Development of a Test Stand for Maglev Vehicles Using Hardware-in-the-Loop Simulation

A test stand consisting of one-third segment car body which simulates bending vibration is developed to evaluate ride comfort of maglev vehicles. The test stand utilizes hardware-in-the-loop simulation (HILS), which simulates motion of the missing segment using numerical simulation. Experimental results confirm that the test stand with the HILS system can generate the bending vibration accurately. Then, a method to reduce the bending vibration is proposed. Fundamental experiments using the test stand indicate that the optimally-designed anchor, a coupling element between the car body and the bogie, can reduce the bending vibration. It is expected that this test stand will lead to improvement of ride comfort of maglev vehicles.