Railway traction system

Abstract

A railway traction system configured for the traction of a rail train or convoy comprising at least one traction unit configured to be located in a traction car (200), the traction unit comprising at least one electrical energy supply unit (201) configured to power at least one electric motor (202) for driving the wheels (204) of the at least one traction car (200), wherein the railway traction system comprises at least one accumulation unit configured to be located in an accumulation car (100), and comprising at least one battery (101) connected to a DC bus (300) to which both the at least one electrical energy supply unit (201) and the at least one electric motor (202) of the at least one traction unit are connected.

Description

[0001] Railway traction system

[0002] DESCRIPTION

[0003] Object of the invention

[0004] The present invention relates to a railway traction system that makes it possible to maximize the use of the energy generated during regenerative braking operations of a train with multiple cars, as well as to maximize its tractive effort.

[0005] The railway traction system, object of the present invention, allows the accumulation of all or most of the electrical energy from the regenerative braking of a train or railway convoy with multiple wagons, being able to use said energy for the traction of all the wagons as well as for the supply of the auxiliary systems of the train, allowing, thanks to this use, a reduction in greenhouse gas emissions and / or electrical consumption with respect to other trains with multiple wagons with diesel generation units installed and / or fed from catenary, respectively, which are not capable of achieving this use.

[0006] The railway traction system object of the present invention has application in the industry dedicated to the design, manufacture, marketing and operation of railway traction systems and, more specifically, electric traction systems.

[0007] Background of the invention and technical problem to be solved

[0008] In the state of the art, railway traction systems are known that incorporate one or more wagons carrying a diesel generator to generate electrical power to power the electric motors mounted on the respective bogie axles of each wagon. Likewise, railway traction systems are also known that incorporate one or more wagons carrying an electric current collector (or pantograph) from a catenary or a specific power supply rail ("third rail") to power the electric motors mounted on the respective bogie axles of each wagon.

[0009] In one or other of the aforementioned types of railway traction systems, a space is often reserved for batteries in one of the tractor cars, so that part of the electrical energy generated (or absorbed from the catenary or the "third rail") can be stored to feed the electric traction motors of the tractor cars in sections of the route where it is not possible to absorb energy from the catenary or when the traction power supplied by the diesel generators is not sufficient to split the train.

[0010] These batteries in the tractor cars can accumulate part of the energy from the train's braking, in regenerative braking operations, where the electric traction motors act as generators during the train's braking operation, supplying electrical energy to charge the batteries of the car or tractor unit itself.

[0011] This mode of operation allows the accumulation of only the train's braking energy corresponding to the braking of each tractor car independently, and is therefore limited to the accumulation capacity of the battery installed in each tractor car.

[0012] Description of the invention

[0013] In order to overcome the aforementioned drawbacks, the present invention relates to a railway traction system. The railway traction system, object of the present invention, is configured to divide a train or railway convoy (also known as a "consist") consisting of a plurality of wagons.

[0014] The railway traction system comprises at least one traction unit configured to be located in a traction car (also called “standard car”).

[0015] The at least one traction unit comprises at least one electrical power supply device configured to supply power to at least one electric motor for driving the wheels of the at least one traction wagon.

[0016] Preferably, the traction wagon comprises its wheels mounted on axles, which in turn are grouped into bogies. Each traction wagon comprises, for example, two bogies, each bogie comprising two or three wheel axles. Typically, there is at least one electric motor on each bogie of the traction wagon.

[0017] In a novel manner, the railway traction system object of the present invention comprises at least one accumulation unit configured to be located in an accumulation wagon (also called “battery car”).

[0018] This at least one storage unit comprises at least one battery. Preferably, the storage unit comprises a plurality of batteries.

[0019] The at least one battery of the at least one storage unit is connected to a direct current bus (direct current hoses or cables) to which the at least one electrical energy supply equipment and the at least one electric motor of the at least one traction unit are connected.

