Study On Clutch Actuator Performance Of Mine Diesel Engine Locomotive

Refering to the problems of the complex and separate control between the clutch and transmission for the existing diesel rail traction locomotive in mine, in this paper a clutch actuator was proposed which could realize centralized control for clutch and transmission. The clutch actuator makes important sense to reduce the labor intensity and operation difficulty for driver in underground environment with harsh working.Actuating cam mechanism is used to control the separation and engagement of locomotive clutch and it’s connected to shifting control through a set of gear to realize the centralized control process of shifting clutch and transmission. With the help of virtual prototype technology, the performance of separation and engagement and manipulation were studied, witch provided theoretical basis for the design of clutch execution mechanism and application of centralized control system for clutch.The structure and principle of the centralized control system of clutch actuator and shifting mechanism were introduced firstly and the key design parameters of cam were reached through the analysis of force-displacemen characteristics and movement of the release bearing assembly. The engagement processes mathematical model of clutch locomotive were established based on the analysis of kinematics and the evaluation method was determined of locomotive clutch actuator refer to general vehicle. Secondly, the forces were analyzed for the key components of locomotive clutch, the parametric model of the cam was established using MATLAB software and the model of diaphragm spring was flexibled with ANSYS finite element software. A virtual prototype of the clutch actuator was established, with software CATIA,Sim Designer and ADAMS refer to CCG8 flame diesel engine locomotive. Finally,combining with the actual working condition of the locomotive, the rigid flexible coupling dynamics simulations of starting and shifting process for the clutch were carried out and the curve of angular velocity for driving disc and driven disk, torque,friction work, jerk, driving torque and displacement of release bearing assembly were obtained to analyze the performance of clutch actuator.The conclusions obtained were as follows:(1) the clutch actuator could complete the separation and engagement of clutch during starting and shifting and had good performance. The jerk and friction work were within the reference value of locomotive and the maximum control force was within the reasonable range of operation for driver;(2)With the increases of control speed during the processes of starting and shifting, the friction work decreased,but jerk and operating force increased;(3) With the decreases of cam lead angle, the friction work decreased during starting, but the jerk and operating force increased significantly, the performance of clutch and operation should be both fully considered in the design of cam lead angle.