The unique electromagnetic suspension dynamics of maglev trains are fundamentally different from traditional wheel-rail interactions, posing key challenges to suspension stability control. This paper proposes a comprehensive vehicle-rail-bridge coupling dynamic model for studying the vertical dynamic behavior and suspension control performance of long stator maglev trains. This model can be used to analyze the vertical dynamics of carriage and suspension frames during high-speed operation. The main contributions include: simplifying the three degree of freedom dynamic model of maglev vehicles considering secondary suspension system forces and electromagnetic coupling; perform modal and static analysis on flexible guide rails with different spans (12 m, 18 m, 24 m) to reveal stiffness degradation and resonance risks related to spans; a joint simulation framework integrating MATLAB/Simulink and ADAMS is used to evaluate the dynamic response under different operating scenarios (20–600 km/h); conduct experimental verification using full-size maglev test vehicles and guide rails to demonstrate consistency between simulation and on-site data. The results indicate that the span of the track beam significantly affects the vertical deflection (maximum 2.7 mm for a 24 m span) and vibration characteristics. In addition, there is a problem of degraded control performance during high-speed operation (600 km per hour) under PID control. This study conducted an in-depth analysis of the suspension and vibration characteristics of high-speed maglev trains at different speeds and deflection to span ratios, providing reference for optimizing suspension control and track beam design in high-speed maglev systems.
Chen et al. (2025) studied this question.