[0020] By means of the railway traction system described above, it is allowed that there exists, according to different operating modes of said railway traction system: a flow of electric energy from the batteries to the electric motors, and / or;

[0021] - a flow of electrical energy from the electrical energy supply equipment of each traction unit to at least one battery of the storage unit, and / or;

[0022] - a flow of electrical energy from each electric motor of each traction unit to the at least one battery of the accumulation unit (this being an operation in regenerative braking mode that allows the accumulation in the batteries of the accumulation unit of the electrical energy of a plurality of electric motors located in a plurality of traction units located in different traction wagons, thus maximizing the use of the electrical energy recovered during braking of the train), and / or;

[0023] - a flow of electrical power from the electrical power supply equipment of a traction unit to one or more electric motors located in different traction units of different traction cars.

[0024] Preferably, the at least one storage unit comprises a main electrical power flow controller configured to control the flow of electrical power through the DC bus between the at least one storage unit and each traction unit. This main controller can regulate the voltage level at each point of the DC bus to control the flow of electrical current through the DC bus.

[0025] Also preferably, each traction unit comprises a secondary controller configured to control the flow of power between the at least one electrical power input device and each electric motor of said traction unit. Preferably, the primary controller and each secondary controller are configured as master and slave, respectively, such that the primary controller is configured to control the operation of each secondary controller.

[0026] The DC bus may comprise at least one disconnector configured to isolate the DC bus into different sections. This feature ensures that no electrical current flows between different sections of the DC bus when a disconnector is open between said DC bus sections. Furthermore, preferably, the closing or opening of said at least one disconnector is controlled by the main controller.

[0027] According to a possible embodiment of the invention, the at least one electrical energy supply device comprises at least one fuel cell and / or at least one combustion engine connected to an electric generator.

[0028] If at least one of the electrical energy input devices includes a combustion engine, this combustion engine may be a diesel engine.

[0029] Alternatively, according to another possible embodiment, the at least one electrical energy supply device comprises a current collector configured to collect an electrical current from a catenary or from a third power rail on a track.

[0030] According to a possible embodiment of the invention, the at least one accumulation car comprises at least one electric motor configured for driving the wheels of the at least one accumulation car, where the at least one electric motor of the at least one accumulation car is connected to the direct current bus.

[0031] Through this feature, it is allowed that there exists, according to different operating modes of said railway traction system: a flow of electric energy from the batteries to the electric motors of at least one accumulation car, and / or;

[0032] - a flow of electric energy from each electric motor of the at least one accumulation car to the at least one battery of the accumulation unit of the at least one accumulation car (this being an operation in regenerative braking mode that allows the accumulation in the batteries of the accumulation unit of the electric energy of the at least one motor of the at least one accumulation car), and / or;

[0033] - a flow of electrical energy from the electrical energy supply equipment of a traction unit to at least one electric motor of the at least one accumulation car.

[0034] According to a possible embodiment of the invention, the at least one traction wagon comprises at least one battery configured to power the electric motors of the corresponding traction unit of the at least one traction wagon, where the at least one battery of the at least one traction wagon is connected to the direct current bus.

[0035] According to a possible embodiment of the invention, the railway traction system comprises at least one power outlet (AC or DC) configured to recharge the at least one battery (both of the accumulation unit of the at least one accumulation wagon and of the (optional) at least one battery of the at least one traction wagon) from an external power source (an AC or DC source connected to the power outlet). This feature can be very useful since, in the event that the train or railway convoy is stopped for a prolonged period of time, the at least one battery could discharge.

[0036] Thus, the railway traction system may comprise at least one power outlet arranged in correspondence with the at least one accumulation wagon and / or at least one power outlet arranged in correspondence with the at least one traction wagon. The railway traction system, object of the present invention, enables the traction of the train or railway convoy to be hybrid, combining the energy from the sources of the traction wagon (catenary, hydrogen, Diesel or Battery) with that of the at least one battery of the at least one accumulation unit of the at least one accumulation wagon, to mix all of said energy in the direct current bus from which the motors of all the traction and accumulation wagons are fed.

