engineering

Railway Technical Research Institute

Railway Technical Research Institute is a engineering topic covered in the lgStudy science library. This page brings together a partial reference excerpt, illustrations, worked examples, real-world applications and a short study plan, so you can understand Railway Technical Research Institute rather than just read about it. In short: Railway Technical Research Institute (鉄道総合技術研究所, Tetsudō Sōgō Gijutsu Kenkyūsho), or RTRI (鉄道総研, Tetsudō Sōken), is the technical research company under the Japan Railways group of companies. Overview RTRI was established in its current form in 1986 just before Japanese National Railways (JNR) was privatised and split into separate JR group companies.

Key takeaways

Railway Technical Research Institute belongs to engineering; place it in that map before memorising details.
Learn the definition first, then one example that makes the definition concrete.
Connect Railway Technical Research Institute to a quantity you can measure, compute or draw — that is where exam questions come from.
Reproduce the core statement of Railway Technical Research Institute from memory before moving on to harder problems.

Reference excerpt

Overview RTRI was established in its current form in 1986 just before Japanese National Railways (JNR) was privatised and split into separate JR group companies. It conducts research on everything related to trains, railways and their operation. It is funded by the government and private rail companies. It works both on developing new railway technology, such as magnetic levitation, and on improving the safety and economy of current technology. Its research areas include earthquake detection and alarm systems, obstacle detection on level crossings, improving adhesion between train wheels and tracks, reducing energy usage, noise barriers and preventing vibrations.

RTRI is the main developer in the Japanese SCMaglev program.

Offices and test facilities

Main office 844 Shin-Kokusai Bldg. – 3-4-1 Marunouchi, Chiyoda, Tokyo

Research facilities Kunitachi Institute – 2-8-38 Hikari-cho, Kokubunji, Tokyo Wind Tunnel Technical Center – Maibara, Shiga Shiozawa Snow Testing Station – Minami-Uonuma, Niigata Hino Civil Engineering Testing Station – Hino, Tokyo Gatsugi Anti-Salt Testing Station – Sanpoku, Niigata

Gauge Change Train The RTRI is developing a variable gauge system, called the "Gauge Change Train", to allow 1,435 mm (4 ft 8+1⁄2 in) Shinkansen trains to access 1,067 mm (3 ft 6 in) lines of the original rail network.

Publications Japan Railway & Technical Review Quarterly Report of RTRI - Print: ISSN 0033-9008 Online: ISSN 1880-1765

Illustrations

Worked examples

Example 1 — a first encounter with Railway Technical Research Institute

Start with the simplest possible case. Write down what Railway Technical Research Institute claims or describes in one sentence, then invent the smallest concrete situation in which that sentence is true. In engineering, the smallest case is usually a single object, a single equation or a single measurement. Check that every symbol or term in your sentence has a meaning in that case.

Example 2 — changing one variable

Take the situation from Example 1 and change exactly one quantity: double it, halve it, or set it to zero. Predict what should happen to Railway Technical Research Institute before you calculate. Comparing your prediction with the result is the fastest way to find out whether you understand the idea or only the words.

Example 3 — an exam-style question

Typical questions about Railway Technical Research Institute ask you to (a) state it precisely, (b) apply it to given data, and (c) explain a limitation. Practise writing all three answers in under five minutes; the third part is what separates a full-mark answer from an average one.

Applications of Railway Technical Research Institute

In research: Railway Technical Research Institute appears in engineering research whenever the underlying quantities have to be modelled precisely. Papers usually cite it as a starting assumption and then explore where it breaks down.
In technology and industry: Engineering practice reuses Railway Technical Research Institute in design rules, simulations and safety margins. Knowing the idea lets you read a specification sheet and understand why the numbers look the way they do.
In the classroom: Railway Technical Research Institute is common in secondary-school and first-year university syllabi. It links to neighbouring topics 1986 establishments in Japan, Engineering research institutes, Government-owned railway companies, so understanding it makes those chapters shorter.
In everyday life: Look for Railway Technical Research Institute outside the textbook — in sport, cooking, traffic, electronics or the sky above you. An example you found yourself is remembered far longer than one you were given.

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How to study Railway Technical Research Institute in 20 minutes

Read the reference excerpt below once, without taking notes.
Close the page and write down what Railway Technical Research Institute means in your own words.
Compare your version with the excerpt and mark what you missed.
Work through the three examples above with pen and paper.
Explain Railway Technical Research Institute out loud to somebody else — or to Teacher Smith in the lgStudy chat.

Frequently asked questions

What is Railway Technical Research Institute in simple terms?

Railway Technical Research Institute (鉄道総合技術研究所, Tetsudō Sōgō Gijutsu Kenkyūsho), or RTRI (鉄道総研, Tetsudō Sōken), is the technical research company under the Japan Railways group of companies. Overview RTRI was established in its current form in 1986 just before Japanese National Railways (JNR) was…

Why does Railway Technical Research Institute matter?

Because it connects several engineering ideas at once: it gives you a definition you can apply, a quantity you can calculate, and a way to check whether a result is plausible.

How should I study Railway Technical Research Institute?

Read the excerpt, restate it from memory, then work through the examples and applications listed on this page. The five-step study plan above takes about twenty minutes.

What does this page cover?

It gives you a compact reference excerpt plus original lgStudy explanations, examples, applications and study material on Railway Technical Research Institute.