Shared DC Link for Multi-Carriage Vehicle Drive Redundancy
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Solution Overview
Problem
Current multi-section railroad trains with high redundancy in components are costly due to multiple independent DC voltage intermediate circuits and energy storage systems, making them expensive to maintain operational redundancy.
Innovation Solution
A vehicle design where at least two carriages share a common DC voltage intermediate circuit, each equipped with an electric drive and energy storage, with switching devices allowing for emergency operation by bypassing failed components and utilizing trackside energy or onboard storage for continued operation.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Reliability
If each carriage is equipped with its own independent DC voltage intermediate circuit and energy storage system, then the drive function can be maintained in the event of partial failure (redundancy), but the number of components increases and costs increase
Solution Approach 1:
The patent merges the DC voltage intermediate circuits of multiple carriages into a single shared circuit. Instead of each carriage having its own independent DC link, the invention creates one common DC voltage intermediate circuit that serves multiple carriages, thereby reducing the total number of circuits while maintaining the ability to provide drive function in partial failure scenarios through the shared infrastructure.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent segments the energy storage systems so that each carriage retains its own energy storage device, while the DC voltage intermediate circuit is shared. This segmentation allows each carriage to independently access energy storage when needed, maintaining reliability without requiring independent DC circuits for each carriage.
2Device complexity
If a common DC voltage intermediate circuit is shared among multiple carriages, then the number of components is reduced, but the risk of complete vehicle failure increases if the common circuit fails
Solution Approach 1:
The patent implements beforehand cushioning by equipping each carriage with its own energy storage device that can serve as a backup power source. If the common DC voltage intermediate circuit fails, each carriage can independently draw power from its local energy storage system, preventing complete vehicle failure and ensuring continued operation or safe shutdown.
Solution Approach 2:
The energy storage devices act as intermediaries between the common DC voltage intermediate circuit and the drive systems. They buffer and isolate failures in the common circuit from affecting the drive functions, allowing the system to maintain reliability even when the shared infrastructure experiences problems.
3Adaptability or versatility
If switching devices are added to enable emergency operation positions, then the ability to bypass failed components is improved, but the device complexity increases
Solution Approach 1:
The switching devices are designed with multi-functionality, serving both normal operation and emergency bypass functions. The same switching mechanism handles routine power distribution while also providing emergency bypass paths when components fail, thereby improving adaptability without proportionally increasing complexity through separate dedicated switches for each function.
Data Source
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AI summary
The invention relates, inter alia, to a vehicle. According to the invention, at least two carriages (11, 12) of the vehicle are each equipped with an electric drive (20) and an electric energy storage device (30) suitable for supplying the respective drive (20), and the drives (20) of the at least two carriages (11, 12) are connected to a DC intermediate circuit (40) that spans multiple carriages.