Evaluation of Characteristics of Cord Reinforced Air Spring for Railroad Vehicle

철도차량용 코드강화 공기스프링의 특성 평가

An air spring which is a part of the railroad vehicle suspension system is used to reduce and absorb the vibration and the noise. Main components of the air spring are a cord reinforced rubber bellows, a upper plate, a lower plate and a stopper rubber spring. The characteristics of the air spring which are the load capacity, the vertical and the horizontal stiffness are determined by the configuration of the rubber bellows, the angle of cord, and the mechanical properties of cord. Computer simulations using a commercial finite element analysis codes are executed to predict and evaluate the load capacity and the stiffness. The appropriate shape and cord angle of the air spring are selected to meet the required specifications of the air spring. Several samples of the air spring are manufactured and experimentally evaluated. It is shown that the results by computer simulation arc in close agreement with the test results.