Despite the growing popularity of air travel, rail transport is still popular - both in our country and in the world. Long-distance train routes ply continents and states. Let's take a closer look at this category of railway trains? First, let's define a key term.
What is this - a train?
In order to understand exactly that this is a long-distance train, you need to know the definition of the root word-concept.
A train today is a coupled and formed self-propelled railway train, consisting of several cars, as well as a locomotive (or a motor car), which sets it in motion. It must have audible and visual signals that determine where the tail is and where the head is. Also, almost all trains have an individual number that allows them to be identified.
This transport also includes:
- motor cars;
- locomotives traveling without a train;
- self-propelled railcars;
- railcars.
Trains entered our life in 1825. Today, they are able to move on a railroad track, monorail, using magnetic levitation. Rail vehicles are capable of accelerating up to 575 km / h, trackless (magnetoplanes) - up to 581 km / h. There is also a special discipline that studies these vehicles - train traction.
A long-distance train is ...
There are several classifications of these vehicles. We need one that separates them according to the range of distances covered. The following stands out here:
- Long-distance trains are passenger trains with a route length of more than 700 km.
- Straight lines - follow only one document at a time.
- Local - passenger trains, whose route is shorter than 700 km, following only one road. This section has been abolished today.
- Suburban - trains, whose route is less than 150 km (sometimes - 200 km).
- Through - follows through several technical stations without forming-disbanding.
- Groupage - a train that delivers wagons to intermediate stations.
- Precinct - a train whose path lies from one technical station to another.
Types of railway trains
When buying tickets for long-distance trains, it will not be superfluous to know about some of their features. Let's list the most important and interesting ones.
Long distance travel is divided into:
- Expressways... They follow at a speed of at least 91 km / h. Moreover, their average speed is 140-200 km / h.
- Ambulances... The average speed along the entire route is 50-90 km / h.
- Passenger... Travel speed - no more than 50 km / h.
Note also that fast trains have a minimum number of stops on their way, and they also take much less time. Many of them are branded. That is, they have their own name, unique style, provide more comfortable travel conditions, a convenient schedule. If a long-distance train is a multi-unit train, then it can be either without providing additional services (economy), or with increased comfort.
According to the regularity of movement, passenger trains can be divided into one-time, seasonal and year-round. By frequency - the following are daily, every other day, on certain days of the week or specific days of the month.
What does the numbering mean?
When buying tickets for long-distance trains, take a look at the numbering. We have put in the table what she can tell.
Now let's move on to the features of the cars.
Types of passenger cars
A long-distance train can include the following type of carriages:
- Suite... They have from 4 to 6 compartments, a bar. Each compartment has 1-2 seats. The lower one is transformed into a one-and-a-half bed, maybe the upper shelf. Also, each compartment has a table, an armchair, a private bathroom (washbasin and toilet), shower, air conditioning, warm floors, TV, radio, media player.
- SV... These are 8-9 double coupes. There are two bathrooms in the carriage. Each compartment has two lower or upper and lower seats, a table, hangers, and a place for luggage.
- Coupe... As a standard, the carriage has 9 four-seater compartments and 2 bathrooms. In each compartment there are two upper and lower places, a table, a mirror, hangers, lockers for hand luggage.
- Reserved seat... Nine open compartments (4 seats) and side bins (18 seats) - 54 seats in total. There are tables, coat hooks, lockers and luggage racks.
- Common wagons. They have only seats - 54-81, depending on the comfort class.
When choosing a location, keep the following in mind:
- The lower shelves are odd, the upper ones are even.
- Next to the toilet:
- Always the ninth compartment - seats 33-36 (in NE - 17-18).
- In the reserved seat - 33-38.
- In a general type carriage - 49-57.
Long-distance trains are always passenger. They also differ among themselves in terms of travel speed, frequency, and regularity of flights. When choosing a ticket, it is important to consider both the type of carriage and the location of the seat.
My work experience as a subway driver is almost twenty years. I used to work as a conductor and every month I was away for a week or two. When I got married, my daughter was born, I wanted to spend more time at home. I decided to take a subway driver's course. They checked my eyesight, hearing, blood pressure, drinker-non-drinker, whether morally stable, whether there were no police officers - everything was fine with me. Although these checks were formal, they took just anyone. Some were obvious booze, and one was such that we immediately understood: the guy with a shift. I don't know how he got through the medical examination, but he worked for five years until he was imprisoned for murder.
As for the courses themselves, practice has shown that a tenth of all the knowledge that we have received is enough to control a train. By the end of our studies, we could probably disassemble and assemble the entire staff. They knew where everything was screwed, the details and the device of all the nodes. There were lectures five times a week, they just read the material to us, like at the university.
Mostly guys from the suburbs were taken as machinists. If the people of Kiev, then mainly from Obolon - so that they live not far from the depot. For some reason, women were not taken. I only remember one. They didn’t take it, probably because women need to be given a separate room, so that they could sleep after the night shift, and to have a separate shower room. And we had everything in common, like in the army.
In general, to work as a machinist, you need to be phlegmatic. But rather, even a naught, not to take everything to heart. The work is generally monotonous, but stressful situations also happen.
About passengers
Fall on the rails quite often. When I first got a job, there was a case: an AWOL soldier, apparently, was running away from the patrol. The train has already started, and the guy decided to catch on to the last carriage. He grabbed the handrails, held out for a while, and then fell off - flew over the sleepers. As far as I remember, it all ended sadly there.
Most often, passengers fall from the platform to Vokzalnaya. I myself did not knock anyone down, once I only touched a drunk with a mirror, but he, thank God, did not fall under the train. And other guys had cases. If you hit a passenger, you are immediately given three days to recover. Some take a week or even a month.
When a person falls on the rails, the driver immediately brakes, fortunately the brakes are brutal. After that, he should not move the train a single centimeter, so as not to crush it.
We had a "champion" in terms of the number of downed passengers - four, it seems, are on his account
Under the platform there is a third, contact, 825 volt voltage rail. Usually, if a person falls, he finds himself between this rail and the carriage, that is, he simply gets stuck there. The tension, of course, is immediately cut off.
Once I helped pull out a fallen passenger at Teatralnaya. He suffered for an hour and a half: it was tightly clamped. Then the driver broke the rule: he drove off a little, and we pulled the man out. After such a shock, some scream, while others, on the contrary, cannot utter a word.
We had a "champion" in terms of the number of downed passengers - four, it seems, on his account. He is a hero father, with many children, so according to the law he could not be fired. He will run over someone, and then he goes to sick leave for six months - to look after the children.
There was also a time when the fashion appeared to walk on sleepers in open areas. I remember driving at midnight, I see a man walking. In such a decent black suit, but somehow barefoot. The interval between trains is long, and he almost managed to get from Hydropark to Levoberezhnaya. I stopped and dragged him into the cockpit. “Well, finally,” he says, “I waited. It's hard to walk. " I ask why barefoot. He explained that the sleepers were slippery and that it was uncomfortable to wear shoes. I drove with this "passenger" to the station, handed him over to the dispatcher, and that one - already to the police.
About train driving
The train turns itself. Rather, what everyone calls "turns" - we have these "curves". The train passes them without turning the wheels, due to the slope of the tracks. But the driver has a job: open and close doors, brake, accelerate, monitor the instruments.
We usually drive at a speed of 40-50 km / h. The maximum train speed is 80 km / h. It is possible more, but it is risky, since some cars are more than 50 years old. In Moscow and St. Petersburg, there is no such junk - they handed it over for scrap. Our cars, which were going to be written off back in 1990, are still running.
