Dynamic Characteristics of the Manned Hybrid Maglev Vehicle Employing Permanent Magnetic Levitation (PML) and Superconducting Magnetic Levitation (SML)

A manned hybrid maglev vehicle employing permanent magnetic levitation (PML) and superconducting magnetic levitation (SML) was developed. It is mainly composed of a PML part, an SML part, and a maglev frame. The PML part with a repulsive force is designed to support the main load and the SML part with pinning forces is used to guarantee the lateral stability. The maglev frame is designed to support the vehicle body and connect the two maglev components. In previous studies, the sufficient levitation and guidance forces have been verified. In actual operation process, the dynamic characteristics are closely related to the stationarity, the comfortability, and the security of the maglev vehicle. Hence, the research on the dynamic characteristics of the maglev vehicle above the magnetic rails is required to ensure its safe operation. Measurements on vibration acceleration of the hybrid vehicle were conducted under different conditions, including different loads and different pulse excitations. Experimental results show that the dynamic behaviors are quite different between the vertical and lateral directions. In the vertical direction, by using linear bearings, the SML part and PML part are independent with two different natural frequencies and express passive stable characteristic on vibration acceleration curves. While in the lateral direction, the hybrid maglev vehicle has only one natural frequency, which decreases as the load onboard increases due to the decreasing levitation height of the PML part. These results help us to have an insight into the hybrid maglev vehicle employed SML and PML, and prove evidence for the following promotion and optimization.