In Rail: Advances Wagon Design
In Rail: Advances Wagon Design
In Rail: Advances Wagon Design
This paper is based on a paper presented to the Intermodal Europe 88 Conference (at London in 1988).Design parameter developments
are briefly outlined with emphasis on the rail gauge and the problem of transporting higher volume containers of 9 f t 0 in high x 2600
mm wide and Y f t 6 in high x 2500 mm wide. New intermodal techniques developed for use by BR are reviewed together with new bogie
developments and a concept of a self-contained rail distribution system,
Bogie uagona
r- - Maximum
3100 mm
1371 (4 ft 6 in)
1371 14 f16 in)
being undertaken following a programme of tests intended friction levels are not greatly exceeded in prac-
carried out in 1989 on instrumented structures together tice.
with tests on instrumented vehicles, also carried out at The overall dimensions of wagons should conform to
the same time in 1989, to measure track forces generated BR gauge W6 for general operation within the BR
by different bogie designs. The object of this was to network. The under-clearances on the W6 gauge are
gather data from different tracks and to compare the less than those applicable for international wagons and
forces on bridges with track forces in general. Test runs this must be taken into account when designing vehicles
were made at constant speeds over an eight-span for international traffic. However, in special circum-
masonry arch viaduct at Lavington, a simply supported stances the Director of Civil Engineering may consider
steel box girder structure bridge at Erlstoke and a and agree to local infringements of the W6 gauge for
length of plain track between (approximately 3 miles), ccrtain restricted routes only. BR Freightliners and
as well as recordings on the Freight Acceptance Route Cartic-type vehicles are built to take advantage of
between Derby and Kettering. gauge dispensations authorized for restricted routes (see
This work is aimed at a better understanding of track Fig. 2).
damage and will lead to changes in requirements for
suspension and in particular suspension damping. The
initial findings confirmed significant differences in the
dynamic forces imposed on the track by different
vehicle types with the friction level in the suspensions
clearly influencing track forces. 3 SIDE CURTAINS FOR WAGONS AND
CONTAINERS
The principal conclusion so far reached is that two-
axle vehicles with friction suspension of the pedestal The growing need for protection of goods in transit
design for 51 tonne gross vehicle weight cause consider- with good access for top and side loading has resulted
ably more track damage than any bogie vehicle and as in a rapid growth in curtain-sided containers and
a result a policy statement was issued in 1989 by BR hooded wagons or dkblch'vit (Fig. 3).
which stated that no more 51 tonne two-axle wagons Tensioning devices are used to ensure that the W6
would be accepted for registration with suspension to gauge is not infringed at any time and dependent on
existing standards. This prohibits major modification/ type of cargo and packing and experience from running
conversion involving the cascade of pedestal suspension tests, load restraints may be dispensed with for certain
units on the new or converted wagons. traffics on dedicated routes only at the discretion of BR.
Experiments are currently being encouraged to Supporting framework for hooded wagons is per-
develop a better control of the suspension friction levels manently coupled to the wagons and must be clear of
in the pedestal suspension units to ensure that the packaged loads for operation.
Part F . Journal of Rad and Rapid Transit @ IMechF 1990
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ADVANCES IN RAIL WAGON DESIGN 41
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Q IMechE 1990 Proc Instn Mech Engrs Vol 204
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48 M W J ETWELL
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ADVANCES IN RAIL WAGON DESIGN 49
In the rail mode semi-trailers are coupled together to Holland and Scandinavia. As a result there is a natural
form rakes of vehicles which may be anything up to a concern on variances, particularly the coupling system
full train length. The semi-trailers are coupled together between the semi-trailer and rail bogie. At present there
by locating a tongue at the front of the body into a are two main types: the tongue and socket method, as
socket incorporated in the rear of the vehicle and used by Trailer Train and Road Railer in the United
locking the parts together with a pin. This replaces con- States and licencees throughout the world, and the
ventional buffing and drawgear. A safety lock prevents second type that uses an intermediate frame on the rail
inadvertent operation of the locking pin. The bodies are bogie with semi-trailers locking into either three or four
supported on a single bogie positioned under the rear of points.
each trailer. Trailer Train is thus an articulated train Trailer Train has been designed to comply with rail
set, with the coupling supporting the front of each semi- requirements for normal train operation. However,
trailer as well as providing the longitudinal connection there is a proposal in Europe to standardize on the
between cars. Rail adaptors fitted at each end of the lower 850 kN minimum tractive and compression resist-
Trailer Train rake give compatibility with existing ance as requirements for bi-modal trailers, which will
freight rolling stock and locomotives and allow Trailer obviously raise operational formation problems in
Train units to be pushed or pulled. With this facility mixed train operation.
they can be coupled into a freight train that is scheduled Keeping the trailer tare weight as low as possible is
to run at 120 km/h and so be available for small flows clearly very critical to such systems to ensure road com-
of traffic as well as being considered for larger flows as a petitiveness and Trailer Train and others are examining
complete freight train if container terminal investment is this on current prototypes.
hard to justify.
