has
great influence at speeds higher than 75 kmph. An increase in the secondary damping reduces the response
amplitude at speeds greater than 75 kmph, whereas upto 75 kmph speed, the secondary damping has little
influence. The car mass variation from tare mass condition to gross mass condition has influence at higher
speeds. The car mass variation has practically no influence at speeds below 60 kmph. An increase in car mass
reduces the response amplitude at higher speeds. It has also been observed that all the parameters except
primary and secondary stiffness and secondary damping have very limited influence at low speeds.
From the parametric study, it has been found that the increase in primary stiffness, the reduction of secondary
stiffness and the increase in secondary damping will improve the performance of the railroad vehicle, in terms of
ride index and dynamic response.
6 SUMMARY AND CONCLUSIONS
The Sperlings ride indices were determined for a railroad vehicle both experimentally and analytically using the
track PSD as input. The Sperlings ride quality and the ride comfort were predicted analytically at different speeds.
Using ISO 2631 guidelines, reduced comfort boundaries for 1 hour and 8 hours have been superimposed over the
predicted response and measured response.
An extensive parametric study has been carried out with emphasis on better ride index and reduced dynamic
response. The parametric study has brought out possible design changes required in different parameters to
deliver better ride index. It should be noticed that the parametric study was carried out to suggest design
modifications to improve ride index, but other dynamic behaviour like stability, curve negotiation capability etc.
were to be considered when implementing the design modifications.
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