Fundamentals of vehicle–track coupled dynamics

A framework was conducted to investigate the dynamics of overall vehicle–track systems with emphasis on theoretical modelling, numerical simulation and experimental validation by Prof. Zhai’s group at the school of Traction Power State Key Laboratory in Southwest Jiaotong University. This research was supported by National Natural Science Foundation of China (NSFC) and National Basic Research Program of China (973 Program).

AutoDwell

Research conducted by Zhaoyuan Wang has proposed a fine-grained, safe, and energy-efficient strategy to improve the efficiency of metro systems by dynamically scheduling dwell time for trains.

System framework

Promoting carpool for sustainable transportation

The past decade brought two major innovations to transportation: connected and autonomous vehicles (CAV) and transportation network companies (TNC) such as Uber and Lyft. The transformative impacts of these innovations have already been felt around the world, and are expected to continue to reshape the transportation industry. In the not-so-distant future, a significant portion of passenger trips may be served by CAVs, of which many would be shared through TNCs. Such a vision projects considerable benefits for the safety, efficiency, and accessibility of travel.

An intelligent manufacturing team won 40 million RMB funds for industry and education integration construction

 A team led by intelligent manufacturing scientist Guofu Ding has received a 40 million RMB (US$5,956,000) grant to further research and building into intelligent manufacturing technologies that can improve manufacturing efficiency and quality. Awarded by the Sichuan government, the funding will support the team’s work over two years.

Naval Engineering

National Cheng Kung University celebrates the successful endeavor of its student team TAO-HAI-REN in building the nation’s first human-powered submarine. After two years of hard work, the team is scheduled to arrive in Portsmouth, U.K. in July to compete in the biennial Europe International Submarine Races (eISR). The team’s name TAO-HAI-REN means “fisherman” in Taiwan. Before the team set off, a popularity poll was held to name the submarine, with the name “sat-ba̍k-hî”, meaning “milkfish” in Taiwanese, winning the popular vote.