The main objective of the SILVARSTAR Shift2Rail project (2020-2023) coordinated by Vibratec was to develop software tools in the field of railway ground vibration and auralisation.
The first project work stream focused on the prediction of ground vibration through the development of a hybrid approach, combining numerical prediction with experimental results. This vibration prediction tool was validated versus state-of-the-art software tools and well-documented case histories (KU Leuven, ISVR, Vibratec). With the support of Vibratec, it was fully integrated in the existing noise mapping software IMMI developed by Wölfel. This resulted in a unique software platform that allows engineers to perform large-scale noise and vibration environmental impact studies (e.g. a complete line in a urban environment) within the same integrated software environment.
In the second work stream, auralisation and Virtual Reality (VR) software tools were further developed by EMPA and ISVR based on physical models to synthesize railway pass-by noise in high quality. The novel auralisation and VR tools enable a perception-based evaluation of noise mitigation technologies and an effective demonstration of different noise scenarios, including noise mitigation measures and vehicle design variants.
Special thanks to our partners (KU Leuven, ISVR, Wölfel, EMPA, UNIFE), to the associated project FINE-2, to Shift2Rail and Horizon 2020 for their support and to the ASRC (non-profit association uniting French private R&T companies and organizations).
