Real-time simulations of a railroad brake system using a dSPACE board

The way in which the forces are transmitted in the rolling contact between wheels and rails of rolling stocks is complex and highly nonlinear, and understanding of braking mechanism has a crucial role for the safety and efficiency of railroad vehicle operations. This paper proposes a real-time simulation unit, that is, a HILS system, which is able to analyze braking performance of railroad vehicles. It presents a dynamic model of a railroad vehicle including bogies, brake system, carbody and wheelsets, and a creep force relationship, and presents also the system configuration including an anti-skid control unit (ASCU) and dSPACE board. The validity of the proposed real-time simulation model is verified through simulation study for the tilting train, Hanvit-200 (TTX).