Strength properties of car body structure for railway vehicle (1st report, Effect of shapes and configurations on the vertical bending rigidity of a car body)

The effect of shapes and configurations on the vertical bending rigidity of a car body was investigated by strength testing of scale models and actual car bodies, and by FEM analysis, which was performed to evaluate the vertical bending rigidity of car bodies with bent side frames and corrugated outside plates. The following results were obtained. (1) The validity of the FEM analytical model was verified. (2) Using the above analytical model, the effect of the bent angle of a side frame and the rigidity of a door frame and a corrugated outside plate on the vertical bending rigidity of a car body is evaluated.