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Forton Lake Opening Bridge is a 170-m-long structure, primarily designed for use by pedestrians and cyclists, but which also carry a road train and emergency service vehicles. The project contains ...

Multi-articulated vehicles consisting of a tractor pulling a large number of (semi-) trailers, also known by the term “road trains”, are a promising alternative for a more efficient mass transportation of goods. One of the major technical problems of road trains is off-tracking, i.e. the deviation of a pulled vehicle from the paths of its preceding vehicles. The novel sliding junction technique can drastically suppress or even eliminate off-tracking but has stringent demands on the control of the junction (“kingpin”) position. The hybrid systems approach to sliding consists in setting a predefined number of discrete sliding deviation levels corresponding to various ranges in the value of the deviation angle between two adjacent vehicles. The resulting control system is an inexpensive, easy to operate alternative that may prove attractive to a manufacturer.

The main task of this paper is to review the principal aspects in organization of interurban long haul service by use of road trains on the basis of the “district” traffic system. The goal of the paper is to determine the most effective methods of trucking operations in order to highlight the regularities that characterize these methods. The paper describes practicable methods of freight flow analysis, some factors and parameters concerning movement of motor‐vehicle trains and original route schedules as well. Of special interest is the obtained algorithm of economically effective trucking operations of motor‐vehicle trains on the route. First Published Online: 27 Oct 2010

Locomotive transportation plays an important role in Botswana. It plays a critical role in the transportation of people, livestock, raw materials and goods. It now faces new challenges in a highly competitive economy in the form of efficiency and the onslaught from road trains, the latter of which often use a subsidised, government funded road network. Whilst perhaps the national railway operator cannot do much to change the advantage enjoyed by the road hauliers, it is on the operational efficiency side that much can be gained by the deployment of appropriate, cutting-edge technical solutions. One operational problem that Botswana Railways (BR) and others using similar technologies for locating presence on site and positions of their trains and cargo, typically the DC Track Circuit and the Axle Counter System respectively, is that the power supply equipment associated with the operations of the two systems is located on unsecured environments, and thus susceptible to vandalism and theft. Vandalism and theft of this equipment on the BR network has escalated over the years, seriously undermining the efficiency and throughput of the network, whilst equally exposing the cargo to potential loss. This work presents a new scheme of locating the positions of locomotives by using Global Positioning Systems (GPS) to track, in real-time, the location of vehicles and equipment The scheme proposes two GPS receivers placed on the train, one on the engine and the other on the last carriage. The receivers placed on the train transmit information back to a control room on an interactive graphical display unit. The results of the simulated communications system will be presented.

This paper shall present the design and development of a family of high power, high-speed transport and combat vehicles based on a common module. The system looks to maximize performance at both high-speed operation and low-speed, heavy/severe-duty operation. All-wheel drive/steer-by-wire autonomous traction modules provide the basis for the vehicle family. Each module can continuously develop 300-400 kW of power at the wheels and has nearly double peak capability, exploiting the flexibility of the electric traction system. The maximum starting tractive effort developed by one module can reach 10-15 tons, and the full rated power can be produced at speeds of 100 mph. This paper will present the design and layout of the autonomous modules. Details will be provided about the tandem electric axles, with electric differentials and independent steering. New innovations in power electronics and electric machines, providing high power operation and affordable production costs will also be discussed. The paper also demonstrates concepts of how the traction module can provide the basis for a broad range of various purpose vehicles, ranging from road trains and/or tank carriers to high-speed (120 mph) attack vehicles.