[0037] One of the advantages of hybrid power, in addition to reducing diesel (or overhead line) consumption, is also the reduced use of the diesel engine in conjunction with the generator (or fuel cell), improving their useful life.

[0038] By means of the present invention, and thanks to the presence of at least one accumulation unit located in the at least one accumulation wagon, it is possible to avoid the need to install an auxiliary power unit “APU” (Auxiliary Power Unit) in the traction wagons (system to feed the auxiliary circuits without starting the diesel engine, feed which, thanks to the present invention, could come from the at least one accumulation unit of the at least one accumulation wagon).

[0039] Brief description of the figures

[0040] As part of the explanation of at least one embodiment of the invention, the following figures have been included.

[0041] Figure 1: shows a schematic view of a possible embodiment of the railway traction system object of the present invention.

[0042] Detailed description The present invention relates, as mentioned above, to a railway traction system.

[0043] As shown in Figure 1, the railway traction system comprises at least one electrical energy storage unit, formed by one or more batteries (101).

[0044] The electric energy storage unit is located in an electric energy storage car (100).

[0045] The railway traction system additionally comprises at least one traction unit. Each traction unit is located in a traction car (200).

[0046] Each traction unit comprises at least one equipment for supplying electrical energy (201) to one or more electric motors (202) configured to be located on the axles (203) of the traction wagon (200) and to divide the wheels (204) of the traction wagon (200).

[0047] The electrical energy supply equipment (201) may be a pantograph or current collector configured to collect or gather an electrical current from a catenary (400) or from a third power rail on the track.

[0048] Alternatively, the electrical energy supply equipment (201) may be formed by a fuel cell and / or a combustion engine (205) (for example a diesel engine) connected to an electric generator (206) configured to provide an electrical supply to the electric traction motors (202).

[0049] The electric generator (206) of each traction unit is connected to a DC network or bus (300) through an AC / DC converter. In the event that the electrical energy supply equipment (201) is formed by a pantograph or current collector that collects or harvests the electric current from a catenary (400) or a third rail, said current collector can be connected to the DC bus (300) through an AC / DC inverter (in AC networks) or directly to the DC bus (300) (in DC networks), typically through a line filter.

[0050] The electric motors (202) are also connected to said direct current bus (300) through respective DC / AC converters.

[0051] The batteries (101) of the storage unit are also connected to the direct current bus (300) through at least one DC / DC converter.

[0052] The accumulation car (100) may also comprise, as schematically shown in Figure 1, one or more electric motors (202) configured to be located on the axles (203) of the accumulation car (100) and to rotate the wheels (204) of the accumulation car (100). In this case, the electric motors (202) of the accumulation car (100) are also connected to the direct current bus (300).

[0053] According to a possible embodiment (not shown in Figure 1 ), each traction wagon (200) may also comprise at least one battery (101) configured to power the electric motors (202) of the corresponding traction unit of the traction wagon (200). In this case, the at least one battery (101) of the traction wagon (200) is also connected to the direct current bus (300).

[0054] The position of the accumulation wagon (100) within the train or railway convoy can be any: in front, behind or inserted in an intermediate position of the train or railway convoy (as schematically represented in Figure 1).

[0055] The railway traction system also comprises a main controller for the flow of electrical energy through the direct current bus (300). This main controller allows the flow of electrical current to be controlled from the storage unit to each traction unit, or from each traction unit to the storage unit (in cases of regenerative braking).

[0056] The railway traction system may also comprise one or several secondary controllers of the flow of electrical energy; for example, there may be a secondary controller of the flow of energy for each traction unit, such that said secondary controller can govern the flow of energy between the electric generator (206) (and / or the fuel cell, and / or the third rail and / or the catenary (400)) of each traction unit and each of the electric motors (202) of said traction unit.

[0057] If such secondary power flow controllers exist, they have a subordinate relationship with respect to the main power flow controller, such that the main controller acts as the master and each secondary controller acts as a slave.

[0058] The direct current bus (300) may also comprise one or more disconnectors (301) that allow different sections of the direct current bus (300) to be isolated, preventing or allowing the flow of electrical energy between different traction units.

