Active suspension control of flexible-bodied railway vehicles using electro-hydraulic and electro-magnetic actuators

Lighter railway vehicles are going to become the norm in the future as the operator pushes towards a more economical operation. This paper looks into ways of applying classical control methods using 'skyhook damping' to minimise the flexibility effects that arise as a consequence of having lighter vehicles, and in particular includes the effects of real actuator dynamics. Two and three actuators schemes are considered: two of them are located at the front and rear secondary suspension pivot points, with a third actuator at the centre of the vehicle primarily targeted at reducing the effects of the main bending mode of the vehicle body. Hydraulic actuators are used at the front and rear while an electro-magnetic actuator is connected to the centre of the vehicle.