Method for Determining a Characteristic of a Track Condition Parameter

• US 20110276203A1
• Filed: 09/23/2009
• Published: 11/10/2011
• Est. Priority Date: 09/23/2008
• Status: Abandoned Application

• Current Assignee: Bombardier Transportation GmbH (Bombardier Incorporated)
• Original Assignee: Bombardier Transportation GmbH (Bombardier Incorporated)
• Inventors: Häse, Peter
• Application Number:
  US13/120,266
• Publication Number:
  US 20110276203A1
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 701/19
• CPC Class Codes: B61K 9/08 Measuring installations for surveying permanent way applications of measuring apparatus or devices for track building purposes E01B35/00; measuring techniques G01
• CPC Class Codes: B61L 23/047 Track or rail movements

Abstract

A method for determining a characteristic of at least one position parameter, in particular of a disruption in the position parameter, of a track for a vehicle, in which detection values of at least one detection parameter affected by the position parameter are detected on a vehicle driving along a section of the track, and wherein the at least one position parameter for the track section is determined from the detection values. The current value of the position parameter is determined from the detection values as a function of the model data of a previously determined vehicle model of the vehicle, wherein a relationship between the position parameter and the at least one detection parameter affected by the position parameter is generated by way of the vehicle model.

Claims

1. A method for determining a characteristic of at least one condition parameter of a track for a vehicle, comprising

detecting on a vehicle driving along a section of the track detection values of at least one detection variable affected by the condition parameter, and

determining the at least one condition parameter for the track section from the detection values,

wherein

a current value of the condition parameter is determined from the detection values as a function of model data from a previously determined vehicle model of the vehicle, and

a relationship between the condition parameter and the at least one detection variable affected by the condition parameter is generated by way of the vehicle model.

2. The method according to claim 1, wherein

the at least one condition parameter for the track section is determined using an observer algorithm adapted to produce, as a function of a current detection value, an associated current estimated value of at least one state variable of the vehicle which is affected by the condition parameter, and

the current value of the condition parameter is determined as a function of the model data from a previously determined vehicle model of the vehicle, wherein

the vehicle model represents the relationship between the condition parameter and the at least one state variable.

3. The method according to claim 1, wherein

the vehicle model has been determined using a dynamic multi-body model, and

the vehicle model has been determined by linearization of the multibody model.

4. The method according to claim 3, wherein only the degrees of freedom of the components of the multi-body system which have a primary effect on the detection variable, which are primarily affected by the condition parameter, or both are taken into account for the vehicle model.

5. The method according to claim 2, wherein the observer algorithm has been determined using the vehicle model.

6. The method according to claim 3, wherein a condition parameter disturbance is determined, wherein the vehicle model has been determined by linearization of the multi-body model and a suitable form filter has been used on at least one input of the vehicle model for taking account of the real noise behavior of the condition parameter disturbance when determining the observer algorithm.

7. The method according to claim 2, wherein a Kalman filter is used as the observer algorithm.

8. The method according to claim 1, wherein the method is carried out during the journey of the vehicle on the track section.

9. The method according to claim 1, wherein the detection variable is determined on a running gear of the vehicle.

10. The method according to claim 9, wherein a spring deflection of at least one spring unit supported on a wheel of the running gear is determined as the detection variable.

11. The method according to claim 1, wherein then vehicle is a rail vehicle and a characteristic of a track condition is determined as the condition parameter.

12. The method according to claim 11, wherein the vehicle model has been determined on the basis of an arrangement having two wheel sets, a running gear frame supported on the wheel sets and a wagon body supported on the running gear frame.

13. The method according to claim 12, wherein, for the vehicle model,

a translation in a direction of a height axis of the vehicle and a rotation about a longitudinal axis of the vehicle are taken into account as degrees of freedom of the two wheel sets and

a translation in a direction of a height axis of the vehicle, a rotation about a longitudinal axis of the vehicle and a rotation about a transverse axis of the vehicle are taken into account as degrees of freedom of the running gear frame and the wagon body.

14. The method according to claim 12, wherein a speed dependent delay in the effect of a condition parameter between a leading wheel set and a trailing wheel set is taken into account in the vehicle model.

15. The method according to claim 11, wherein

a wheel-rail contact is taken into account for the vehicle model via a spring-damper assembly.

18. The method according to claim 11, wherein, for the vehicle model, a wheel-rail contact is assumed to be infinitely rigid.

19. The method according to claim 18, wherein, using a current estimated value, the associated current value of the condition parameter is determined with the aid of model data from the vehicle model.

20. The method according to claim 1, wherein the at least one condition parameter for the track section is logged.

21. The method according to claim 1, wherein the current value of the condition parameter is calculated in a recursive method from the detection values as a function of the model data from the vehicle model.

22. A method for controlling a vehicle comprising:

determining on a leading running gear of the vehicle at least one characteristic of a condition parameter of a track section currently being driven along using a method according to claim 1, and

controlling a trailing running gear of the vehicle using the determined characteristic of the condition parameter.

23. A vehicle comprising

a processing unit which is adapted to carry out a method according to claim 1, and

a detection unit which is adapted to detect the detection values.

24. The method according to claim 2, wherein the vehicle is a rail vehicle and a characteristic of a track condition is determined as the condition parameter;

a wheel-rail contact is taken into account for the vehicle model via a spring-damper assembly; and

an extended Kalman filter is used as the observer algorithm.

16. (canceled)

17. The method according to claim 16, wherein the observer algorithm is configured in such a way that a current estimated value of at least one state variable of the vehicle is used as the current value of the condition parameter.