[0059] The railway traction system may comprise at least one power outlet (500) (AC or DC) configured for recharging the at least one battery (101) from an external power source (an AC or DC source connected to the power outlet (500)).

[0060] This at least one power outlet (500) (external AC or DC outlet for charging the batteries) can be in the accumulation wagon (100) and / or in the traction wagons (200) (this also allows charging the battery (101) of the traction wagons (200) (if said battery (101) of the traction wagons (101) exists) from the outside if at any time the wagons (100, 200) are not connected in “convoy” mode. The electrical machines (electrical generator and / or electric motor) can be of different topologies (for example, synchronous and asynchronous). Within the synchronous ones, they are made of magnets, or electrically magnetized, or reluctance. The machines (each electrical generator and / or each electric motor) can be powered by active rectifiers (IGBT's).

[0061] Optionally, the power supply from each electric generator can be provided by means of a passive rectifier (using diodes).

Claims

CLAIMS 1. Railway traction system configured to split a train or railway convoy formed by a plurality of wagons, where the railway traction system comprises at least one traction unit configured to be located in a traction wagon (200), the at least one traction unit comprising at least one equipment for providing electrical energy (201) configured to feed at least one electric motor (202) for the traction of the wheels (204) of the at least one traction wagon (200), where the railway traction system is characterized in that it comprises at least one accumulation unit configured to be located in an accumulation wagon (100), the at least one accumulation unit comprising at least one battery (101),where the at least one battery (101) of the at least one accumulation unit is connected to a direct current bus (300) to which the at least one electrical energy input equipment (201) and the at least one electric motor (202) of the at least one traction unit are connected.

2. Railway traction system according to claim 1, characterized in that the at least one accumulation unit comprises a main controller of the flow of electrical energy configured to control the flow of electrical energy through the direct current bus (300) between the at least one accumulation unit and each traction unit.

3. Railway traction system according to claim 1 or 2, characterized in that each traction unit comprises a secondary controller configured to control the flow of energy between the at least one electrical energy supply equipment (201) and each electric motor (202) of said traction unit.

4. Railway traction system according to claims 1 and 2, characterized in that the main controller and each secondary controller are configured respectively as master and slave, such that the main controller is configured to control the performance of each secondary controller.

5. Railway traction system according to any of the preceding claims, characterized in that the direct current bus (300) comprises at least one disconnector configured to isolate the direct current bus (300) in different sections.

6. Railway traction system according to any of the preceding claims, characterized in that the at least one electrical energy supply equipment (201) comprises at least one fuel cell and / or at least one combustion engine (205) connected to an electrical generator (206).

7. Railway traction system according to claim 6, characterized in that the combustion engine (205) is a diesel engine.

8. Railway traction system according to any of claims 1 to 5, characterized in that the at least one electrical energy supply equipment (201) comprises a current collector configured to collect an electrical current from a catenary (400) or from a third power rail on a track.

9. Railway traction system according to any of the preceding claims, characterized in that the at least one accumulation wagon (100) comprises at least one electric motor (202) configured for driving the wheels (204) of the at least one accumulation wagon (100), where the at least one electric motor (202) of the at least one accumulation wagon (100) is connected to the direct current bus (300).

10. Railway traction system according to any of the preceding claims, characterized in that the at least one traction wagon (200) comprises at least one battery (101) configured to power the electric motors (202) of the corresponding traction unit of the at least one traction wagon (200), where the at least one battery (101) of the at least one traction wagon (200) is connected to the direct current bus (300).

11. Railway traction system according to any of the preceding claims, characterized in that it comprises at least one power outlet (500) configured for recharging the at least one battery (101) from an external energy source.

12. Railway traction system according to claim 11, characterized in that it comprises at least one power outlet (500) arranged in correspondence with the at least one accumulation wagon (100).

13. Railway traction system according to claim 11 or 12, characterized in that it comprises at least one power outlet (500) arranged in correspondence with the at least one traction wagon (200).

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