The Structure Design of the Rail Car with the Secondary Buffering System

To address the poor cushioning performance of traditional rail car systems, this study proposes a track rail car equipped with a two-stage buffer system. Based on the dynamic principles of the two-stage buffer system, SolidWorks was used to model both the rail car body and its buffer components. The force distribution on the rail car under identical impact loads served as the evaluation metric for cushioning performance. Through theoretical calculations, the optimal spring stiffness configuration that minimized car body stress was identified. Motion simulation software was employed to conduct dynamic analysis and modeling of these configurations. Following this, 3D printing and assembly were performed, with experimental testing conducted on the assembled rail car to compare the effects of different spring types and damping mechanisms on cushioning performance. Performance parameters were optimized accordingly. Results demonstrated that, based on the optimal stiffness combination of the secondary buffering system, a friction damper could be added to further optimize buffer performance.