This paper presents the design and development of a high-power, high-speed "road train" (with both on- and off-road applications). The system looks to optimize both high-speed operation and low-speed, close-quarters driving with the introduction of autonomous power modules. Each trailer in the road train has it own electric traction system. When driving on open roads or in open areas, each traction system receives electric energy from the high-powered tractor. However, the individual traction systems allow for distributed tractive effort, improving upon the classic road train. Further, each module has its own independent steering system, allowing for practical implementation of longer trains. Use of longer trains in open areas allows for reduced operational costs, and increased efficiency. When mobility becomes a primary concern or zero emissions operation is needed, small power supplies can allow independent trailer operation. This paper presents the design and layout of the road train system. Details are provided about the tandem electric axles, with electric differentials and independent steering. New innovations in power electronics, providing high power operation and affordable production costs are discussed. The paper also describes some new concepts for a high-powered tractor.

Land acquisition is the key process for any development projects like road, train and canal route, it required large scale acquisition. Industrial acquisition is the easy process where government can identify the waste land and pass to the industries. While, in case of road, train and canal acquisition may cover agricultural land as well. But, if farmer or owners of land oppose a matter in court it would be unnecessary delay in the project. In this research paper we will use Remote Sensing, GIS and GPS data we could have clear idea of boundary of different survey number so that route could be passed near to border areas. Not only that we would also able to identify important potions of farm like electricity connection, water area, green zone, waste land, and so many other parameters which would play key role once we are optimizing the road if route is optimized from farmers aspects farmer would be very happy will easily allow government for acquisition. As farmer will be ultimate beneficiary or road connectivity with his land. And government is able to save the cost of lots of serve cost by spending large scale engineer man power for site survey and if this acquisition gets faster, project would be on time. So, e-Governance projects can be completed within the time and will not impact additional costing of delay which is normally happening with the current projects.

This paper examines the road train concept as a new alternative in long-distance freight traffic. The design of such a system is a difficult task since many different and conflicting criteria arise depending on the application spectrum, the legal conditions and the preferences of the carrier. Furthermore the evaluation of each decision alternative relies on a time consuming and sophisticated simulation. Evolutionary algorithms (EAs) have shown to be a useful tool for multi-objective optimization in engineering design. Based on a unified model, we develop a problem-specific evolutionary algorithm which features strong elitism, an unlimited archive of non-dominated solutions and density dependent selection. This EA is able to create alternatives which dominate previous manually engineered solutions as well as those derived from exhaustive search.

The integration of larger "innovative" vehicle combinations into the existing infrastructure relies heavily on proving the concept to government and local authorities. Simulation modelling has proved to be a useful tool in showing that an innovative vehicle is a safer and more efficient alternative to conventional equipment. This paper will provide examples of the use of AUTOSIMTM in developing custom yaw/roll and yaw/roll/pitch models for investigating the dynamic performance of combination vehicles. Models will be described for large innovative road trains. Consideration will be given to the modelling of the trailing fidelity of these vehicles on non-planar surfaces, and examples of model outputs for combination vehicles operating on various three-dimensional features will be given. Examples of the application of dynamic performance standards related to stability and control in a number of performance attributes will be considered, and the performance of some innovative vehicle combinations will be compared with that of currently-operating conventional trucks.

Medium Combination Vehicles (MCV's) fall between General Freight Vehicles and Large Combination Vehicles (road trains) with respect to size and weight limits and are being introduced on approved routes in Australia's populated areas. The major issues surrounding MCV's are safety, impact on other road users and environmental effects. This paper is concerned with the important safety‐related area of dynamic stability and describes testing of a B‐double, which is the MCV configuration creating most interest. On the basis of full‐scale testing, tilt testing and computer simulation, it is concluded that the B‐double has (i) predictable steady state rollover behaviour similar to that of a wide sample of six‐axle tractor‐semi‐trailers previously tested, and (ii) superior dynamic stability in transient manoeuvres, as a result of the coupling concept of the B‐double. It is recommended that further investigation of certain aspects of the test results is warranted, particularly the kinematic behaviour of the fifth w...

