Methods Used to Analyze the Impact of Passenger Cars Bodies Design Features on their Stiffness and Strength Characteristics

Abstract A method to analyze the impact of design features of the integral scheme of passenger cars bodies on their stiffness and strength characteristics is proposed. A review of design features of the existing domestic and foreign passenger cars body structures is made. The design features of the integral scheme for the car bodies, suitable for the use in the domestic rolling stock are marked. The criteria for their selection, including metal weight, strength, and stability of cladding panels and supporting elements at the effect of standard and emergency loads, fatigue life, stiffness of the body are defined. The analysis of design features of the body integral scheme impact on the considered criteria is conducted using the methods of solid-state computer simulation, finite element, analysis of hierarchies. The method is tested on the example of the integral scheme of network-wide passenger car of JSC Tver carriage works . Sixteen tyoes of integral schemes are considered. The simulation results are verified with situ and bench trials. Each accepted criterion has a matrix of pairwise comparisons of alternatives composed. Using the method of hierarchies analysis the weight of the alternatives priorities are defined, allowing for the estimation of the degree of influence of design features of passenger cars bodies on the considered criteria and for the selection of reasonably efficient constructive scheme for domestic passenger car body.