Average normal distance between trains is 600-800 meters. When a train gets out of schedule, lingers at the station, the next one is forced to stop in the tunnel and wait. In such cases, it seems to passengers that the train has stopped between stations, but in fact, I see the tail of the train in front, between us from the force of 150 meters. This happens because, for example, on the same "Vokzalnaya" the carriage, and the train stands 10-20 seconds longer than it should be. When the distance between the trains is reduced, the train that follows is triggered by the automatics and it brakes itself.
In addition, a special device every 50 meters shows with what maximum speed I can go (it depends on how far the ahead train is). It happens that you drive 80 km / h, and the device suddenly shows that the permissible maximum is 40. If you do not have time to slow down smoothly yourself, the train automatically slows down. It is at such moments that the train jerks and it seems that all passengers should fly into the first carriage by inertia.
About the work schedule and salary
From 06:15 to 07:00 - morning rush, at this time almost all drivers go to work. In 10 minutes we pass the medical examination and leave. Lunch break - half an hour. If you are impatient to use the toilet, then you need to endure it until the depot. There is one day off per week, there are only four days off per month. So little because we have a six-hour day. There are, however, and fat weekends: on Friday morning I finished work, and left already at 6 pm on Sunday.
In winter, you don't see the sun for weeks at all. When the shift is in the morning, and you live in the suburbs, like me, you get to work by train. Those who have finished the night shift and the next shift in the morning spend the night in the depot at Darnitsa or Akademgorodok. There, the metro rents apartments for employees in Khrushchev, where you can spend the night.
The speed is low, the instruments are in sight, everything is under control. Some train drivers read newspapers and magazines on the road, play on mobile phones, listen to music
Salary with all allowances and bonuses - up to 5,000 thousand hryvnia. If you are out of schedule for more than 10 seconds, you can be fined (deducted from the bonus). Keeping to a schedule can be difficult. People come in for a long time - the train stopped at the station. And not only are you late, you still have to pick up a little more people from the next station.
But in the evening, when the interval between trains is about 10 minutes, as soon as you do not pass the time. I did push-ups and squats so as not to go crazy with boredom. Right in the cockpit, of course. The speed is low, the instruments are in sight, everything is under control. Some newspapers and magazines are read, they play on mobile phones, they listen to music.
About secret tunnels and wallets on the rails
When there was no Teatralnaya station yet, the train went from the University directly to Khreshchatyk. Later, a parallel tunnel was built for Teatralnaya, but the old one was left. Garbage from the entire line began to be dumped into it. In 1995, the trash caught fire - smoke and stench were on the entire branch.
There are also tunnels from Arsenalnaya towards Dnipro - there
a whole complex in case of war. Nobody admits what exactly is there. A couple of times I caught a glimpse of a huge metal gate. There is also a small train, a toy train, as we call it. They say it runs on diesel, not electricity.
Lights in the tunnels are on, so I can see when someone is walking there. While driving, I meet a lot of people, mostly electricians. They do not cross paths, they walk along a special path, on the right along the track.
And when you enter Vokzalnaya, a beautiful picture opens up: on the left, in a row, there are purses for every taste! Pickpockets are how they work: he pulled out his wallet, took out the money, and at the stop he threw it into the slot between the train and the platform.
About the human factor
At all stations of the red line, the doors open from the left side, and only on the Dnieper - from the right. It happened more than once that passengers, despite the warning sign on the doors, leaned back and fell onto the platform. There was a case when he himself was mistaken - he opened the left doors on Dnipro. Fortunately, no one fell out.
The drivers have a rule: you cannot get out of the cab at intermediate stations. And one jumped out of the cab on "Beresteyskaya": the grandmother with the cart could not squeeze into the carriage, so he pushed her, the doors slammed and the train started. Everything worked out, the train reached Svyatoshino, the automatics worked, the train stopped. The passengers, I think, did not even notice anything. But the driver was fired, although he had about 30 years of experience.
About devices
Everything is so arranged that it is impossible to open both the left and right doors at the same time. Also, you cannot open the doors in one carriage - only in all at once. The newer trains are more difficult to ride. They slow down more sharply, and this is bad - the wheels become "square" and skid. We call the new trains tractors - their levers that set the train in motion are designed like a tractor.
There was a case when the driver had already entered the depot, it is not clear how he switched to reverse and drove at a speed of 80 km / h! Fortunately, he slowed down quickly. After this incident, a special button was made to make the decision to go back more meaningful.
There is also a walkie-talkie. When you talk to the dispatcher, all the drivers on the branch hear you. You need to talk to the dispatcher if someone has fallen, if you are late and in some cases. But it's better when you don't have to talk to him at all.
There is also a button for speakerphone announcements. When I first started working, there was only a recording of station announcements. Everything else had to be yelled into the microphone. Sometimes they shouted obscenely. But, characteristically, none of the passengers complained.
Quite often I travel on long-distance trains and not very much, every time I try to notice something useful, necessary, convenient for myself, and then I came across such a wonderful post, adding my comments, I decided to make a selection of useful tips and secrets about how it is easier / more convenient to travel on trains. Use it! -)
1. Interrupted route. Any person can get off the train at the station, stay there for some time, and go on the same ticket further, but on a different train.
A stopover is really possible for up to 10 days, once in any city along the route you like. Just within 4 hours upon arrival, you need to go to the station administrator and make a special mark on the ticket, while proceeding further, "punch" the ticket, you may have to pay extra money, but not much. There are categories of passengers who can make more than one such stops, people with disabilities and their accompanying persons and veterans, and several more categories of beneficiaries.
2. Side seats, near the toilet. In the second-class carriage, the well-known "side, near the toilet" are places 37, 38.
If the door is slammed and there is no passage!
So the side is near the toilet.
This place is cursed, pass it on to everyone.
Do not take a place at the box office thirty-seven!
3. Sockets. The sockets in the reserved seat are located near the boiler, opposite the toilet on the non-working side, in the second and eighth compartments of the reserved seat carriage (39-40 and 51-52). In compartments between compartments 3 and 4 and between compartments 7 and 8 in the corridor. If they don't work, just ask the conductor to turn them on.
4. Buy a seat in a two-seater compartment... The standard carriage has 54 seats, but after the introduction of mandatory provision of linen for reserved seats, it has decreased by two seats. 53.54 places were given to conductors. in compartment cars, the compartment for 2 seats was taken from the conductors and assigned numbers 37-38, and the first compartment with seats 1-4 was withdrawn from circulation. This scheme works only on trains with a distance of more than 36 hours, and only on Russian Railways. When buying a ticket for a compartment carriage, try to buy seats 37-38, you will go almost like in the SV.
5. Refrigerator. Each car has two "winter refrigerators", each of them with a volume of 150 liters, (earlier there was an emergency supply of fuel for titanium and the heating system, then, with the widespread introduction of electric heating, the place was left empty, but the instructions remained, so a sudden nishtyak turned out from new electrical technologies), so that all fragrant products can be asked to put the guides there, not forgetting about the reward.
6. Reserve tickets at the box office. Each train has so-called "reserved seats", they are called "Personal reserve of NP", two seats in compartment cars and three in a reserved seat. Usually they do not go on sale, but are issued to those who go on business trips from the state. structures or for funerals.
7. Baggage. Of course, no one finds fault with those 80 percent of people who violate the baggage rules, which state: that hand luggage and baggage in total can be 36 kilograms (in CB 50 kg) by weight and 180 cm. By the sum of the perimeter (length + height + width). On long-distance trains, on account of the established carry-on baggage allowance, a passenger can transport baby carriages, kayaks, bicycles without a motor, disassembled and packed.
