In the sphere of the train’s electrical supply, the tree-phase ac converter for the supply of power to air-conditioning system is being renewed. Sections of train-line cables are also replaced.

But modernization is being carried out in the technical sphere too, in tandem with the inspection process, with the aim of raising the availability of trains and reducing the number of faults and malfunctions.

Notes:

1 test-rig – дослідний стенд 2 power car – вагон-елекртостанція 3 endurance testing – випробування на міцність 4 adjustable - регульований 5 galley - кухня 6 luggage locker - багажник 7trailer – причіпний вагон

8 leading-edge - передовий 9 AIRail – компанія, створена Люфтганзою, яка поєднала авіа- та залізничний транспорт 10 envisage - передбачати 11 service car - службовий вагон 12 catering section – ресторанна секція 13 staff cloakroom - роздягальня персоналу

Spain

The Spanish infrastructure authority (GIF) is constructing a 1435 mm-gauge, high-speed line between Madrid and Barcelona which will eventually be extended from Barcelona to Perpignan in France to provide a high-speed, standard gauge connection between Madrid and the European railway network. This new line is the first project of a programme to construct an extensive high-speed network in the Iberian Peninsular.

This line will be served by the fastest trains in the world running at 350 km/h, covering 630 km in just 2h 30min. Talgo in partnership with Bombardier Transportation is building one-half of the fleet of 32 trains which will operate at 350kmph on Madrid-Barcelona line. For Talgo it represents the latest development in the evolution of its unique passenger coach design.

Each Talgo 350 will consist of two 4MW 25kV 50Hz power cars, 20m long, 3m wide and 4m high, and up to 12 passenger coaches. Each two-axel bogie, with a 2.65m wide wheel-base and a maximum axleload of 17 tonnes, has its own, independent power unit. Each axle has a traction motor with a nominal rating of 1 MW. This gives the whole assembly ¹ great reliability in service.

The power cars are normally coupled to the coaches by Scharfenberg automatic couplers, although coupling by a UIC buffer and hook assembly is also possible. Another Scharfenberg coupling, hidden collapsible fairing² is fitted at the front of each power car to allow two trains to operate in multiple³.

Talgo 350 has a UIC pneumatic braking system, which acts on a high number of brake discs⁴ capable of dissipating the large amount of energy generated in high-speed braking. Each drive shaft⁵ in the power cars has three brake disks, two of them mounted on the wheels. The rolling axles of the coaches have another four discs, two of which are mounted on the wheels, and the other two on the axles.

All the axles have microprocessor-controlled anti wheel-slide, anti wheel-lock equipment to ensure maximum grip⁶ during acceleration and braking.

The profile of the power cars has been designed on the basis of the data obtained in wind tunnel tests to achieve the optimum aerodynamics and, at the same time, great stability in side winds.

Each power car has a single driving cab. Each cab is pressurized and protected against pressure waves which might be produced when entering and exiting tunnels or when passing other trains. It also has emergency exits on both sides.

The coaches are 3m wide, the same as power cars, but they are only 3365mm high, which is lower than the power cars. To bridge the height gap between the power cars and the coaches, the end coaches have a false roof. The floor level is 750mm above the top of the rail so that access is possible directly from the platform.

The wheel assemblies have a single wheel axle, which provides absolute dynamic stability. The wheel assemblies are shared by two adjacent coaches and are located in the space between them. This allows the coach floors to be lowered appreciably, bringing them nearer the rail with the benefit if grater stability and easier access to the coach, without intermediate steps. In addition, as the distance between axles is very great, as much as the length of a coach, damage to the track is notably reduced. Another characteristic of the axles of Talgo trains is their automatic guidance system⁷, thanks to which, in any track layout the wheels are maintained parallel to the rails, providing safer running and producing reduced wheel/rail interaction. Finally, the coaches are coupled by a compact, articulated, automatic traction coupling which has its centre of rotation in the same transverse plane as the running axis. The wheel sets of the new Talgo 350 coaches have a novel two-stage suspension: a primary system mounted on each wheel set and a secondary, principal system of the tilting type.

A set of 12 coaches will be 200m long, with room for 318 passengers. It will consist of two Club class, three Preference class, and six Tourist class coaches. There will be a cafeteria car with an ample service area, a bar, and a saloon with high side tables. One Tourist class coach will be equipped for passengers in wheelchairs. The coaches will have panoramic windows, which will be air-tight and especially resistant to the differences in pressure produced through tunnels and when passing other trains as the air vents⁸ to the outside will be closed in these situations. Air-conditioning equipment will be located beneath the underframe. This will enables the ceilings to be higher to give a feeling of space in the salon. Club class travellers will have individual air-conditioning diffusers. TV monitors will be installed on the ceilings of the coaches. Each seat will have a small table and a 220V 50Hz socket to feed a computer or a small appliance⁹. There will also be audio equipment with volume and cannel selection controls. It will be possible to listen to four different music programmes and two TV sound channels by earphones.

Notes:

1 assembly – комплект, складальна одиниця, агрегат у зборі 2 hidden collapsible fairing – схований складний (телескопічний) обтічник 3 multiple – багаторазовий 4 brake disc – гальмовий диск

5 drive shaft – провідний вал 6 grip – схоплювання, стиснення, затиснення 7 guidance system - система наведення 8 air vent – повітроприймальний отвір 9 appliance – пристрій, прилад