Effect of truck shear pads on the dynamic behaviour of heavy haul railway cars

Shear pads are devices used to improve vehicle dynamics performance on heavy haul railways wagons. In this work, we present a method to determine the elastic properties of such components using experimental/numerical approach. The final goal is to provide adequate input to multi-body analysis software commonly applied to study and design railroad vehicles. We also considered the effect of side frame compliance to primary suspension performance, a influence that is often neglected on this type of study. Our results show that the application of shear pads can indeed promote a significant reduction of wheel and rail wear by decreasing the total frictional energy Tγ. We also show that, under the simulated conditions, the most important stiffness coefficient to wear is the longitudinal one.