Key Findings

• The instrumented bearing adapter with acceleration compensation (NBA) better represents the dynamic peak load, as opposed to the representation from force transducers alone.
• This study demonstrated the high accuracy and repeatability of an in-track circuit (HAC) that compensates for the force measurement based on the location of the impact within the crib. The measured wheel/rail impact force was within 10 percent maximum error for all simultaneous measurements between the new bearing adapter and the high accuracy circuit at a nominal level of 50 kips.
• MxV Rail designed and fabricated a test wheel with a controlled rolling radius contour that was used to demonstrate a controlled impact test for creating consistent and repeatable wheel/rail impacts during in-motion testing.
• MxV Rail designed portable rail bumps (PRBs) that can generate impact response when encountered by a rolling wheel and can be positioned at any location on the instrumented rail. The resulting impact response is then measured and recorded by both the instrumented rail, and the instrumented wheelset(s) for later comparative analysis.