A Brake That Stops a Train Without Making a Noise
Hyundai Rotem has developed a new railway electric brake technology that stops a train at the right place without making a noise.
Hyundai Rotem announced on June 27 that it has developed Korea’s first zero-speed regenerative brake technology, which allows the train to continue to use the regenerative brake until it stops. The regenerative brake technology is an electric braking method that saves energy by sending electrical energy generated during braking in a train propulsion system to wiring.
Hyundai Rotem has been developing the regenerative brake technology since last year and has commercialized it after Germany and Japan. Conventional electric trains use the air brake system, which stops the train by pressing the brake pads because accurate control of the regenerative brake is difficult at low speed when the train stops. However, the air brake system generates a friction noise and the deceleration is unstable, possibly leading to an error in train stopping at the right place. The air brake system also generates fine dust in the tunnel as the brake pad wears out.
Hyundai Rotem's zero-speed regenerative brake technology is characterized by a constant deceleration rate of the train, which can increase the accurate stop ratio to 100 percent. It can also improve the quality of ride while completely preventing noise generation during the stop.
In particular, the zero-speed regenerative brake technology remarkably decreases fine dust generation inside the tunnel by reducing the brake pad usage. The new technology enables regenerative braking at a lower speed than before, increasing the energy efficiency and reducing the brake pad wearing, thereby lowering the maintenance costs.