SUMMARY This paper presents a review of theoretical and experimental works relative to the handling performance of commercial vehicle combinations. A commercial vehicle combination (road train) is defined as a tractor unit and an arbitrary number of trailers. The review contains literature corresponding the most widely used types of trains: tractor-semitrailer, truck-trailer and tractor-semitrailer-semitrailer (doubles). The vehicle dynamic performance has been investigated taking into consideration the following features: directional performance, roll dynamics, braking performance and combined braking and directional performance. With the aim of evaluating the present state of research activities in the field of lateral dynamics of articulated commercial vehicles, the author has compiled some 250 references.

To analyze the influence of structure type on passing ability of car transport vehicle combination, the four basic vehicle combination models of two typical structure types, such as car transport semi-trailer road train and car transport vehicle combination with center axle trailer, have been built by using TruckSim. The turning circle test and the adaptability test on highway have been simulated on dry pavement to analyze the relationship between the structure type and the turning passing ability. The results show that the structure parameters have significant influence on the passing ability of car transport vehicle combination; three of the vehicle combination models can meet the requirements of GB 1589-2004“Limits of dimensions, axle load and masses for road vehicles”; all the four basic vehicle combination models will take up the lane beside itself when running on the up to and including third-grade highway/ramp.

In many parts of the world the freight transport task is primarily undertaken on public roads. The exact share is heavily influenced by the presence of other transport modes (railway, inland waterways) and the topography of the country, and for these reasons the share of road transport varies from approximately 35% (Australia) to over 70% (European Union). Worldwide, there are various regulations regarding the weights and dimensions (and accordingly, axle loads) for heavy vehicles, and as a result, the heavy vehicle industry has developed a range of transport solutions in response, leading to a wide range of vehicle combinations which vary in their design and specification. In 2010, the Joint OECD/ITF transport research Centre (JTRC) working group selected 38 different heavy vehicle combinations from OECD member states, and studied their performance in order to gain an understanding of the influence of their individual characteristics in three key areas; the vehicle's inherent safety, its productivity, and its impacts on infrastructure [5] . Vehicle productivity was described using various metrics involving cargo weight and volume, energy consumption, and travel distance. Higher loading capacity and utilization (lower tare mass), and lower fuel consumption (low rolling and air resistance) can increase the efficiency as much as possible for a given travel speed and distance. Inherent vehicle safety and dynamic performance in various driving maneuvers was addressed using computer simulation, conducted in accordance with the Australian ‘Performance Based Standards’ scheme. Vehicle infrastructure performance was calculated on the basis of axle loads, tyre type and size, as per the ‘COST 334’ vehicle road wear performance analysis method. This paper presents and discusses the results demonstrated by ten of the vehicles investigated in the OECD study. Nine out of ten vehicles represent current and possible future freight vehicles for Europe, and were selected because they have particular relevance given the current debate in Europe on increased masses and weights of freight vehicles. Further, one Australian ‘road train’ vehicle was included, as it represents one of the longest and heaviest vehicle combinations permitted access throughout the world, and is useful for comparative purposes.

Significant fuel savings can be achieved by deliberate design measures on the drive line of commercial vehicles. This paper describes some of the results gained by M*A*N in the course of drive line optimization. First the engine and its accessories will be dealt with. Taking a turbocharged and a naturally aspirated engine as examples, three development steps are explained for each of these versions, and their effects on fuel consumption discussed. Then follows a consideration of the savings potential still possible through optimized design of engine accessories. Transmission design and the selection of suitable rear axle ratios for heavy commercial vehicles is also considered. Finally the results of tests to determine the effect on fuel consumption of drive line optimization are discussed. Tests with heavy long-haul road trains with various drive line configurations are considered, then the possibility of influencing fuel consumption on city buses by drive line optimization are investigated.

Road trains (articulated vehicles hauling one or two trailers, or rigid trucks hauling two or three trailers) provide significant economies in road transport. With over 30 years of experience, road trains are an integral part of road transport in Australia. A recent study defining the dimensional and mass limitations, mechanical requirements, operating conditions and other general requirements that should apply to road trains is discussed. Topics covered include: development and use of road trains; conduct of the study; concepts used in determining what should and should not be required; pavement damage; and fuel consumption (a).

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