What is BS EN 15663 about?
BS EN 15663 is a European standard on railway vehicles that discusses reference masses.
BS EN 15663 defines a set of reference masses for specifying the requirements for the design, testing, acceptance, marking, delivery and operation of rail vehicles. The reference masses defined in BS EN 15663 are as follows:
- Dead mass
- Design mass in working order
- Design mass under the normal payload
- Design mass under the exceptional payload
- Operational mass in working order
- Operational mass under normal payload.
These reference masses are defined with respect to the whole vehicle, but they can also apply to a specific system or component.
NOTE: The specification of values for tolerances applicable to reference masses is not given in BS EN 15663. Tolerances can be required by an application standard. Additional loadings due to environmental factors, for example, snow and retained or absorbed rainwater, are not given in BS EN 15663.
Who is BS EN 15663 for?
BS EN 15663 on railway vehicles is useful for:
- Railway engineers
- Manufacturers of railway equipment
Why should you use BS EN 15663?
Reference mass means the mass of the vehicle in running order with a full fuel tank and including the set of tools and spare wheel.
BS EN 15663 specifies the methods for calculating railway reference masses including standard values for payloads.
The masses of consumables such as design and operational consumables, staff, and wear allowance are determined in BS EN 15663.
The calculation on standing areas from the available area at floor level in passenger and catering areas is given in BS EN 15663 along with designated wheelchair space.
BS EN 15663 determines the payloads for M-I (high speed and long-distance units), M-II (passenger vehicles other than high speed and long-distance units), and M-III (freight vehicles).
Furthermore, BS EN 15663 could navigate you through the design, test, and operations of railway vehicles and their main constituent parts to clearly specify the associated states of loading with a set of vehicle reference masses. In this manner, you could achieve accuracy in weight measurement while manufacturing railways to ensure passengers and staff’s safety.
What’s changed since the last update?
BS EN 15663:2017+A1:2018 supersedes BS EN 15663:2017. BS EN 15663:2017+A1:2018
includes some technical changes with respect to BS EN 15663:2017. These include:
- General editorial reordering of clauses and text
- New requirements for standing areas in gangways between vehicles
- New treatment of wheelchair loadings
- Permitted variations in standing passenger loadings redefined
- New recommendations for the determination of the centre of gravity