8. Head of the train. NP - Tsar and God on the train, while the train en route, he does not obey anyone (even Yakunin), but everyone, without exception, obey him - both conductors and electromechanics. You can find the head of the train like this: this is the compartment carriage closest to the carriage of the restaurant. The OP is either in the OP office, or in the first compartment (compartment of the OP), or moves along the train. But even if he shies away on the train, it's easy to find him, there is only one road on the train, look for a man with two (three on branded trains) stars on his shoulder straps. One star is also a boss, but only called FEM (train electrician) replaces the NP at night. If, on the other hand, the car in which the NP is traveling is identified from the outside - by the antenna made in the form of a long wire stretched over the roof of the car.
9. Electronic registration. If the electronic registration is passed, then the ticket can be printed no later than an hour before the train departure. Then the lists go to the conductors and the ticket can no longer be printed. Obviously, this was done to exclude the possibility of returning the ticket, but to go according to the list with the conductor. Accordingly, it works the other way around - you can register online no later than an hour before departure, otherwise the ticket purchased on the Internet must be printed out at the terminal or at the box office.
10. Key. The key is three-sided, it can be used to open and close inter-car doors and a toilet, as well as windows. But be careful, if caught - they can be removed from the train. This key can either be purchased at the "Expedition", or taken from the elevators.
11. Shower. There is a shower in the ceiling of the toilet, closed with the same three-sided key. In the summer it is quite possible to wash, as the tanks are on the top and the water heats up well.
12. Music in the carriages. It depends on the personal preferences of the NP, so you can't guess, you can go to Kadysheva with Mikhailov, or you can go to the Beatles with Queen.
13. Windows. Try not to buy tickets to places with numbers 9-12 49-50, 21-24 43-44, there are blind windows.
14. Bed. If you do not pay for the bed, then you cannot use the mattress with a pillow. You are not obliged to collect and hand over the bed (unless, of course, this is your gesture of goodwill to help the conductor). The conductor's duties are specified: to remove bedding after disembarking passengers; in exceptional cases, with the consent of passengers, it is allowed to remove bedding no earlier than 30 minutes before passengers arrive at the railway station.
15. If there are no tickets. If you take a ticket for a passing train, for example, from city "A" to city "B", but there are no tickets, then take to the next station "C", and "Oh, miracle, there are tickets!" points, just leave early and that's it.
16. Russian Railways- “Rejoice, Alive Have arrived” - this is how the railwaymen and conductors themselves joke about the abbreviation.
Keep these tips in mind and enjoy your train ride !-)
p.s. add who has something else to say-)
Already stipulates the mandatory presence of traction units in the composition:
Composition of coupled railway carriages driven by a locomotive or motor car.
As the use of horse-drawn transport declined, the word "train" gradually lost its original meaning ("a row of carts") and became associated exclusively with the railway.
A train railway, formed and coupled train of wagons with one or more operating locomotives or motor wagons, having light and other identification signals
Design and calculation of trains
The weight of the train is one of the most important parameters, since it determines the carrying capacity of the sections, that is, how many passengers or cargo will be transported between stations in a certain time (most often - 1 day). An increase in the mass of a train allows not only to raise this parameter, but also to reduce the cost of transportation. At the same time, an excessive increase in train weight leads to overloading of locomotives and to premature failure of their equipment. Also, as a result of the design, it is possible to determine the length of the train, the number of cars and locomotives in it and their distribution by train, as well as the modes of running the train along various sections of the track.
Formation of freight trains
The procedure for the formation and passage of long, heavy, connected, increased weight and length of freight trains is established by the railway officer on duty. Formation is carried out without a selection of cars by the number of axles and weight, but when forming long and heavy trains, empty cars should be placed in the last third of the train. when going for repair or out of repair, they are placed at the tail of a freight train in one group. The rules for the technical operation of railways in force in Russia prohibit the use of the following cars:
Formation of passenger trains
The norms for the weight and length of long-distance and local passenger trains and the procedure for placing wagons in them are indicated in the train schedule books. In the front and last carriages, the end doors are locked, and the transition platforms are fixed in the raised position. The procedure for attaching wagons to passenger trains in excess of the norm and following long-distance passenger trains is determined by the relevant instructions. On Russian railways, it is allowed to attach non-all-metal service cars to passenger trains (except for suburban trains).
It is prohibited to put on passenger and post-baggage trains:
- wagons with dangerous goods;
- wagons with expired terms of periodic repair or with expired terms of a unified technical revision.
Several freight wagons can also be delivered to passenger (except for high-speed and fast) and post-baggage trains.
- to distant ones - 1 carriage (or one two-car section for the transportation of live fish);
- to local and suburban - 3 carriages;
- in post and luggage - 6 wagons;
The speed of passenger and mail and baggage trains, which include wagons of other designs and types, are limited by the speeds set for these wagons.
Organization of train traffic
The basis for organizing the movement of trains on mainline railways is the traffic schedule, the violation of which is not allowed. Thanks to it, traffic safety and rational use of rolling stock are ensured. In accordance with the schedule, each train is assigned a specific number. Trains of a certain direction are assigned even numbers, and trains of the opposite direction are assigned odd numbers. In addition to the number, each freight train at the station of formation is assigned a certain index, which does not change until the station of disbandment. If the train is not provided for by the schedule, then a number is assigned to it when it is assigned. In accordance with the rules for the technical operation of Russian railways, trains are divided into the following categories:
- Extraordinary:
- The next - in order of priority:
- Federal trains:
- Passenger expressways (always federal);
- Federal high-speed passenger trains (usually branded);
- Federal freight trains;
- Passenger ambulances;
- High-value freight trains:
- Special orders of increased value;
- Freight trains with perishable contents;
- Passenger trains (additional trains and low-value passenger trains);
- Postal and baggage, military, cargo-passenger, human, fast-track cargo;
- Freight (through, sectional, modular, export, transfer), utility trains;
To control the movement of all trains, the railway track is divided into certain sections (usually 100-150 km), called plots... The movement of all trains at each section is controlled by a train dispatcher (DSC). His duties include ensuring the fulfillment of the train schedule, therefore, the orders of the dispatcher are subject to unconditional execution. In addition, train drivers and other employees serving trains obey the instructions of the station attendants, who, in turn, also obey the train dispatcher. Up to several sections can be under the control of one dispatcher.
Varieties of trains
Trains differ in the nature of cargo, travel speeds, dimensions, weight, etc. The following types of trains are found on the railways of Russia.
- Passenger- designed for the carriage of passengers, baggage and mail. In turn, they differ in:
- Freight(commodity - outdated name):
- Accelerated:
- Fast freight;
- Refrigerated;
- For transporting animals;
- For the transportation of perishable goods;
- Flood control;
- Individual locomotives:
- Control rooms;
- Military- designed to move troops, military equipment, institutions and other military cargo.
In addition, the word "train" is an integral part of the following names:
- Agit train - a rolling stock intended for agitation, propaganda and educational work;
- Aero train is a multi-car train that uses aerodynamic forces during movement, creating a screen effect;
- Armored train - armored rolling stock for warfare;
- Diesel train - diesel multi-unit rolling stock;
- A turbo train is a multi-unit rolling stock with a gas turbine as the primary engine;
- Electrical installation train - a subdivision intended for electrical installation work during the electrification of railways;
- Electric train is a multi-unit rolling stock that receives energy from an external electrical network (contact network, contact rail), or from storage batteries.
