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A train wheel or rail wheel is a type of wheel specially designed for use on railway tracks. The wheel acts as a rolling component, typically press fitted onto an axle and mounted directly on a railway carriage or locomotive , or indirectly on a bogie (in the UK), also called a truck (in North America).
Most train wheels have a conical taper of about 1 in 20 to enable the wheelset to follow curves with less chance of the wheel flanges coming in contact with the rail sides, and to reduce curve resistance. The rails generally slant inwards at 1 in 40, a lesser angle than the wheel cone.
Several distinct sounds are created by various parts of the train, such as engines, traction motors, brakes, and the wheels rolling on the rails. Roughness and irregularities on the wheel and rail surfaces are a source of noise and vibration. Rail joints and squats on the rail cause a familiar "clickety-clack" sound as train wheels roll over them.
The part of the plate under the rail base is tapered, setting the inboard cant of the rail, typically "one in forty" (or 1.4 degrees ). The top surface of the plate has one or two shoulders that fit against the edges of the base of the rail. The double-shoulder type is currently used.
Why did the victims enter an area of PATCO Hi-Speed Line tracks that was still electrified — and being used by a two-car train that would hit them within minutes?
The horizontal (cone-shaped) rim makes contact with the slightly convex top of a steel rail in different (horizontal) places so that the outer wheel has a larger effective diameter than the inner wheel. With both tram and train wheels, this happens naturally because the tires are cone shaped sloping surfaces: the inside diameter is a few ...
Train wheels rolling over the spikes loosened them, allowing the rail to break free and curve upwards sufficiently that a car wheel could get beneath it and force the end of the rail up through the floor of the car, writhing and twisting, endangering passengers. These broken rails became known as "snake heads". [14]
Centering is actually accomplished through shaping of the wheel. The tread of the wheel is slightly tapered. When the train is in the centre of the track, the region of the wheels in contact with the rail traces out a circle which has the same diameter for both wheels. The velocities of the two wheels are equal, so the train moves in a straight ...