Proper cooperation the current collectors and the overhead line is a pre-requisite for reliable and safe operation of railway transport. Instances of maladjustment and, in some cases, damage to the current collectors, occur between periodic inspections of the rolling stock. In order to detect such anomalies quickly, the test stand was developed, with the aim of monitoring the technical state of the current collectors under operating conditions. The detection procedure is based on the monitoring and analysis of contact wire uplift caused by the pressure of the current collector, as the train passes through the measuring point located on the railway line and is designed with the aim of detecting collectors with incorrect values of a contact force.

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The paper presents the results of modal analysis of railway current collector type 160EC. In the first place, the analysis was carried out analytically for a simplified two lumped mass pantograph model. Then numerical analysis was conducted in the Autodesk Inventor (AI) on the prepared multibody model using the AI modal analysis algorithm, which is based on the finite element method (FEM). Model elements which are most relevant for attaining a correct representation of vibration properties when using AI modal analysis were indicated. The influence of selected parameters of modal analysis algorithm on results accuracy was investigated, e.g. the FEM mesh density. The natural frequencies and shapes of the first few vibration modes are shown. The results indicate that the frequencies of natural vibrations of the moving pantograph components are within the range of up to tens of hertzs. The possible use of results of pantograph modal analysis at the design stage and in the operation phase was also discussed.