A monorail vehicle includes a chassis supporting a vehicle body, that includes a passenger floor and at least one side wall, and an electrical motor supported by the chassis. A drive wheel is coupled to a rotor of the electric motor with a rotation axis of the drive wheel substantially coaxial with an axis of the rotor. Portions of the drive wheel and the electric motor are positioned on both sides of an imaginary plane extension of the passenger floor. The drive wheel and the electric motor are covered by a shell that is integral to one side of the vehicle body and which defines a space between the other side of the vehicle body.

A monorail vehicle includes a chassis supporting a vehicle body, that includes a passenger floor and at least one side wall, and an electrical motor supported by the chassis. A drive wheel is coupled to a rotor of the electric motor with a rotation axis of the drive wheel substantially coaxial with an axis of the rotor. Portions of the drive wheel and the electric motor are positioned on both sides of an imaginary plane extension of the passenger floor. The drive wheel and the electric motor are covered by a shell that is integral to one side of the vehicle body and which defines a space between the other side of the vehicle body.

A transport facility includes a track, and first and second transport vehicles that travel along the track. In order to supply electric power to the transport vehicles, a flexible first cable guide which includes a front-end attached to the first vehicle and a base-end fixed to the track, is folded back in a U-shape between the base-end and the front-end, is provided on a first side of the track, and supplies electric power to the first vehicle, and a flexible second cable guide which includes a front-end attached to the second vehicle and a base-end fixed to the track, is folded back in a U-shape between the base-end and the front-end, is provided on a second side of the track, and supplies electric power to the second vehicle. Thus, the first and second flexible cable guides are compactly installed while preventing interference therebetween.

According to some embodiments, a railcar comprises an interior wall and guard strips magnetically coupled to the interior wall. Each of the guard strips comprises a cushioning material for absorbing impact. The guard strips are configured to prevent an object loaded in the railcar from contacting the interior wall. The railcar further comprises protected magnetic fastening systems coupling each of the guard strips to the interior wall. Each of the protected magnetic fastening systems comprises a magnet and a rod comprising a first end and a second end. The first end is coupled to the magnet, and the second end extends through the guard strip. The protected magnetic fastening system may further comprise a cup washer coupled to the second end of the rod and secured with a fastener. The cup washer partially surrounds the fastener to restrict objects larger than the cup washer from contacting the fastener.

The invention provides in some aspects a transport system comprising a guideway with a plurality of propulsion coils disposed along a region in which one or more vehicles are to be propelled. One or more vehicles are disposed on the guideway, each including a magnetic flux source. The guideway has one or more running surfaces that support the vehicles and along which they roll or slide. Each vehicle can have a septum portion of narrowed cross-section that is coupled to one or more body portions of the vehicle. The guideway includes a diverge region that has a flipper and an extension of the running surface at a vertex of the diverge. The flipper initiates switching of vehicle direction at a diverge by exerting a laterally directed force thereon. The extension continues switching of vehicle direction at the diverge by contacting the septum. Still other aspects of the invention provide a transport system, e.g., as described above, that includes a merge region with a flipper and a broadened region of the running surface. The flipper applies a lateral force to the vehicle to alter an angle thereof as the vehicle enters the merge region, and the broadened region continues the merge by contacting the septum of the vehicle, thereby, providing further guidance or channeling for the merge. The flipper, which can be equipped for full or partial deployment, is partially deployed in order to effect alteration of the vehicle angle as the vehicle enters the merge.

A transportation system comprising a network of rails (10) connecting a plurality of spaced apart locations (12, 14), plural vehicles running on the network of rails, and plural rail switches (22). Each rail switch (22) guides a vehicle of the plural vehicles from one section (16, 18, 20) of the network of rails to a selected one of at least two further sections (16, 18, 20) of the network of rails or from a selected one of at least two sections (16, 18, 20) of the network of rails to another section (16, 18, 20) of the network of rails, said selection depending on a position of the rail switch. The transportation system further comprises at least one controller (24) configured to control switching of the plural rail switches (22) whereby each of the plural vehicles travels from one of the plurality of spaced apart locations (12, 14) to a selected one of the other of the plurality of spaced apart locations (12, 14). Each of the plural vehicles comprises one of a primary and a secondary of a linear motor. The network of rails (10) comprises the other of the primary and the secondary of the linear motor. The other of the primary and the secondary is distributed in the network of rails (10) whereby the other of the primary and the secondary extends along sections (16, 18, 20) of the network of rails. The one of the primary and the secondary of each vehicle is disposed relative to the other of the primary and the secondary when the vehicle is on the network of rails (10) such that the vehicle is propelled relative to the other of the primary and the secondary when the primary is energised to thereby propel the vehicle through the network of rails.

Disclosed is a method for predicting a lightning outage rate of a high-speed railway contact system based on a lightning location, including the steps: (1) evaluating location errors of cloud-to-ground lightning flashes along a high-speed railway line; (2) evaluating a detection efficiency of the cloud-to-ground lightning flashes along the high-speed railway line; (3) calculating a ground flash density along the high-speed railway line; (4) fitting a cumulative probability function of the lightning current amplitudes along the high-speed railway line; and (5) constructing a calculation model for the lightning outage rate of the high-speed railway contact system.

Disclosed is a method for predicting a lightning outage rate of a high-speed railway contact system based on a lightning location, including the steps: (1) evaluating location errors of cloud-to-ground lightning flashes along a high-speed railway line; (2) evaluating a detection efficiency of the cloud-to-ground lightning flashes along the high-speed railway line; (3) calculating a ground flash density along the high-speed railway line; (4) fitting a cumulative probability function of the lightning current amplitudes along the high-speed railway line; and (5) constructing a calculation model for the lightning outage rate of the high-speed railway contact system.

A method for controlling a vehicle system includes determining a vehicle reference speed using an off-board-based input speed and an onboard-based input speed. The off-board-based input speed is representative of a moving speed of the vehicle system and is determined from data received from an off-board device. The onboard-based input speed is representative of the moving speed of the vehicle system and is determined from data obtained from an onboard device. The method includes using the vehicle reference speed to at least one of measure wheel creep for one or more wheels of the vehicle system or control at least one of torques applied by or rotational speeds of one or more motors of the vehicle system.

A method for controlling a vehicle system includes determining a vehicle reference speed using an off-board-based input speed and an onboard-based input speed. The off-board-based input speed is representative of a moving speed of the vehicle system and is determined from data received from an off-board device. The onboard-based input speed is representative of the moving speed of the vehicle system and is determined from data obtained from an onboard device. The method includes using the vehicle reference speed to at least one of measure wheel creep for one or more wheels of the vehicle system or control at least one of torques applied by or rotational speeds of one or more motors of the vehicle system.