| Coefficient of friction A number expressing the ratio between the force required to move one surface along another and the force, normal to the surfaces pressing them together.
Everyone in the rail industry knows there are really no situations that are truly "normal." Problems, however, there are plenty of those - poor braking and traction or excessive noise and wheel/rail wear to mention a few. But are they problems or symptoms? In most cases these are symptoms of poor friction conditions in the wheel/rail interface. The only way to know is to measure. . .
. . . The SURVEYORTM High Speed Rail Tribometer measures the coefficient of friction by providing a system with sufficient mass to apply download forces to the contact points of the tread and gauge similar to the way a passing train imposes those forces in the real world. The SURVEYORTM measures the coefficient of friction of the rail, not the ineffective lubricants loitering outside the contact path. The SURVEYORTM measures what is really happening... where the wheel meets the rail. |