Virtual Test Method of Structure-Borne Sound for a Metro Bogie

This paper presents a virtual test method for structure-borne noise generated from railway running gear. This method combines a number of existing tools to form a system approach. The wheelset and bogie frame are modelled using FEM software Nastran to include details of their construction. The primary springs are simplified to standard CBUSH elements in Nastran with point and transfer stiffness modelled by frequency-dependent complex stiffness, which are tuned against measurements. The wheel-rail contact forces due to roughness excitation are obtained by the wheel-rail interaction tool TWINS. The vibration of the full running gear is simulated in Nastran by applying the wheel-rail contact forces. The forces transmitted to the vehicle body through traction bars and dampers are calculated for predicting structure-borne noise.