With an articulated road vehicle an important feature
4.4 Piggyback system
in determining the overall height of the trailer is the
height of the connection between the tractor and trailer During 1988 another private sector initiative was pre-
units. In the United Kingdom a typical height of this sented by Tiphook Rail, part of the Tiphook Group.
connection is 1350 mm and the thickness of the struc- Tiphook have developed a prototype two-axle piggy-
ture in the trailer is 200 mm; consequently the internal back system wagon with Rautaruukki of Finland.
floor is as much as 1600 mm above ground level, the Designed to carry specially built road trailers complete
discrepancy in the numbers being due to the slope of with their road wheels, the central well of the wagon is
the trailer. hinged so that it can be slewed laterally allowing the
The critical feature in positioning the trailer within road trailer to be driven on or off. All power for the
the rail gauge is the road wheel. In the most adverse transfer can be from a standard road tractor requiring
conditions, that is worn rail wheels and rail suspension only the driver to control it (see Fig. 7).
on its bump stops, the road wheel must stay within the The geometry of the road vehicle must not infringe the
envelope. The diameter of the road wheel and the thick- W6 loading gauge when carried on BR, and provision
ness of the floor control the floor height above the rail must be made for the safe retention of the road vehicle
level and as a consequence the load space. being carried with due consideration of adverse effects
With Trailer Train the road wheels are positioned as resulting from interaction between respective vehicles
close to the rail bogie pivot as possible to minimize the suspension, for example resonance affecting both ride
overthrow on curves while being consistent with quality and the dynamic movement within the kine-
keeping the road axle load at the legal limit. The smal- matic envelope.
lest road wheel diameter allowing operation at the legal
weight limit is used together with a pneumatic road sus-
pension which has approximately twice the travel of
conventional suspension which allows the road wheels
to be raised some 250 mm above the ground in the
most adverse combination of rail wheel wear and rail
suspension deflection. The combination of these features
and making the best possible use of the rail gauge
envelope gives an internal floor height of 1200 mm on
rail in the tare condition; this is some 400 mm lower
than the highest point in the road mode. Operating in
the limited UK BR gauge achieves an internal height of
greater than 2 m, which satisfies the height requirements
of a vast majority of goods likely to be conveyed on an
inter-modal system.
The trailer is considered as a rail vehicle and so is
heavier than a conventional road semi-trailer due to
meeting rail design load cases. Flexibility of operation is
given as no special equipment is required for transfer
and it can be carried out at any location where rail
access has a suitable firm pad for the tractor unit to
manoeuvre the trailer.
There are several different prototypes now being
developed for carless systems in France, Italy, Germany, Fig. 7 Tiphook Piggyback System
@ IMechE 1990 Proc Instn Mech Engrs Vol 204
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50 M W J ETWELL
The road vehicle must fit within the W6 gauge for use The wagons have the following parameters:
on the entire BR network and the prototype road
vehicle under discussion is a non-standard trailer with a Bogie centres 14020 mm
low height when air is evacuated from the road air bag Length 3 x 20 ft 0 in equivalent
suspension. As shown earlier in this paper (see Fig. 2) Loading height 1027 mm
the clearance problem is not the overall height but the
width at the top corners and also the width at the Put simply, for the conveyance of larger loads the
bottom. The wagon deck height is 320 mm above the wagons must be both lower and have a shorter bogie
rail for the tare trailer loaded on the wagon. A standard centre distance.
trailer will be too wide to fit into the wagon wheel well It can be seen from Appendix 2 that a load 14630
position and so modified axles and suspension are mm long x 2600 mm wide can be accommodated
required for the road trailer with a narrower wheel base. within the W6 gauge, when the wagon is equipped with
Flexibility of operation is possible as the trailer can bogies having & 10 mm suspension travel (this is typical
be unloaded to the side of the wagon or vertically if of Y25-type suspensions).
required at large terminals with overhead cranes. A 60 ft 0 in length deck will not allow 2600 mm wide
The extra length resulting from the use of a well loads nor 2500 mm wide loads if bogies with large
section rail wagon and loss of loading length may be lateral freedom are used.
seen as a disadvantage for some traffics and terminals When considering the height of the load reference to
with fixed equipment. The load limitation due to use of Fig. 2 will be made.
a two-axle wagon suggests that a bogie version should The example vehicle used in Appendix 2 has bogie
be considered as a future development and this has in centres of 10.345 rn, that is less than 12.8 m; therefore
fact occurred during 1989 with the manufacture by the hatched exception area applies without reductions.
