Analysis of dynamic contact between overhead wire and pantograph of a high-speed electric train

Abstract For the analysis of dynamic contact between an overhead wire and a pantograph of a high-speed train, a numerical technique for solving the equations of motion of the wire and pantograph subjected to contact condition is presented. The equations of motion of the wire and the pantograph are simultaneously time integrated with the strict application of the contact condition by the augmented Lagrange multiplier method. The velocity and acceleration contact conditions as well as the displacement contact condition are imposed with special consideration of the high-velocity contact point moving on the deformed wire. Especially, it is shown that the Coriolis and centripetal accelerations of the contact point moving rapidly on the deformed wire play the crucial roles for the stability of the solution. And, the numerical simulations are performed with a practical model consisting of suspension wire, contact wire, droppers, and pantograph.