Design and Analysis of Elastic-Plastic Collision Post for Railway Vehicles

Collision posts have been required at the front end of railway vehicles to provide protection against intrusion under collision in the US market since 1940s, though it is still not a standard required structure in the Europe and Asia markets. In this paper, typical front-end frame with and without collision posts of railway vehicles are compared to illustrate the pros and cons of collision posts in railway vehicles. Then two different front-end frames with collision posts are introduced in detail to discuss how to take the advantages of collision posts and avoid the drawbacks in different applications. In the first design, the collision posts are placed in front of the energy absorbing elements. When collision happens, the collision posts will deform first before the energy absorbing elements act. As a result, the collision posts and many carbody and cab structures, such as the front-end frame, underframe, cab interior and operator console may under repair even the collision speed is low. However, more space can be utilized for the cab and passenger compartment since the collision posts can be located at the very front of the vehicle. In the second design, there are two stages of energy absorbing elements and the collision posts are placed in the middle. The first stage of energy absorbing elements can absorb low-speed collision energy without damaging other structures and can be replaced easily. To make up for the extra space taken by the first stage energy absorbing elements, the shape and dimension of the collision posts have to be optimized. For both designs, finite element analysis has been used to analyze and optimize the design. Then full-scale test specimens are manufactured and tested to further validate the design and analysis. Based on the design, analysis and test results, an overall evaluation of collision post’s role in passenger protection and vehicle design has been generated.

Improving Boiler Efficiency Using PLC Controller

Boiler systems have many factors that affect the efficiency of the air conditioning process. A traditional control system is complicated and requires physical hardware and software programming. The modern operator console is more compact and works better. Regardless of the boiler system, the operator can run it automatically, allowing changes in many variables such as fuel input, air combustion, water feed flow, steam temperature, etc. In fact, it is impossible to control all of these variables simultaneously in the manual mode. Modern systems have been developed to a high degree of precision that can provide excellent results in maintaining high levels of efficiency, reliability, and safety. The Programmable Logic Controller (PLC) was developed in 1968, and since then it has improved rapidly and applied to many manufacturing industries. Besides the Allen Bradley PLC, other modules were developed such as Human Machine Interface (HMI), Variable Frequency Drives (VFDs), and safety components. In this paper, the Allen Bradley PLC ControlLogix family 1756 model is used to control the boiler system. In addition, this work focuses on improving the boiler efficiency by comparing between the manual and automatic control the fuel-air ratio.

The Concept of Subsystem for Mobile Robot Management From the Operator Console

The authors in this publication present the concept of control system for the console operator to manage mobile robot platform and its components. Implemented functionality provides the ability to set the robot in different modes. The operator can control the state of robot using simple commands, and is also able to carry more complex tasks. The applied layered software architecture and Object-oriented programming (OOP) allows for easy management of software, maintenance, reusability and its further development.

Features of Design and Results of Function Tests at Tomari Unit 3

Tomari Unit 3 is not APWR but many advanced and latest technologies such as integrated I&C system including advanced main control board, advanced steam turbine and zinc injection are introduced into it. These three technologies are the fist application in Japan or in the world. Advanced main control board consists of large display panel, operator console and shift supervisor console and improved alarm system is introduced into it. Operator’s mental workload and human error probability is each improved 27% and 59% by introducing advanced main control board. Also maintainability and construction cost is improved by introducing integrated I&C system. MTTR is less than 30 minutes. 54-inch last blade in LP turbine, 3-dimensional hydraulic design blade, integral shroud blade and advanced bearing are applied to advanced steam turbine. Improvement of turbine efficiency by introducing 54-inch and 3-dimensional hydraulic design blade is evaluated to be approximately 0.3%. Vibration amplitude of bearings in turbine-generator during HFT was very small due to advanced bearing. Zinc injection was started from HFT for the first time in the world. Measured zinc consumption is consistent with anticipated. According to result of Zn injection during HFT, radiation sources are approximately 10–20% reduced in comparison with no injection.