Coil Springs in Suspensions of Railway Vehicles

Coil springs are the basis of many suspensions and determine safety of operating the railway vehicle by structural strength, buckling resistance and durability. There are various analytical expressions used to determine structural strength and durability of springs under the action of combined loads (vertical and horizontal), that are widely used in calculations [2, 6, 7]. These expressions were obtained empirically and are not applicable to a wide range of springs with different geometry and operating in different conditions. Spring durability is usually evaluated by calculation or by experimental method using the Wohler curve and comparison of durability limit and maximum or equivalent stress amplitude [5]. The paper proposes finite element approach (boundary conditions and shear stress criterion) to simulation of spring structural strength and to determine stress in durability calculations. Finite element approach (boundary conditions and reserve coefficient) is also proposed to determine spring buckling resistance under compression load.