Performance and robustness analysis of a Hardware In the Loop full-scale roller-rig for railway braking and traction testing

Traditionally, braking and traction on-board subsystems, such as traction systems, braking plants and safety subsystems (e.g. WSP devices) can be tested and verified through fullscale roller-rigs, to avoid expensive on-track tests. In this work the authors investigate the test-rig built in the research center “Centro di Dinamica Sperimentale Osmannoro-Firenze (CDSO)” by Rete Ferroviaria Italiana (RFI), in which the braking and traction systems are tested using an innovative Hardware In the Loop (HIL) architecture able to perform the simulation of a known wheel-rail adhesion pattern (in particular degraded adhesion condition). The objective of this work is to study, starting from the knowledge of the system characteristics, the performances and the robustness of the HIL architecture during a simulation of braking and traction phases under degraded adhesion conditions. This work has been developed in collaboration with Italcertifer S.p.a. and Trenitalia S.p.a. that provided the technical data of the test rig and the considered railway vehicle (the E464 locomotive).