System, method and support element for actively damping acoustic vibrations of a rail for rail traffic

Abstract

A system for actively attenuating acoustic vibrations of a rail for rail traffic is provided including at least one sensor for detecting at least a vertical acoustic vibration of the rail, at least one actuator for exciting at least a vertical counter-vibration of the rail and at least one control unit communicatively connected to the at least one sensor and the at least one actuator for controlling the at least one actuator depending on the vibration detected by the sensor, the counter-vibration being adapted to destructively interfere with the detected vibration, and the at least one actuator being mechanically coupled to the rail and to a carrier element supporting the rail. Also provided is a carrier element for the system and a method for actively attenuating acoustic vibrations of a rail for rail traffic.

Claims

1. A rail traffic path comprising a rail for rail traffic, a counterweight stationary relative to a substructure of the rail, and a system for actively attenuating acoustic vibrations of the rail, the system comprising: a) at least one sensor for detecting at least a vertical acoustic vibration of the rail, b) at least one actuator for exciting at least a vertical counter-vibration of the rail, and c) at least one control unit communicatively connected to the at least one sensor and the at least one actuator for controlling the at least one actuator depending on the vibration detected by the sensor, d) wherein the counter-vibration is adapted to destructively interfere with the detected vibration, and e) wherein the at least one actuator is mechanically coupled to the rail and to the counterweight, wherein f) the at least one sensor is configured for detecting a horizontal vibration of the rail transverse to a longitudinal axis of the rail, and g) the at least one actuator is configured for exciting a horizontal counter-vibration of the rail transverse to a longitudinal axis of the rail.

2. The rail traffic path according to claim 1, wherein the at least one actuator comprises at least one piezoelectric actuator, or at least one stacked piezoelectric actuator.

3. The rail traffic path according to claim 1, wherein the counterweight comprises a carrier element supporting the rail.

4. The rail traffic path according to claim 3, wherein the at least one actuator mechanically connects a lower side of the rail to the carrier element.

5. The rail traffic path according to claim 4, further comprising at least one support element arranged in parallel to the at least one actuator with regard to a force transmission between the rail and the carrier element for statically supporting the rail.

6. The rail traffic path according to claim 3, wherein with regard to a force transmission between the at least one actuator and the carrier element, a pressure reduction element for reducing a pressure applied to the carrier element by the actuator is provided.

7. The rail traffic path according to claim 3, wherein the rail is fixed to the carrier element by at least one fixation element, wherein, with regard to a force transmission between the rail and the carrier element, the at least one actuator is arranged in series with the fixation element.

8. The rail traffic path according to claim 3, wherein the at least one actuator of the system is at least partly integrated in the carrier element supporting the rail.

9. The rail traffic path according to claim 8, wherein the carrier element comprises at least one service access for maintenance and/or replacement of the at least one actuator in an installed state of the carrier element supporting the rail.

10. The rail traffic path according to claim 1, wherein the at least one actuator comprises at least a first actuator having a first axis of movement and a second actuator having a second axis of movement, wherein the first axis of movement and the second axis of movement are not oriented in parallel to each other.

11. The rail traffic path according to claim 1, further comprising at least one transmission element for a force transmission between the at least one actuator and the rail, wherein the transmission element comprises a redirecting element for redirecting an effective direction of the transmitted force, a translation element for translating the transmitted force and/or an overload protection for limiting the transmitted force.

12. The rail traffic path according to claim 1, wherein the system comprises a number of sensors spaced apart along the rail and a multitude of actuators spaced apart along the rail.

13. A method for actively attenuating acoustic vibrations of the rail for rail traffic of the rail traffic path according to claim 1, comprising at least the following steps performed by the at least one control unit of the system for actively attenuating acoustic vibrations of the rail of the rail traffic path: a) automatically detecting at least a vertical vibration of the rail by the at least one sensor of the system, b) automatically exciting at least a vertical counter-vibration of the rail by the at least one actuator of the system, c) wherein the vertical counter-vibration is configured to destructively interfere with the detected vertical vibration, and d) wherein the at least one actuator is mechanically coupled to the rail and to the counterweight stationary relative to the substructure of the rail, wherein at least the following steps are performed by the at least one control unit: e) automatically detecting at least a horizontal vibration of the rail transverse to the longitudinal axis of the rail by the at least one sensor, f) automatically exciting at least a horizontal counter-vibration of the rail transverse to the longitudinal axis of the rail by the at least one actuator, g) wherein the horizontal counter-vibration is configured to destructively interfere with the detected horizontal vibration.

Description

BRIEF DESCRIPTION

(1) Some of the embodiments will be described in detail, with references to the following Figures, wherein like designations denote like members, wherein:

(2) FIG. 1 shows a schematic illustration of a system according to embodiments of the invention;

(3) FIG. 2 shows another schematic illustration of a system according to embodiments of the invention;

(4) FIG. 3 shows another schematic illustration of a system according to embodiments of the invention;

(5) FIG. 4 shows another schematic illustration of a system according to embodiments of the invention; and

(6) FIG. 5 shows a schematic illustration of a rail traffic track according to embodiments of the invention.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

(7) FIG. 1 shows a schematic illustration of a system 100 according to embodiments of the invention for actively attenuating acoustic vibrations of at least one rail 310 for rail traffic. In FIG. 1, two parallelly extending rails 310 of a rail track with two wheels R of a rail vehicle resting thereon are illustrated by way of example.