- An energy assembly train is a manufacturing enterprise that builds power lines for railway transport.
Train equipment
Brakes
At present, a wide variety of types of brakes are used on trains: pneumatic and electric, automatic and non-automatic, cargo and passenger, non-rigid and semi-rigid, etc.
The main disadvantage of a pneumatic brake is that the speed of propagation of the air wave, and therefore the actuation of the brakes in terms of composition, is equal to the speed of sound (331 m / s). Non-simultaneous operation of the brakes can lead to longitudinal shocks, which in passenger trains leads to discomfort for passengers, and in long freight trains - to a train rupture. Therefore, on passenger and long-haul freight trains, electro-pneumatic brakes are used. In this case, an electrical wire runs parallel to the brake line, through which signals are transmitted to the air distributors (the latter is called an electrical air distributor, due to the presence of an electrical part in the structure). The advantage of this type of brake is that the brakes are applied almost simultaneously along the entire length of the train, which also makes it possible to shorten the braking distance.
In addition to the Westinghouse brake, the Matrosov brake system is used. In the former USSR, on trains, on trucks and on some types of buses. The peculiarity of this system is that braking is performed when the pressure in the braking system drops. There are two types of Matrosov braking systems: with spring braking, and with air valve braking. Unlike the Westinghouse system, it is impossible to drive in the absence of pressure in the braking system.
Tram trolley. Magnetic rail brake shoe is visible between the wheels
Control and safety devices
To improve safety, trains are equipped with various devices and devices, most of which are located in the driver's cab. To control traffic light signals, the train is equipped with ALS - automatic locomotive signaling. It reads from the way the special signals coming from the traffic light in front, decodes them and at the mini-traffic light (locomotive traffic light) located in the cab, duplicates the signals of the traffic light in front. To check the driver's vigilance, the so-called vigilance handle (RB, structurally it is made in the form of a button or a pedal) serves. When the indication at the locomotive traffic light changes, as well as if the driver has not changed the position of the traction and brake controls for a long time, a sound signal is heard, which is often duplicated by a light signal (in some cases, the light signal lights up before the sound signal). Hearing a sound signal (or seeing a light signal), the driver must immediately press on the RB, otherwise, after some time (5-10 s), emergency braking will be automatically applied. Periodic check of vigilance is also carried out when the train approaches a traffic light with a prohibitive indication. Often, to monitor the driver's vigilance, sensors are used that measure his physiological data (pulse, pressure, head tilt).
Signals
| Steam locomotive whistle | |
| Playback Help | |
As is clear from the definition, one of the properties of a train is the presence of signals. Train signals are included in the general railway transport signaling system, which also includes track signals - traffic lights, signal signs, signs, etc. Signals are divided into sound and visible.
To give sound signals, there are special devices installed on the rolling stock - whistles, typhons, bells. They are designed to increase safety by warning of the approaching train, and to issue commands to train compilers and car inspectors. Sound signals, in turn, are divided into high-volume signals and low-volume signals. A high-volume signal must have reliable audibility within the braking distance and is used extremely rarely, especially within cities and towns. Typhon serves to serve it. On railway locomotives, the sound level of the typhon signal at a distance of 5 meters is about 120 dB at a tone frequency of 360-380 Hz. Bells were used to give low-volume signals on early locomotives; now they have been replaced by whistles. The whistle signal at a distance of 5 meters has a sound level of 105 dB with a fundamental frequency of about 1200 Hz. To drive the whistle and typhon, steam from the boiler is used on steam locomotives, on the rest of the locomotives, compressed air. On trams, signals are given by means of an electric bell.
| Signal | Meaning | When served |
|---|---|---|
| 3 short | "Stop" | When approaching a redirection signal. |
| Complete stop signal | Served after a complete stop of the train. | |
| One long | "Take a train" | When the train departs. |
| Alert signal | When approaching level crossings, tunnels, passenger platforms, curves, places of track works. When traveling in low visibility conditions (blizzard, fog, etc.). To prevent collisions with people. When trains meet on double-track sections: the first signal - when approaching the oncoming train, the second - when approaching its tail section. | |
| One long, one short, one long | Alert when following the wrong path | In the same cases as a regular alert. |
| Vigilance signal | When a train arrives at a station on the wrong track. When approaching a traffic light with a prohibiting indication, if you have permission to follow it. When following a traffic light with a prohibiting or incomprehensible indication. |
- The head of all trains, when following the correct track, is indicated by a searchlight and two transparent white lights turned on at the buffer bar (buffer lights), moreover, the motor car train in this case is allowed to follow with the buffer lights extinguished;
- When a train follows the wrong path, its head is indicated by the red light of the lantern on the left side, and the transparent white light of the lantern on the right side;
- The tail of freight and freight-passenger trains is marked with one red disc with a reflector at the buffer bar on the right side;
- The tail of passenger and post-baggage trains is indicated by three red lights, and in the case of a freight car being attached to the tail, by one red;
- The tail of a locomotive riding in the tail of a train, or without wagons at all, is indicated by one red fire on the right side;
- During shunting movements (including following to the depot), the locomotive and the multiple unit rolling stock are indicated by one buffer light in front and behind, switched on from the side of the main control panel (on conventional mainline locomotives and multiple unit trains - the left buffer light in front and the right buffer light behind).
Connection
For the exchange of information between train drivers with station attendants, train dispatchers, train compilers, as well as among themselves, trains are equipped with radio communication devices. Depending on the type of work, two types of radio communication are used on the underground and main railways - train and shunting. The first is used to exchange information between train drivers and train dispatchers, as well as among themselves, the second is used to exchange information between the person on duty at the centralization post with the train driver and train compilers during maneuvers.
Radio communication operates in simplex mode with group calling in the most common hectometer (~ 2 MHz) and meter (~ 151-156 MHz) bands. Since the level of interference is quite high in the hectometer range, in order to obtain a good signal, guide wires are pulled along the railway track, which can be placed on the supports of the contact network, or on the supports of overhead communication lines. On the main railways, the radio communication of train drivers with train dispatchers is carried out via the dispatching train radio communication in the decimeter range (330 MHz, abroad - up to 450 MHz), while the train one serves to connect train drivers with each other, with stations on duty, as well as with the train manager (on passenger trains). Locomotive radio stations are installed in the control cabin, often with two consoles (separately for the driver and his assistant).
On passenger multi-unit trains, an intercom system is installed, which is carried out via a wire line. This system is designed to transmit messages to passengers in the cabin, as well as to exchange information between members of the locomotive crew (driver with an assistant or conductor) located in different cabins. For emergency communication between passengers and the driver, the "passenger-driver" communication system is designed, the intercoms of which are located in the passenger cabins. Often the communication systems "driver-passenger" and "passenger-driver" are combined into one.
Traction of trains
Main article: Traction theory
To propel the train into motion on the first railways, the muscular power of animals, mainly horses, was used. In the first half of the 19th century, they were replaced by a locomotive - a traction vehicle moving on rails. The principle of its operation lies in the interaction of the wheel and the rail - traction force is transmitted from the engine to the wheel, and the wheel, due to the frictional force on the rail, sets the locomotive, and with it the entire train, in motion. The first type of locomotive was a steam locomotive - a vehicle powered by a steam engine. Steam was supplied to the steam engine from a steam boiler, which was located on the locomotive. Despite such an advantage as "omnivorousness" (oil, coal, firewood, peat could serve as fuel for a steam locomotive), such locomotives had a very significant drawback - a very low efficiency, which was about 5-7%. Therefore, at present, steam locomotives are almost never used in train work.
