Locomotive Crash Energy Management Coupling Tests Evaluation and Vehicle-to-Vehicle Test Preparation

Federal Railroad Administration2019PDFProceedingsLlana, PatriciaStringfellow, RichardJacobsen, KarinaJohn A. Volpe National Transportation Systems Center (U.S.)Transportation Technology Center, Inc (TTCI)TIAX LLCUnited States. Department of Transportation. Federal Railroad Administration. Office of Research, Development and TechnologyUnited States. Department of Transportation. Federal Railroad Administration. Office of Research, Development, and TechnologyUnited StatesAnalysisCouplersCrashworthinessLocomotivesMathematical modelsRailroad crashesRetrofittingSpeedTest proceduresUnderride override crashesVehicle designJRC2019-1259Proceedings of the 2019 Joint Rail Conference, JRC2019, April 9-12, 2019, Snowbird, UT, USAResearch to develop new technologies for increasing the safety of passengers and crew in rail equipment is being directed by the Federal Railroad Administration\u2019s (FRA\u2019s) Office of Research, Development, and Technology. Crash energy management (CEM) components which can be integrated into the end structure of a locomotive have been developed: a push-back coupler and a deformable anti-climber. These components are designed to inhibit override in the event of a collision. The results of vehicle-to-vehicle override, where the strong underframe of one vehicle, typically a locomotive, impacts the weaker superstructure of the other vehicle, can be devastating. These components are designed to improve crashworthiness for equipped locomotives in a wide range of potential collisions, including collisions with conventional locomotives, conventional cab cars, and freight equipment125