Analysis of the axial and transversal stiffness of an air spring suspension of a railway vehicle: mathematical modelling and experiments

The secondary suspension of railway vehicles is fundamental for their dynamic behaviour. This paper outlines a model-based procedure for predicting and evaluating the influence of different parameters in the static stiffness and vibration transmission of an air spring employed in the secondary suspension system of a railway vehicle. For that aim, a detailed and experimentally validated finite element model of the air spring is defined. It includes the behaviour of the reinforced elastomer, the inner pressure-deformation coupling and the thermodynamic interactions taking place inside the bellow. A Computer Aided Design of Experiments is employed to evaluate the influence of seven construction parameters of the bellow. Experimental tests and simulation results show that the air spring has natural frequencies below 100 Hz, in the frequency range where structure-borne vibration transmission occurs. The cord angle modifies the axial-transversal stiffness relation and a larger separation between adjacent layers and fibres delay the vibration transmissibility.