Modern locomotives use internal combustion engines - diesel (diesel locomotives) or a gas turbine (gas turbine locomotives) - as the primary engine. Since such engines can operate in a limited range of rotational speeds, an intermediate gear, either electric or hydraulic, is required to transmit rotation to the driving wheels. The electric transmission consists of a generator and electric motors, the hydraulic transmission consists of hydraulic couplings, torque converters and hydraulic pumps. The hydraulic transmission is lighter and cheaper, but the electric transmission is more reliable and economical. A mechanical transmission is sometimes used on low-power diesel locomotives. Of the autonomous locomotives, the most widespread are diesel locomotives with electric transmission.
The prime mover can be completely removed from the locomotive, and energy can be transferred to the locomotive from the outside - via the overhead line. It is on this principle that an electric locomotive works - a non-autonomous locomotive driven by electric motors. The electric locomotive through the pantograph receives electricity from the contact network, which is then transmitted to the traction motors, which, through a gear train, drive the driving axles into rotation. The main advantage of an electric locomotive over autonomous locomotives is the virtual absence of harmful emissions into the atmosphere (unless, of course, you count emissions from power plants), which made it possible to transfer all urban rail transport to electric traction - tram and subway, as well as monorail trains. In addition to the listed types of locomotives, there are also combinations of them: electric locomotive, electric locomotive, heat locomotive, and so on.
The train can be set in motion without the transfer of traction from the engine to the wheel and then to the rail. So in a linear motor, electricity is directly converted into the energy of translational motion - the train moves due to the interaction of the magnetic fields of the inductor and the metal strip. The inductor can be located both in the overpass and on the rolling stock. Such an engine is used on trains with magnetic suspension (maglev), as well as in monorail transport. In addition, in the twentieth century, experiments were carried out using aircraft engines (propeller, jet engine) for traction of trains, but they were mainly intended to study the interaction of rolling stock and rails at high speeds.
Energy of wagons
Passenger trains have a variety of assistance systems designed to provide passenger comfort. Most of them (lighting, heating, ventilation, cooking in the dining cars) use electricity to operate. One of its sources is an autonomous power supply system, which includes a generator and a storage battery. The DC generator is driven from the axle of the wheelset through a belt or cardan drive. The generator voltage is 50 V and its power is about 10 kW.
If the car is equipped with an air conditioning system, the voltage on the generator is 110 V, and its power can reach 30 kW. In this case, an alternator and a rectifier are more commonly used. To obtain alternating current (to power fluorescent lamps, radio equipment, sockets for connecting electric shavers and other low-power devices), machine or semiconductor converters of direct current to alternating current are used. The storage battery is designed to back up the generator at low speeds, and also perceives load peaks. The main disadvantage of such a system is the increase in resistance to movement up to 10%.
On high-speed and high-speed trains, a power station wagon is used to supply the train with electricity. It is equipped with a diesel generator set and is mainly installed at the front of the train, just behind the locomotive (on high-speed trains "Aurora" and "Nevsky Express" it is installed at the tail of the train). On diesel trains, auxiliary generators are used to obtain low voltage, which are driven by a diesel plant. On DC electric trains, the generator is located on the same shaft with a dynamo located under the car, and high-voltage semiconductor converters are also often used. On alternating current electric trains, low voltage is obtained from a traction transformer, where the voltage of the contact network is reduced to the required level (about 220 V). Further, the single-phase current in the machine converter is converted into a three-phase one. To obtain direct current from alternating current, rectifiers are used. On subway cars, control and lighting circuits are powered from a storage battery (it is also charged from a contact rail through a set of resistors), or from a static converter.
To supply heating circuits, a high voltage is required (on the main railways - about 3000 V), which comes from the locomotive. On a DC electric locomotive, power in the train heating circuit comes directly from the overhead line, on an AC electric locomotive, the voltage of the overhead line (25 kV), using a special winding on the traction transformer, is reduced to 3 kV, after which it enters the heating circuit. A diesel locomotive can have a special generator that generates a voltage of 3 kV, otherwise, passenger cars are provided with heating with fuel (coal, wood, peat). In metro cars operating in open areas (for example, the Filyovskaya line of the Moscow metro), as well as in tram cars, electric ovens are connected directly to the contact network (or to the contact rail). High voltage can also come not only from the locomotive, but also from the power station car. Often, a low voltage can be supplied from the locomotive to the cars - to power the circuits for lighting, ventilation, etc., which makes it possible not to use an autonomous power supply system.
Trains in culture and art
In painting
One of the first paintings depicting a train can rightfully be considered a painting by the artist Tyumling, which depicts a train on the Tsarskoye Selo railway (see above). In 1915, Gino Severini painted the painting "An ambulance train rushing through the city." Also, in the halls of many museums, you can find many other paintings depicting trains ("Turksib", "Winners" and others). Trains in their paintings were painted by Vladimir Gavrilovich Kazantsev, Isaac Ilyich Levitan.
In literature
Trains appear in a large number of literary works, and in some of them trains play an important role. This is how the action of some of Agatha Christie's novels about Hercule Poirot took place on the trains: "The Mystery of the Blue Train" and "". The main character of Leo Tolstoy's novel "Anna Karenina" rushes under the train. In one of the first novels by Jules Verne, "Paris in the twentieth century", a train is described, which is set in motion by a cylinder moving inside a pipe and connected to the composition by magnetic coupling - a prototype of a linear motor, and in another novel, "Claudius Bombarnac", the hero travels by train along the Trans-Siberian Railway. The book "Yellow Arrow" by V. Pelevin is also dedicated to the train ride. In 1943 Boris Pasternak published a collection of poems entitled On Early Trains. In 1952, Gianni Rodari published a collection of children's poems called "Poetry Train". In JK Rowling's Harry Potter series, the Hogwarts Express takes students to Hogwarts at the start of each school year. In the story by V. Krapivin "Outpost at the Anchor Field", a futuristic maglev train is one of the key elements of the plot, sometimes visiting a secret station located in a parallel world
The plot of the book by I. Stemler "The Train" also develops on the train.
In cinematography
As representatives of railway transport, trains appear in a huge number of films, starting with the earliest - "Arrival of a train at La Ciotat" (he can also be seen in the film "The Man from the Boulevard des Capucines"). Also, the main action of the films often unfolds on trains ("Under Siege 2: Territory of Darkness", "Golden Echelon", "Highway", "Uncontrollable", "34th Rapid", "Murder on the Orient Express", "Train", " We, the undersigned ”and others).
In cartoons
One of the most famous train cartoons is the English animated series Thomas and Friends (since 1984), as well as its Soviet predecessor, The Steam Engine from Romashkov. In many American cartoons, you can often see an episode when a character standing on the rails is hit by a train (this episode is even played out in the movie "Who Framed Roger Rabbit"). Also, trains can be seen in cartoons such as:
- "Wait for it! (issue 6) "(1973) - at the end the Wolf chases the Hare along the train;
- "Shapoklyak" (1974) - Gena and Cheburashka at the beginning and end of the cartoon are traveling by train. It is noteworthy that in the locomotive one can easily guess the electric locomotive ChS2, which has the nickname "Cheburashka" among the railway workers;
- "Holidays in Prostokvashino" (1980) - Uncle Fedor escapes from his parents on a commuter train;
- Stop the Train (1982);
- Around the World with Willie Fogh (1983);
- South Park - In the episode "Cartman's Mom is a Dirty Whore" (1998), Kenny is hit by a train;
- "Futurama" - at the "Pastorama" exhibition (episode "Lesser of Two Evils" (2000)) Fry defines the train as "mobile free house";
- Cars (2006) - McQueen crosses the crossing just before the train;
- The Simpsons Movie (2007) - EPA agents catch Marge, Bart, Lisa and Maggie on the train.
