Simulation Research on Impaction between Tramcar and Flexible Bumper

Flexible bumper which is made from wire ropes can be used to head off run-away tramcars in acclivitous shaft of mine. In practice, the flexible bumper joints the traction wire rope of multi-plate energy absorber which can transform the kinetic energy of the tramcars into friction heat. When the tramcars are head off by the flexible bumper, the traction wire rope is stretched. The tension of the traction wire rope is a key parameter for the design of the flexible bumper and the multi-plate energy absorber. A time dependent nonlinear model is developed for analyzing the impaction course between the tramcars and the flexible bumper. It is known that variation of the tension can be divided into four phases which correspond to the motion of the tramcars. The analysis from the nonlinear model shows that the impaction force between the tramcars and the flexible bumper can be reduced because the multi-plate energy absorber is used.