Railway truck magnetic suspension

Claim 2

An improved attractive magnetic suspension and vertical damping apparatus for providing an air gap spaced apart support between the bolster and side frame assembly and surface supported portions of the truck of a high speed vehicle comprising: elongated ferromagnetic side frames carried by said surface supported portion; elongated electromagnets having windings and carried by said bolster and side frame assembly portion, each of said electromagnets positioned below one of said ferromagneitc side frames in opposing spaced relation therewith for magnetic attraction therebetween; and active control means for constantly varying the strength of the force fields of said electromagnets responsive to the length of said gap and to the vertical movement of the bolster and side frame assembly portion for maintaining a predetermined spaced gap relationship and damping control between said bolster and side frame assemblies and surface supported portions.

Claim 3

An improved attractive magnetic suspension and vertical damping apparatus for providing an air gap spaced apart support between the bolster and side frame assembly and surface supported portions of the truck of a high speed vehicle comprising: elongated ferromagnetic side frames carried by said surface supported portion; elongated electromagnets having windings and carried by said bolster and side frame assembly portion, each of said electromagnets positioned below one of said ferromagneitc side frames in opposing spaced relation therewith for magnetic attraction therebetween; and active control means for constantly varying the strength of the force fields of said electromagnets responsive to the length of said gap and to the vertical movement of the bolster and side frame assembly portion for maintaining a predetermined spaced gap relationship and damping control between said bolster and side frame assemblies and surface supported portions.

Claim 4

An improved attractive magnetic suspension and vertical damping apparatus for providing an air gap spaced apart support between the bolster and side frame assembly and surface supported portions of the truck of a high speed vehicle comprising: elongated ferromagnetic side frames carried by said surface supported portion; elongated electromagnets having windings and carried by said bolster and side frame assembly portion, each of said electromagnets positioned below one of said ferromagneitc side frames in opposing spaced relation therewith for magnetic attraction therebetween; and active control means for constantly varying the strength of the force fields of said electromagnets responsive to the length of said gap and to the vertical movement of the bolster and side frame assembly portion for maintaining a predetermined spaced gap relationship and damping control between said bolster and side frame assemblies and surface supported portions.

Claim 5

The apparatus of claim 1, wherein said load carrying and surface supported portions comprise the sprung and unsprung portions respectively of said vehicle.

Claim 6

The apparatus as defined in claim 2 wherein a plurality of said elongated ferro-magnetic side frames, elongated electro-magnets and active control means are employed.

Claim 7

The apparatus as defined in claim 2 wherein said unsprung portion of said vehicle has tractive contact with its supporting surface.

Claim 8

The apparatus as defined in claim 4 wherein said tractive contact is provided by flanged wheels supported by rails.

Claim 9

The apparatus of claim 1, wherein said bolster and side frame assembly has an H shaped configuration having a pair of rigid side members extending the length of said side frames.

Claim 10

The apparatus as defined in claim 1 wherein said active control means comprises an accelerometer for sensing vertical acceleration movement of said sprung portion and producing a signal voltage corresponding thereto.

Claim 11

The apparatus as defined in claim 7 wherein said accelerometer senses movement of said sprung portion with respect to a fixed point in free space.

Claim 12

The apparatus as defined in claim 1 wherein said active control means comprises a position transducer for sensing the length of said gap and producing a gap length signal voltage corresponding thereto.

Claim 13

The apparatus as defined in claim 1 wherein said active control means comprises a non-linear electronic feedback circuit.

Claim 14

The apparatus as defined in claim 1 wherein said active control means comprises an accelerometer for sensing vertical acceleration movement of said sprung portion and producing a signal voltage corresponding thereto; a position transducer for sensing the length of said gap and producing a gap length signal voltage corresponding thereto; and a non-linear electronic feedback circuit.

Claim 15

A non-linear electronic feedback circuit as defined in claim 11 comprises a first compensating network connected to said accelerometer for altering the frequency versus amplitude response through a frequency range of from 3 to 30 hertz, a second compensating network connected to said first compensation network and to said position transducer providing a gap length reference voltage and amplication and differentiation thereof to derive a velocity signal at frequencies above 1.2 hertz; a square root circuit interconnected to the Combined output of said first and second compensating networks for linearizing said combined signals with respect to the current passing through said windings of said electro-magnets; a differentiator for electrically differentiating the output of said square root circuit; a multiplier for producing the product of said output of said square root circuit and said gap length signal voltage; and a high power amplifier having its power amplitude controlled by the combined output of said differentiator and multiplier.

Claim 16

An improved attractive magnetic suspension, vertical damping, and lateral stabilizing apparatus providing noncontacting support between the sprung and unsprung portions of a high speed surface supported vehicle comprising: a pair of ferro-magnetic side frames carried by said unsprung portion; a pair of elongated electro-magnets having windings and carried by said sprung portion, one of each pair positioned below and opposing each of one of said pairs ferro-magnetic rails for magnetic attraction therebetween in non-contacting spaced gap relation a pair of first accelerometer means for sensing lateral movement of said sprung portion with respect to a fixed position in space, and producing an acceleration signal voltage corresponding thereto; a pair of first accelerometer means for sensing vertical movement of said sprung portion with respect to a fixed portion in space, and producing an acceleration signal voltage corresponding thereto; a pair of position transducers for sensing the length of vertical displacement movement of said sprung portion with respect to said unsprung portion and producing a gap length signal voltage corresponding thereto; and non-linear feedback circuit means responsive to said acceleration and displacement signals controlling said spaced gap relation to suspend, vertical damp and laterally stabilize said vehicle.

Claim 17

An improved attractive magnetic suspension, vertical damping, and lateral stabilizing apparatus providing noncontacting support between the sprung and unsprung portions of a high speed surface supported vehicle comprising: a pair of ferro-magnetic side frames carried by said unsprung portion; a pair of elongated electro-magnets having windings and carried by said sprung portion, one of each pair positioned below and opposing each of one of said pairs ferro-magnetic rails for magnetic attraction therebetween in non-contacting spaced gap relation a pair of first accelerometer means for sensing lateral movement of said sprung portion with respect to a fixed position in space, and producing an acceleration signal voltage corresponding thereto; a pair of first accelerometer means for sensing vertical movement of said sprung portion with respect to a fixed portion in space, and producing an acceleration signal voltage corresponding thereto; a pair of position transducers for sensing the length of vertical displacement movement of said sprung portion with respect to said unsprung portion and producing a gap length signal voltage corresponding thereto; and non-linear feedback circuit means responsive to said acceleration and displacement signals controlling said spaced gap relation to suspend, vertical damp and laterally stabilize said vehicle.

Claim 18

A magnetic suspension as in claim 13, wherein said circuit means responsive to said signal substantially equalizes the gap at the rails by varying the current through said windings inversely in response to vertical and lateral loading variations.