- "Brave little train Tilly"
- In the Polish animated series "The Magic Pencil" one of the series
In songs
One of the most famous Soviet songs about the train is the children's song "Blue Carriage", which sounds in the cartoon "Shapoklyak":
The blue carriage is running and swinging
The fast train is picking up speed ...
A lot of songs about trains are heard in movies or on music stages:
- Train to Chattanooga - From Sun Valley Serenade
- "The Train Goes East" - from the film of the same name
- "I'll Take a Fast Train" - Mikhail Boyarsky
- "Train to Leningrad" - Empire
- "Fast train" (D. Tukhmanov - V. Kharitonov) - Funny guys
- "Fast Train" - Bravo
- "Fast Train" - Viktor Petliura
- "The fast train will come" - Brigade C
- "Train again" - Chizh & Co
- "City of Roads" - Centr
- "Train on Fire" - Aquarium
- "Postal Train" - Hi-Fi
- "Conversation on the Train" - Time Machine
- "Another Town, Another Train" - ABBA
- "Trainhide to Russia" - Accept
- Train of Consequences - Megadeth
- "Bullet Train" - Judas Priest
- Train Kept A Rollin 'and Back Back Train - Aerosmith
- "Train" - 3 Doors Down
- "Zion Train" - Bob Marley
- "Suburbian Train" and "Urban train" - DJ Tiesto
- Rock'n'Roll Train - AC / DC
- "Hold the Train" - Metal Corrosion
- Slowest Train - Laima Vaikule
- Waiting room - Irina Bogushevskaya
- "Farewell" (... trains leave from all stations to distant lands ...) - Lev Leshchenko
- "Burning Arrow" - Aria and other performers
- "Train to Surkharban" - Oleg Medvedev
- "Knock" - Cinema
- "Train 193" - Alexander Bashlachev
- "Dorozhnaya No. 5" - Chizh & Co
Also, any song that mentions a moving rail rolling stock can be attributed to songs about trains:
- "Wait, steam locomotive" - from the movie "Operation Y" and other adventures of Shurik "
- "Train" - Cinema
- "Train" - Alena Apina
- "Little locomotive-cloud" - Lyceum
- "42 minutes underground" - Bravo
- "Tram Pyaterochka" - Lube
- "Additional 38" - Chizh & Co
- "Thirty-ninth tram" - Irina Bogushevskaya
- "Shaken" - Disco Crash
- "347th" - 7B
- "The car is swinging" - Vyacheslav Dobrynin
- "To the sound of wheels" - KREC and others.
- "Quiet Don" - Nikolay Bobrovich
- "Trains are leaving" - Alexander Emelyanov
In Viktor Argonov's techno-opera 2032: The Legend of the Unfulfilled Future, General Secretary of the CPSU Central Committee A. S. Milinevsky visits the secret city of Zelenodolsk-26 on Maglev, which is mentioned in the songs “200 minutes” and “Unrealizable Your Way”. The train speed is given, slightly exceeding 300 km / h.
On postage stamps
In computer and video games
Due to the huge number of computer games of various genres, trains are found in a considerable number of games. There is even a whole genre of games dedicated to trains - train simulator. The most famous games of this genre are: Southern Belle and its sequel Evening Star, Train Simulator, Densha de GO !, Microsoft Train Simulator, Trainz, Rail Simulator. In these games, the player is given the opportunity to control trains from different countries of the world along a variety of route options with different options for the formation of trains.
In games of other genres, trains are given a much smaller role and they act there, basically, only as a means of delivery. In such games, the player can simply observe the movement of a train along a pre-created railway track (Commandos 3: Destination Berlin, Blitzkrieg), but can also create a railway infrastructure, set routes for trains, and even choose the number of wagons in the train and the type of cargo. The latter is especially pronounced in economic simulators, such as Transport Tycoon, Railroad Tycoon and their sequels (Transport Tycoon Deluxe, Transport Giant, Railroad Tycoon 3, Railroad Pioneers, and so on). Some games even have the ability to primitively control a train (GTA: San Andreas, SimCity 4: Rush hour).
Railway slang
- "Mad" - high-speed train;
- "Spinner" - a freight train, mainly made up of dump cars and hoppers, circulating along a ring-shaped route;
- "Hunchback" - a train with oversized cargo;
- "Drive-in" - a multiple-unit train (diesel or electric train), following a run-in without passengers, or a locomotive, following without wagons;
- "Parrot" - a multi-unit train (diesel or electric train) following the fast train schedule;
- "Fly" - a working train of 2-3 passenger cars with a shunting locomotive;
- "Surge" - reduction of the time of delay of passenger trains;
- “Bulk”, “bulk” - a train carrying liquid (liquid) cargo (mainly oil and oil products, as well as oils, acids, liquefied gases, etc.);
- "Stub", "shorty" - a short and light train;
- "Foundling" - a suburban train consisting of a locomotive and 1-4 carriages, or an electric train of 4-6 carriages;
- "Stretch out" - stop with the train on a difficult section (ascent, break of the profile) due to a breakdown or inability to drive the train;
- "Raft" - several locomotives linked together, following along the route;
- "Super heavyweight" - locomotive, next in reserve (without wagons);
- "Freight train" - a freight train;
- "Mother-in-law" is a signal indicating the tail of the train;
- "Coal" - a train loaded with coal.
Records among trains
Main article: Train speed records
In the world
In the CIS
Accidents and train crashes
In the world
Crash in Germany in 1988
In Russia
Terrorist attacks related to trains
A helicopter on a train
Gallery
Notes (edit)
- The French train has surpassed its record. Vesti.ru (April 3, 2008). Archived from the original on January 24, 2012. Retrieved December 5, 2012.
- Section 5 // Rules for the technical operation of the railways of the Russian Federation.
- .
- The article "Train" in the Great Soviet Encyclopedia, 3rd ed.
- Railway transport // Great Russian Encyclopedia. - 1994 .-- S. 210.
- History of railway transport in Russia / ed. E. N. Boravskaya, K. A. Ermakov. - SPb. : OJSC "Ivan Fedorov", 1994. - T. 1. - S. 24-25. - ISBN 5-859-52-005-0
- Zabarinsky P. Stephenson. - Moscow: Journal and newspaper association, 1937.
- ed. Boravskaya E. N., Ermakov K. A. The history of railway transport in Russia. - St. Petersburg: OJSC "Ivan Fedorov", 1994. - T. 1. - S. 38-40. - ISBN 5-859-52-005-0
- The first number means the number of slide axles - they help the locomotive to fit better into curves and somewhat relieve its front end. The second digit means the number of coupling axles (they are also called driving) - the operating torque from the motors is directly transmitted to these axles. It is the wheels on these axles that drive the locomotive, and with it the entire train, in motion. The third digit means the number of supporting axles - they help to better distribute the weight of the locomotive on the rails, somewhat relieving its rear end
- Several steam locomotives, in order to reduce the load from the axles on the rails, were soon equipped with a slide axle, as a result of which the 1-3-0 type was created for the first time in the world.
