TUV Rheinland Mobility utilizes validated computer simulation programs that are recognized as standards in the industry as well as internally-developed proprietary simulation software to model and solve real-world issues for our rail clients.
Tasks routinely addressed:
- Accident Investigation / Derailment Cause Determination
- Derailment Risk Assessment
- Train Braking Analysis and Stopping Distance Calculations
- Locomotive Tonnage Ratings
- Tractive Effort Requirements
- Collision Force and Acceleration Analysis
- Train Handling Development, Review, and Assessment
- Railroad Operating Rule Development
- Train Make-up and Locomotive Placement
- Ride Quality
- Capacity Optimization and Planning
- Wheel / Rail Wear
- Fuel Consumption and Running Times
TUV Rheinland experts calculate and analyze critical data items such as coupler forces, L/V ratios, and truck-side lateral forces using vehicle and track/train dynamics simulation models. These models include VAMPIRE and the AAR’s Train Operations Simulator (TOS), the Train Operations and Energy Simulator (TOES), and the Quasi-static Lateral Train Stability Model (QLTS).
Additional computer modeling packages used include the Train Transit Predictor (TTP) model that calculates fuel consumption and train running times, the Derailment Predictor Model (DPM) to assess derailment severity, and RDCAM for rail network planning and optimization.