(8) For example, the system 100 comprises respectively one sensor 110, for example a piezoelectric sensor, for detecting a vertical acoustic vibration of each rail 310, respectively one actuator 120, for example a piezoelectric actuator, for exciting a vertical counter-vibration of the rail 310, and a control unit 130 communicatively connected to the sensors 110 and the actuators 120 (connections not illustrated), for example an embedded computer system for controlling the actuators 120 depending on the vibrations detected by the sensors 110.

(9) The actuators 120 are mechanically coupled to the respective rail 310 and to a carrier element 200 supporting the rail 310, for example a sleeper, and mechanically connect, for example, a lower side of the respective rail 310 to the carrier element 200.

(10) The illustrated system 100 comprises a support element 150 arranged in parallel to the actuator 120 with regard to a force transmission between the rail 310 and the carrier element 200 for statically supporting the rail 310, respectively.

(11) The support element 150 comprises, for example, an attenuation underlay of an elastomer in which the respective actuator 120 can be integrated.

(12) FIG. 2 shows another schematic illustration of a system 100 according to embodiments of the invention.

(13) In contrast to FIG. 1, only one rail 310 with a sensor 110 and an actuator 120 respectively arranged thereon is shown in FIG. 2.

(14) Moreover, also a fixation element 220, for example a fixation clamp pressing the rail 310 onto the carrier element 200 is shown. The fixation element 220 may, in particular, generate a compressive bias on the actuator 120 disposed under the rail 310 in a support element 150, for example in an attenuation underlay of an elastomer.

(15) The illustrated system 100 comprises a pressure reduction element 160, for example a metal sleeve, arranged so as to limit a pressure applied to the carrier element 200 by the actuator 120 with regard to a force transmission between the actuator 120 and the carrier element 200.

(16) The illustrated system 100 comprises an error sensor 111 for measuring a residual vibration transmitted to the carrier element 200.

(17) FIG. 3 shows another schematic illustration of a system 100 according to embodiments of the invention for actively attenuating acoustic vibrations of at least one rail 310 for rail traffic.

(18) The system 100 comprises, for example, a sensor 110, for example a piezoelectric sensor, for detecting a vertical acoustic vibration of the rail 310, an actuator 120, for example a piezoelectric actuator, for exciting a vertical counter-vibration of the rail 310, and a control unit 130 communicatively connected to the sensors 110 and the actuators 120, for example an embedded computer system for controlling the actuator 120 depending on the vibration detected by the sensor 110. The communicative connections are shown as dotted lines.

(19) The actuator 120 is mechanically coupled to the rail 310 and to a carrier element 200 supporting the rail 310, for example a sleeper, and mechanically connects, for example, a lower side of the rail 310 to the carrier element 200. These and the mechanic connections described below are shown as solid lines.

(20) The illustrated system 100 comprises a support element 150 arranged in parallel to the actuator 120 with regard to a force transmission between the rail 310 and the carrier element 200 for statically supporting the rail 310.

(21) The support element 150 comprises, for example, an attenuation underlay of an elastomer in which the actuator 120 may be integrated.

(22) The rail 310 is fixed to the carrier element 200 by at least one fixation element 220. The at least one fixation element 220 includes, for example, a superstructure W, a superstructure K, or a superstructure KS which are known from track construction.

(23) With regard to a force transmission between of the rail 310 and the carrier element 200, at least one attenuation element 155 for attenuating a transmission of vibrations from the rail 310 to the carrier element 200 is arranged in series with the fixation element 220.

(24) The attenuation element 155 may, for example, include an attenuation layer, particularly of a fibre-reinforced elastomer.

(25) FIG. 4 shows another schematic illustration of a system 100 according to embodiments of the invention.

(26) The system 100 illustrated in FIG. 4 differs from the system 100 illustrated in FIG. 3 in that the actuator 110 does not mechanically connect the lower side of the rail 310 to the carrier element 200, but is, with regard to a force transmission between the rail 310 and the carrier element 200, arranged in series with the fixation element 220.

(27) According to embodiments of the invention, a combination of at least one actuator 110 arranged in accordance with FIG. 3 and at least one actuator 110 arranged in accordance with FIG. 4 which is not illustrated is also possible.

(28) When an actuator 110 is arranged in series with the fixation element 220, no attenuation element 155 is arranged in series with the same fixation element 220.

(29) FIG. 5 shows a schematic illustration of a rail traffic track 300 according to embodiments of the invention including at least one rail 310 and at least one system 100 according to embodiments of the invention for actively attenuating acoustic vibrations of the at least one rail 310. The system 100 comprises a plurality of sensors 110 spaced apart along the rail 310 (by way of example, two sensors 110 are shown) and a multitude of actuators 120 spaced apart along the rail 310 (by way of example, three actuators 120 are shown), the plurality of the sensors 110 being fewer than the multitude of the actuators 120.

(30) The system 100 comprises a control unit 130 communicatively connected to the sensors 110 and the actuators 120. The communicative connections are shown as dotted lines.

(31) Other components of the system 100 are not shown for the sake of clarity.

(32) Although the invention has been illustrated and described in greater detail with reference to the preferred exemplary embodiments, the invention is not limited to the examples disclosed, and further variations can be inferred by a person skilled in the art, without departing from the scope of protection of the invention.

(33) For the sake of clarity, it is to be understood that the use of a or an throughout this application does not exclude a plurality, and comprising does not exclude other steps or elements.

(34) TABLE-US-00001 List of reference numerals 100 System 110 Sensor 111 Error sensor 120 Actuator 130 Control unit 150 Support element 155 Attenuation element 160 Pressure reduction element 200 Carrier element 220 Fixation means 300 Rail traffic path 310 Rail R Wheel