- History of railway transport in Russia / ed. E. N. Boravskaya, K. A. Ermakov. - SPb. : OJSC "Ivan Fedorov", 1994. - T. 1. - S. 29, 106, 243-249. - ISBN 5-859-52-005-0
- Railway transport // Great encyclopedia of transport. - T. 4. - S. 184-185.
- Section 4. // Rules for the technical operation of the railways of the Russian Federation.
- Beginning in the 1980s, in most motor car depots of the USSR, the position of a conductor was abolished, and part of his duties (monitoring the embarkation and disembarkation of passengers) was transferred to the assistant driver.
- Railway transport // Great encyclopedia of transport. - T. 4. - S. 170-171.
- Railway transport // Great Russian Encyclopedia. - 1994. - S. 78-80, 291-293.
- Currently [ when?] a different definition is adopted: a high-speed train is a train traveling at an average speed of at least 51 km / h and at least 5 km / h faster than other passenger trains following in the same direction ((subst: AI))
- The concept is relatively arbitrary, for example, the length of the route of the suburban train St. Petersburg - Malaya Vishera is about 163 km.
- A conventional car is a conventional measure of length equal to 14 m. It is mainly used to measure the length of station tracks.
- Taking into account the number of locomotive axles
- Railway transport // Great Russian Encyclopedia. - 1994 .-- S. 24, 30, 44, 115, 462, 519, 522.
- Railway transport // Great encyclopedia of transport. - T. 4. - S. 132-135.
- Railway transport // Great Russian Encyclopedia. - 1994 .-- S. 448-450.
- Railway transport // Great Russian Encyclopedia. - 1994 .-- S. 514.
- Rakov V.A.... - M.: Transport,. - ISBN 5-277-02012-8
- Rakov V.A. Locomotives and multiple unit rolling stock of the railways of the Soviet Union, 1976-1985. - M.: Transport,.
- Railway transport // Great Russian Encyclopedia. - 1994 .-- S. 222.
- Railway transport // Great encyclopedia of transport. - T. 4. - S. 125-127, 199.
- Railway transport // Great Russian Encyclopedia. - 1994 .-- S. 18.
- Because of this, as well as due to the characteristic tapping during operation, the nickname informer was assigned to the mechanical speedometer.
- Railway transport // Great Russian Encyclopedia. - 1994 .-- S. 22-23, 199, 392-393.
- One of the drawbacks of the AWP for commuter trains is an error of up to 20 meters, which can lead to the fact that the first carriage will be outside the platform.
- For comparison: 110 dB is the sound level of a working tractor at a distance of 1 m; 150 dB - the sound level of a jet plane taking off
- Railway transport // Great Russian Encyclopedia. - 1994 .-- S. 389.
- Chapter 8. Sound signals //. - Transport, 2005.
- For example, when driving on the right - along the left path
- Chapter 7. Signals used to designate trains, locomotives and other moving units. // Instructions for signaling on the railways of the Russian Federation. TsRB-757. - Transport, 2005.
- Railway transport // Great encyclopedia of transport. - T. 4. - S. 127-128.
- Railway transport // Great Russian Encyclopedia. - 1994 .-- S. 383-384.
- Railway transport // Great Russian Encyclopedia. - 1994 .-- S. 352.
- Pegov D.V. and etc. Electric trains of direct current / Ageev K.P .. - Moscow: "Center for commercial development", 2006. - P. 68. - ISBN 5-902624-06-1
- Railway transport // Great Russian Encyclopedia. - 1994 .-- S. 289-290.
- Railway transport // Great encyclopedia of transport. - T. 4. - S. 138-145.
- Rakov V.A. Mainline electric locomotives with hydraulic transmission // Locomotives of domestic railways, 1956-1975. - Moscow: Transport,. - S. 179-180. - ISBN 5-277-02012-8
- Railway transport // Great encyclopedia of transport. - T. 4. - S. 203-205.
- Railway transport // Great Russian Encyclopedia. - 1994 .-- S. 211.
- Prehistory of high-speed and high-speed foreign railways // High-speed and high-speed railway transport. - T. 1. - S. 171-172.
- Railway transport // Great encyclopedia of transport. - T. 4. - S. 135-138, 149-153.
- At the halt. Winter morning on the Ural railway. 1891
- Train on the way. 1890s. Art catalog. Retrieved March 23, 2009.
- Jules Verne Paris in the twentieth century.
- Danil Koretsky Atomic train. - Moscow: Eksmo, 2004 .-- ISBN 5-699-09043-6
- Russian railway slang. Steam locomotive IS. Archived from the original on August 20, 2011. Retrieved March 3, 2009.
- Prehistory of high-speed and high-speed foreign railways // High-speed and high-speed railway transport. - T. 1. - P. 176.
- World speed records on railways // High-speed and high-speed railway transport. - T. 1. - P. 295.
- China. Artemy Lebedev. Home page. - See the last photo. Archived from the original on January 24, 2012. Retrieved February 25, 2009.
The theory of train movement is an integral part of the applied science of train traction, which studies the issues of train movement and the operation of locomotives. For a clearer understanding of the operation of an electric locomotive, it is necessary to know the basic provisions of this theory. First of all, let us consider the main forces acting on the train during movement - this is the traction force F, the resistance to movement W, the braking force B. The driver can change the traction force and the braking force; the force of resistance to movement cannot be controlled.
How are these forces formed, what do they depend on? We have already said that each driving wheelset of an electric locomotive has a separate traction motor, which is connected to it by a gear reducer (Fig. 3, a). The small gear wheel of the reducer (pinion) is mounted on the traction motor shaft, and the large gear is mounted on the axle of the wheelset. The ratio of the number of teeth of a large wheel to the number of teeth of a small wheel is called the gear ratio. If a traction motor is put into operation, then a torque is generated on its shaft. The speed of the wheelset will be 1 times less than the speed of the engine shaft, but the torque is correspondingly 1 times higher (if we do not take into account the efficiency of the gear transmission).
Consider the conditions necessary for an electric locomotive to start moving.
If the wheels of the electric locomotive did not touch the rails, then after starting the traction motors, they would simply rotate, remaining in the same place. However, due to the fact that the wheels of the locomotive come into contact with the rails when the torque M is transmitted to the axles of the wheel pairs, a traction force appears between the surfaces of the wheels and the rails.
Along the way, we note that initially, when creating the first locomotives - steam locomotives, they generally doubted the possibility of their movement along a "smooth" rail track. Therefore, it was proposed to create a gearing between the wheels of the locomotive and the rails (Blenkinson locomotive). A locomotive (the Brunton steam locomotive) was also built, which moved along the rails with the help of special devices, alternately pushing off the track. Fortunately, these doubts did not materialize.
Moment M (see Fig. 3), applied to the wheel, forms a pair of forces with the shoulder R. Force FK is directed against the movement. It tends to move the reference point of the wheel relative to the rail in the direction opposite to the direction of travel. This is prevented by the reaction force of the rail, the so-called adhesion force Fcu, arising under the action of pressing the wheel on the rail at the reference point. According to Newton's third law, it is equal and opposite to the force FK. This force makes the wheel, and therefore the electric locomotive, move along the rail.
At the point of contact of the wheel with the rail, there are two points, one of which belongs to the tire Ab, and the other to the rail Ap. For an electric locomotive standing motionless, these points merge into one. If, in the process of transferring the torque to the wheel, point Ab is displaced relative to the point Лр, then in the next instant the points of the band will alternately come into contact with the point Лр. In this case, the locomotive does not start moving, and if it was already moving, then its speed decreases sharply, the wheel loses its emphasis and begins to slip relative to the rail - skidding.
