Solution
The suction arm at the rear, which is to be immersed in the concrete trough of the track bed, travels on a combination of
pillow block and supported aluminium shaft of the series drylin® R from our linear technology program Although ZWEIWEG has a high level of vertical integration, our catalogue products were used here, which were convincing in terms of price and because they don't require lubrication or maintenance. The linear drive receives the control commands from sensors that scan the track bed and cause the suction arm to move up when they detect obstacles.
For the eight arms for tunnel cleaning, which are arranged in the shape of a star, the designers decided on two
double shaft profiles of the drylin® W series, each connected back to back and driven by the on-board pneumatics. The system is very compact at rest and has a long range when pushed out. It also provides the necessary rigidity to withstand the back pressure of high-pressure cleaning - and it is resistant to water. In addition, the bearings easily compensate for tolerances in the vehicle and are insensitive to dust and dirt.
The conclusion was correspondingly positive: with this project, the engineers realised a two-way cleaning vehicle that enables a 360
o cleaning of track beds, tunnels and stations under special conditions.