Rautaruukki of the Tiphook Piggyback System Pre- To ascertain to what height a 2600 mm wide load is
production Unit rail wagon. permissible it is a simple trigonometric problem to
This has a bogie suspension using a Y25 bogie deriv- derive the answer of 3463 mm ARL (above rail level).
ative manufactured by Rautaruukki with a longer Similarly, a 2500 mm wide load (with right angled
wagon well length for 13.6 metre length semi-trailers corners) gives an answer of 3610 mm. It is worthy of
and the greater payload capacity of 37 tonnes to accom- note that present loads of 2500 mm width have cham-
modate trailers of 44 tonne gross vehicle weight (GVW) fers on the top corners of 31 x 50 mm, which enables
in Europe. Double-acting hydraulics and shallow-angle the full height of 3618 mm to be utilized.
loading ramps (not stored on the wagon as with the A wagon with a deck height of 710 mm can therefore
two-axle prototype) are detail improvements to assist carry loads that are 2600 mm wide and 9 ft 0 in high
easier transfer of road trailers. Early loading trials and 2500 mm wide and 9 ft 6 in high, and keep within
suggest that the mode transfer time for loading/ the gauge.
unloading the rail wagon will be of the order of 5 The design of wagons for such high cube loads shall
minutes. This system is therefore a special rail vehicle always be a compromise between low deck height and
meeting full structure strength requirements, which is the provision of sufficiently large diameter wheels to
loaded with semi-trailers to road requirements with a accommodate the loads. Compounding the problem
minimum of special requirements. may be the need for the vehicle to negotiate, at slow
speeds, the train ferry-boat ramp, which with adverse
5 INCREASING CUBIC CAPACITY conditions can be at an inclination of 3.5".
A greater gross laden weight is very often desirable
Having container wagons available with reduced-height and by utilizing three-axle bogies this can be achieved;
loading platforms becomes an indispensable require- however, the bogie centre pivot is above the middle
ment when one plans to transport containers, which axle, thus forcing the loading height upwards with con-
exceed a height of 8 ft 6 in, on BR routes that have been ventional designs. The use of side bearers alone, dis-
cleared for the passage of container traffic on the 60 ft pensing with a centre pivot will allow a lower platform
Freightliner wagons. height.
In this context two categories of wagons can be con- Wagons intended for continental working comply,
sidered : necessarily, with a range of regulations. Amongst them
1. 'Weltrols' which are specialized flat wagons with a is the need to make provision for the fitting of auto-
low centre section between the bogies. This wagon couplers at some future date. Operational consider-
type is frequently used to carry electric power trans- ations of wagons so equipped dictate the ratio of length
formers. over coupling faces to bogie centre distance [see the
2. Flat wagons with small wheeled bogies. UIC Leaflet 530-2 (311.
When the pressing demands of wide containers and It has been shown that wagons for the conveyance of
swap bodies, that is up to 2600 mm, and market trends 14630 mm long x 2600 mm wide loads cannot be
in the length of the load to be carried, that is up to equipped with conventional buffing and drawgear by
14 630 mm (48 ft 0 in) are taken into account, wagons of reason of the above ratio and so the vehicle is forced to
category 1 become of little value. Also there exists a be designed as an intermediate vehicle within, say, a
considerable unusable length, that is the portion over three-car set. The outer vehicles would be convention-
the bogies. ally equipped with buffing and drawgear at one end
The W6 loading gauge, with exceptions for container only, but would be limited to 2500 mm wide loads; as a
traffic, is defined by existing Freightliner wagons when bonus the vehicle could be longer. The intermediate
conveying 2500 mm wide x 8 ft 6 in high containers. vehicle can be designed to a very low tare because the
Part F: Journal of Rail and Rapid Transit @ IMechE 1990
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ADVANCES IN RAIL WAGON DESIGN 51
absence of a raised buffng and drawgear structure, with rods connecting the axleboxes to the bogie frame to
its associated mass, means that no moment is put into provide wheelset yaw control. A rubber secondary
the wagon frame by b a i n g loads; both of these factors spring provides both vertical and lateral suspension and
maximize the carrying capacity. Minimum tare require- inclined load-sensitive viscious dampers give vertical,
ments must be satisfied. lateral and roll damping. In addition, secondary yaw
If the outer vehicles are dimensioned to be fully com- damping has been incorporated to ensure lateral stabil-
pliant with UIC 530-2 to carry 2500 mm wide loads the ity at speeds up to 120 km/h.
