ESTIMATION OF DAMAGE TO THE AUTOMATIC COUPLING DEVICE OF FREIGHT CARS IN OPERATION

The paper objective is to estimate the damage to the automatic coupling device of freight cars in operation. A statistical analysis of auto-coupling breaks on roads and a statistical estimation of nondestructive testing of auto-coupling device parts are carried out. During the analysis, it is found that 68% of breaks occur due to the presence of cracks in the body of the automatic coupler, 60% of breaks of the automatic couplers occur in areas where the track has a slope, including the mountain pass areas and 77% of breaks occur in the train traction mode. The scientific novelty is in obtaining a logarithmically normal law of the crack length distribution in the coupling body and traction clamp during the operation of the car in the overhaul period. The most likely crack formation in the body of the automatic coupling during the operation of the car between scheduled repairs is 41 mm long, in the traction clamp it is 63 mm. The practical significance of the work is in the fact that the obtained results can be used in making recommendations and organization of technical measures to reduce the cases of auto-coupling breaks and increase the quality of repair and maintenance of the auto-coupling device.