ContiTech highlights eco-friendly rail actuators

ERJ staff report (LMH)

Hanover, Germany - Actuators by ContiTech Air Spring Systems play a pivotal role in conducting electricity from overhead cables into electric train engines, making local and long-distance train-travel more eco-friendly, ContiTech says.

Rail vehicles receive electricity from an overhead power cable suspended above the track, which supplies the engine with power via the current collector system, also known as a pantograph. A key component in the pantograph is its air actuators. These ensure even contact between the pantograph and the overhead power line in any weather and at all speeds, Conti said. Modern actuators are made from natural rubber and filled with air, like those made by ContiTech.

“For our pantographs, the air actuator is quite simply the best technology available at the moment,” commented Gerhard-Manfred Löffler, lead Engineer with the Austrian-based company MELECS, a leading producer of current collectors.

It is important to apply optimum pressure at all times, irrespective of any sag in the overhead power line and regardless of temperature, rain, snow or ice, Conti said.

“Durable, reliable air actuators by ContiTech mean we can guarantee that our pantographs will remain sensitive and flexible for many years. This saves our customers the expense of having to repair equipment or invest in replacements,” noted Löffler.

Conti said that systems equipped with its air actuators have a number of advantages compared with traditional mechanical technologies. “They are much lighter, more durable and easier to maintain. They are also more resistant to the effects of wind, weather, UV and dirt,” the company said.

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News release from ContiTech