Review of Coupled Vibration Problems in EMS Maglev Vehicles

The maglev train is a new type of guideway transportation for both long distance and urban applications in the 21 st century. Recent progress in maglev technology indicates a probability of widespread commercial application of maglev systems in the near future. However, some economic and technical issues remain to be solved before the commercial application, and the vehicle-guideway coupled vibration problem is the most urgent technical problem that needs to be solved. In this article, the maglev vehicle-guideway coupled vibration problem, especially for the EMS system, is presented and divided into three main areas: the stationary vehicle-guideway, self-excited vibration; the moving vehicle-bridge coupled vibration; and the vehicle-guideway interaction caused by track irregularity. The available literature relevant to all the three coupled vibration problems is reviewed here, and the methodologies and main conclusions corresponding to each coupled vibration problem are compared and generalized as a reference for future work. The solutions proposed in the literature aiming to solve the coupled vibration problems are also enumerated, and their feasibility is discussed. Finally, work still required to solve the remaining problems is identified, and some suggestions for future research aimed at solving these remaining problems are provided.