platform length is suitable for 2 x 7.82 m long bodies. It As a result of inside wheel bearings a hot box detec-
may be possible to increase the length such that tion system is installed on the bogie. Each axlebox is
2 x 8.05 m long bodies can be conveyed if UIC Leaflet fitted with a fusible plug filled with a eutectic alloy
530-2 is not complied with. This could only be pro- which will melt at a pre-set temperature and allow air
gressed if a dispensation was granted. to escape from the train brake pipe and so apply an
During 1988 SNCF introduced a new container emergency brake application.
wagon-Multifret-with a platform height of 940 mm The negotiation of obtuse crossings without raised
ARL and bogie centres of 13 500 mm. This allows 2.5 m check rails has to be considered in detail for small
wide x 2.67 m high loads to be carried on the existing wheels. The safety of operation of a small wheel bogie is
Freightliner routes with boxes having a chamfer section a very complex technical question and a new set of rules
top corner. following extensive computation has been devised for
operation within the BR network detailed in Bass 1388
6 SMALL WHEEL BOGIES (4). On BR the permitted axle load for 120 km/h with
wheels of 520 mm is currently 11 t limited by the ability
To significantly reduce the deck height of container flats of the wheel to absorb braking energy. Testing is pro-
requires the use of small wheel bogies. A small wheel gressing to examine the 13 t case. UIC load require-
bogie was developed during 1986 and initial prototype ments are shown in the UIC Leaflet 510-2 (5) for
testing was carried out in 1986. The initiative is now normal operation as 10 t for wheel diameters of
being progressed by Powell Duffryn Gloucester. A pair 5 5 W 7 0 mm.
of prototype bogies with 500 mm diameter wheels was
tested at BR Technical Centre, Derby, in 1988. The pro-
duction LTF 13 bogies have 520 mm diameter wheels
and give a deck height of 695 mm. The prototype three-
car unit, Powell Duffryn Lowliner (see Fig. 8), is now
undergoing performance trials with BR.
These bogies are the result of joint development by
Powell Duffryn Gloucester with BR R and D Division
responsible for complex modelling and calculations for
vehicle lateral stability and ride characteristics (see Fig.
9).
The bogie has inside wheel bearings and a two-stage
suspension. The secondary suspension is necessary
resulting from the lateral instability problem found with
the initial early design. The primary suspension consists
of steel helical coil springs with longitudinal traction Fig. 9 Small wheeled bogie
Q IMechE 1990 Proc Instn Mech Engrs Vol 204
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52 M W J ETWELL
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ADVANCES IN RAIL WAGON DESIGN 53
9 CONCLUSION publish this paper and also Cargo Systems C.S. Pub-
lications Limited for permission to rewrite the previous
The BR structure gauge will not permit wagons built to paper, presented in December, 1988.
larger European gauge to operate in Britain, but posi- The author would also like to record full appreciation
tive initiatives and developments are taking place in to the following firms for theii support in both the prep-
new wagon technology to accommodate swap body aration and presentation material for this paper :
systems, wider and taller containers, road trailers and
road-rail adaptable vehicles. These developments are Trailer Train Limited
essential and emphasize the need for co-operation Tiphook Rail
between private and public sectors of the industry for Powell Duffryn Standard
effective answers to be found to allow safe operation on
rail both in Britain and on the Continent of containers
and swap bodies up to 2.7 m high, 14.63 m long and 2.6
m wide. As has been shown in this paper a wagon with REFERENCES
a deck height of 710 mm will enable 9 ft 0 in high, 2600 1 MT 235 Requirements and recommendations for the design of wagons
mm wide and 9 ft 6 in high, 2500 mm wide to be kept running on BR lines. British Railways Board Specification.
within the W6 gauge. 2 BASS 1392 Ride acceptance testing forfreight vehicles. British Rail-
The introduction of varying heights of container will ways Board Specification.
