The calculation of wheel impact force due to the interaction between vehicle and a turnout

It is known that railway turnouts demand more maintenance than other parts of the railway track network because of large impact loads generated by the variation of wheel-rail contact conditions along the turnout and through the crossing. A method using VAMPIRE modelling to determine the wheel impact forces due to passing turnout has been developed and presented in this article. The simulation shows that both turnout curve and crossing have significant effect on the wheel impact forces; the vertical impact forces from the turnout case are not significantly different from the wheels travelling straight through.