In the case when the points Ap and Ab do not have a relative displacement, at each subsequent moment of time they leave the contact, but at the same time the following points continuously come into contact: Bb with Br, Wb with Bp, etc.
The point of contact between the wheel and the rail is the instantaneous center of rotation. Obviously, the speed with which the instantaneous center of rotation moves along the rails is equal to the speed of the locomotive's translational motion.
For the movement of an electric locomotive, it is necessary that the adhesion force at the point of contact between the wheel and the rail feu, equal but opposite in direction to the force FK, does not exceed a certain limiting value. Until oa has reached it, the force FC creates a reactive moment FCVLR, which, according to the condition of uniform motion, should be equal to the torque.
The sum of the adhesion forces at the points of contact of all wheels of the electric locomotive determines the total force, called the tangential thrust force FK. It is not hard to imagine that there is a certain maximum traction force, limited by the adhesion forces, at which skidding does not occur yet.
The emergence of the adhesion force can be explained somewhat simplistically as follows. There are irregularities on the seemingly smooth surfaces of the rails and wheels. Since the contact area (contact surface) of the wheel and the rail is very small, and the load from the wheels on the rails is significant, large pressures arise at the point of contact. Wheel irregularities are pressed into irregularities on the surface of the rails, as a result of which the wheel adheres to the rail.
It was found that the adhesion force is directly proportional to the pressing force - the load from all moving wheels on the rails. This load is called the grip weight of the locomotive.
To calculate the greatest traction force that a locomotive can develop without exceeding the adhesion force, in addition to the adhesion weight, it is also necessary to know the adhesion coefficient. By multiplying the adhesion weight of the locomotive by this coefficient, the traction force is determined.
The work of many scientists and practitioners is devoted to the problem of maximum use of the adhesion force between wheels and rails. It has not yet been finally resolved.
What determines the value of the adhesion coefficient? First of all, it depends on the material and condition of the contacting surfaces, the shape of the tires and rails. With an increase in the hardness of wheelsets and rails, the coefficient of adhesion increases. With a wet and dirty rail surface, the friction coefficient is lower than with a dry and clean one. The influence of the state of the rail surface on the coefficient of adhesion can be illustrated by the following example. In the newspaper Trud on December 13, 1973 in the article "Snails against a steam locomotive" it was reported that one of the trains in Italy was forced to stop for several hours. The reason for the delay was the huge number of snails crawling over the railroad tracks. The driver tried to lead the train through this moving mass, but to no avail: the wheels slipped and he could not budge. Only after the stream of snails thinned, the train was able to move.
The adhesion coefficient also depends on the design of the electric locomotive - spring suspension devices, the circuit for switching on traction motors, their location, the type of current, the state of the track (the more the rails are deformed or the ballast layer sags, the lower the adhesion coefficient realized) and other reasons. How these reasons affect the implementation of the traction force will be discussed further in the relevant paragraphs of the book. The coefficient of adhesion also depends on the speed of the train: at the moment of starting the train, it is higher, with an increase in speed, the realized coefficient of adhesion first increases slightly, then decreases. As you know, its value varies within wide limits - from 0.06 to 0.5. Due to the fact that the adhesion coefficient depends on many reasons, the calculated adhesion coefficient is used to determine the maximum traction force that an electric locomotive can develop without slipping. It is the ratio of the highest traction force, reliably implemented under operating conditions, to the adhesion weight of the locomotive. The calculated coefficient of adhesion is determined by empirical formulas depending on the speed; they are derived from extensive research and field trips, taking into account the achievements of leading machinists.
When starting off, that is, when the speed is zero, the coefficient for DC electric locomotives and dual power supply is 0.34 (0.33 for VL8 series electric locomotives) and 0.36 for AC electric locomotives. So, for a double-feed electric locomotive VL 82m, the adhesion weight of which is P = 1960 kN (200 tf), the tangential traction force Fk, taking into account the calculated coefficient.
If the surface of the rails is dirty and the coefficient of adhesion has decreased, say, to 0.2, then the traction force Pk will be 392 kN (40 tf). When sand is supplied, this coefficient can increase to the previous value and even exceed it. The use of sand is especially effective at low speeds: up to a speed of 10 km / h on wet rails, the adhesion coefficient increases by 70-75%. The effect of using sand decreases with increasing speed.
It is very important to ensure the highest coefficient of adhesion when starting and driving: the higher it is, the greater the traction force can be realized by the electric locomotive, the greater the mass of the train can be carried.
Resistance to the movement of the train W arises due to the friction of the wheels on the rails, friction in the axle boxes, deformation of the track, air resistance, resistance due to descents and ascents, curved track sections, etc. The resultant of all resistance forces is usually directed against the movement and only on very steep descents coincide with the direction of travel.
Resistance to movement is divided into primary and secondary. The main resistance acts constantly and arises as soon as the train starts to move; additional due to slopes of the path, curves, outside temperature, strong wind, starting off.
It is very difficult to calculate the individual components of the main resistance to the movement of the train. Usually it is calculated for cars of each type and locomotives of different series according to empirical formulas obtained on the basis of the results of many studies and tests in various conditions. The main resistance increases as the speed increases. At high speeds, air resistance prevails in it.
Taking into account the main resistance to the movement of the locomotive, in addition to the tangential traction force of the electric locomotive, the concept of traction force on the automatic coupler Fa is introduced (Fig. 4).
In the process of driving a train, to reduce speed, to stop or to maintain its constant speed on slopes, brakes are used that create a braking force B. The braking force is formed due to the friction of the brake pads on the wheel rims (mechanical braking) or when traction motors operate as generators. As a result of pressing the brake shoe against the bandage by force K (see Fig. 3, b), a friction force arises on it.
friction. Due to this, the adhesion force B is formed on the tire at the point of its contact with the rail, equal to the force T. Force B is braking: it prevents the train from moving.
The maximum value of the braking force is determined by the same conditions as the traction forces.To avoid skidding (sliding without rotation of the wheels on the rails) during braking, the condition of friction of the brake pads on the bandage must be met, depending on the speed of movement, the specific pressure of the pads on the wheel and their material. This coefficient decreases with increasing speed and specific depression due to an increase in the temperature of the rubbing surfaces. Therefore, double-sided pressing on the wheels is used when braking.
Depending on the forces applied to the train, three modes of train movement are distinguished: traction (movement under current), run-down (without current), braking.
At the moment of starting and during the period of further movement under current, the traction force Fk and the resistance to the movement of the train K act on the train. The nature of the change in speed as a function of time on the segment of the OA curve (Fig. 5) is determined by the difference in forces. The greater this difference, the greater the acceleration of the train. Resistance to movement, as already noted, is a variable quantity that depends on speed. With an increase in speed, it increases. Therefore, if the thrust is constant, the accelerating thrust will decrease. After some point O, the traction force decreases. Then there comes a moment when Fk and the train under current moves at a constant speed (section of the AB curve).
Then the driver can turn off the engines and continue freewheel (section BV) due to the kinetic energy of the train. In this case, only the force of resistance to movement acts on the train, which reduces its speed, if the train does not move along a steep slope. When the driver turns on the brakes (from point C to point G), two forces act on the train - resistance to movement and braking force B. The speed of the train decreases. The sum of the forces B and represents the decelerating force. Such a case of movement is also possible when the train is moving along a steep slope and the driver uses the braking force to maintain a constant permissible speed.
