DERIVATION OF A SIMPLIFIED MATHEMATICAL MODEL OF A RAIL VEHICLE POWERTRAIN WITH A HYDRODYNAMIC CONVERTER

Abstract

In these days, railway transport is one of the most often used kind of transport of people and goods for shorter as well as longer distances. This is not only in many European countries, but also in other part of the world. Day by day people commute to work and to home by railway transport means, such as subway systems, light rail transits as well as by other kinds of railway transport means. The railway transport has several advantages, which make it effective, reliable, and sustainable in comparison with other kinds of transport [1]. On one hand, there are rail vehicles, which are powered from power line. On the other hand, there are rail vehicles, which has own source of power. The rail vehicles of the first group are called as dependent traction vehicles. The rail vehicles, which belong to the second group, are called independent traction vehicles. It is so-called a diesel multiple unit (abbr. DMU), it is a multiple-unit train, and it is powered by an on-board diesel engine. An DMU does not need to include a separate locomotive, therefore, an engine is incorporated into one or even in more of wagons. There is usually applied a diesel combustion engine, but, nowadays, some other alternative sources of energy are tested [2-4]. These diesel-powered single unit railway vehicles are further classified depending on their transmission type. In principle, there are recognized following types of DMUs: diesel mechanical multiple unit (abbr. DMMU), diesel-hydraulic multiple unit (abbr. DHMU) and diesel-electric multiple unit (abbr. DEMU).