Application of heating control systems is rational for effective prevention of thermal-mechanical damages of the wheels and brake shoes of rolling stock. These systems enable to perform diagnosis of brake equipment elements and to evaluate the effectiveness of drum braking process in terms of wheel heating. The present study aims to assess wheel heating when drum braking and to define the most informative zones and threshold control values for heating control systems. Heating evaluation is conducted using finite element method under different braking modes. Research results are given as heating patterns in solid-rolled wheel of freight car; the influence of the air distributor mode on the wheel heating is considered, the most informative zones for heating control are identified.

No abstract

The methods that are widely used today to determine the required locomotive fleet, the Corresponding maintenance and repair system consider the locomotive as a whole, without taking into account the technical condition of its individual units, which have a limited life cycle. Furthermore, the methods used today do not take into account the time spent on relocation from an operational locomotive depot to a service depot and back. The purpose of this study is to develop the methods for determining the number of locomotives based on the anticipated workloads for specific operational sections, the necessary accompanying maintenance and repair, the optimized repair cycle structure with due account of the available resources of the limiting units in the railroad operating domain which are capable of taking into account the technical condition of equipment (failures, repair costs, and time spent on relocation from one depot to another). A model for organization of repair of gas turbine locomotives assigned to operational locomotive depots while undergoing repair in service locomotive depots is proposed. Using this model, it is possible to develop a software product for distributing routine locomotive repairs among service providers, thus optimizing the workload of the latter.