A new method of the assessment of rail vehicles guiding behaviour in small-radius curves

This paper deals with the assessment of rail vehicles guiding behaviour during passing through small-radius curves. This assessment according to the European standard EN 14363 or the UIC Code 518 is a part of the authorization process in the case of new, reconstructed or modernized railway vehicles. The new version of UIC Code 518:2009 modifies among others the existing definition of the limit value of the quasistatic guiding force. At present, the majority of new vehicles has a problem to keep this limit value of the force acting on the outer wheel of the guiding wheelset in small and very small-radius curves. For purposes of the assessment of the interaction between vehicles and track, this Code defines a new quantity - so-called quasistatic loading force, as well. The assessment of the guiding behaviour of the new four-axled diesel-electric locomotive Class 744.0 CZ LOKO by simulations performed at the Detached Branch of the Jan Perner Transport Faculty in Česká Třebová is demonstrated in this paper.