3 UIC Leaflet 530-2 Wagons-running safety.
require strict operating control if both container and 4 BASS 1388 Rules for safety at obtuse crossings (for wheels less than
wagon types are to be mixed at any one location. The 740 mm diameter). British Railways Board Specification.
consequences of loading a high box on a conventional 5 UIC Leaflet 510-2 Conditions concerning the use qf wheels and
wagon could be disastrous. Also the variations in various diameters with running gear of different types.
wagon length may reduce efficiency of depot operations. 6 PO/CL 518 W6 gauge for freight rolling stock. British Railways
Board Specification.
The 1990s will see the Channel Tunnel develop inter-
national rail freight with a continued growth in swap
body types of container and inter-modal traffic.
Bi-modal systems both have been and are being APPENDIX 1
developed for safe operation on BR and now await full
commercial implementation. External noise requirements for new BR wagons
Such combined transport systems are favoured by the The operating conditions, definitions of units for the fol-
European Community as a means of reducing road lowing Clauses, are those found in BR Specification
traffic and environmental pollution. TME/NOY/1001 from issue 6 onwards.
The optimization of payload to length will gain in The running noise levels, at 25 m from the track
domestic BR importance with the use of locomotives centre-line, on straight and good-quality CWR, in open
able to haul heavier trains, and the impetus to reduce country, 1.5 m above rail height and at speeds above 50
track maintenance costs will encourage further use of km/h, shall not exceed those given by the equation :
LTF-type bogies. The concept of the self-discharge train
is likely to be exploited with its flexibility in developing LO= 31 + 28 x log,,(v)
new low-cost operational sites both in the United where
Kingdom and Europe. Lu = A-weighted sound level at speed level u (km/h)
The C-weighted sound level shall not exceed the mea-
ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS sured A-weighted level by more than 6 dB.
The author would like to thank the Director of Mecha- On curved track with a horizontal radius down to 90m
nical and Electrical Engineering for permission to the running noise levels, at 25 m from the track centre-
@ IMechE 1990 Proc lnstn Mech Engrs Vol 204
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54 M W J ETWELL
line, in open country, 1.5 m above rail height, shall not This leads through simultaneous equations to the result
exceed : that
(a) the level produced on straight track of the same
The ratio
bogie centres -
-
@
type and at the same speed by more than 3 dB
or body length 2
(b) the level given by the formula: Following the calculation as defined in reference (6),the
wagon is to have the following dimensions:
LV = 69 + 10 x loglo(U)
Length over body = 14.630m
where
LV = A-weighted sound level at speed u (km/h) Bogie centres 14630 x -
= = 10.345 m
2
whichever is the greater. Full lateral suspension travel = +0.010m
When running the external noise shall be free from +
Full lateral suspension interface wear = 0.003 m
any audible pure tones. (a) Above 1000 m m ARL (upper pro$le)
APPENDIX 2 (i) At centre of vehicle
Calculation for 2600 m m wide x 14630 m m long load A N , - NZ
case E. = - 0.102
77=y
400
i"i Ei = -0.035 m
Ei is calculated as a negative value, hence no reduction is
necessary.
(ii) At end of load
En =
AN, +
N:
E. =
A N , - NZ
2R 2R
There follows a typical calculation, based on the
requirements of the W6 gauge (6), which examines the (1) For R = 360 m, Ei= 37 mm
parameters necessary for a wagon to convey 2600 mm Therefore maximum width at R = 360 mm
= 2700 - 2(13) - 2(37) = 2600 m m
wide and 14 630 mm long loads. It is also assumed to be
capable of carrying 9 ft 6 in high loads (of lesser width) (2) For R = 200 m, E, = 67 mm
and will therefore have a platform height of 700 mm Therefore maximum width at R = 200 m
= 2820 - 2(13) - 2(67) = 2660 m m
approximately.
Figure 12 shows the diagram for width reduction cal- (3) For R = 160 m, Ei= 84 mm
culations together with the formulae for Ei and E , . The Therefore maximum width at R = 160 m
= 2900 - 2(13) - 2(84) = 2706 m m
optimum condition occurs when end and centre throws
are equal, that is From the above it can be seen that case (1) produces the
Ei = E, minimum value and therefore the maximum possible
width at the centre of the wagon is 2600 mm.
A N , - N f - A N , + N," Because of the optimization, Ei = E , , this figure of
-
400 400 2600 mm applies also at the end of the load.
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