DBAG Class 101 - Body Design

Body Design

The class 101 locomotives initially stand out due to an unusually large slope at the front and back. The body had to be both as aerodynamic as possible, and at the same time be as cost-effective as possible. For these reasons the designers passed on a front with multiple curved areas. Further tapering of the front was also rejected, as this would have meant increasing the distance between locomotive and coaches, in cases where the two were separate. This would have negated the advantage of a more pointed front, due to the air turbulence created in the space between the vehicles.

In order to build support structures for the undercarriage, massive C-sections were welded together with steel plate of various strength in Hennigsdorf and in the ADtranz plant in Wrocław. The buffers at either side of the front are designed to withstand pressures up to 1,000 kN (220,000 lb_f), while the front part under the top windows can handle pressure up 7,000 kN (1,600,000 lb_f).

The front of the driver's cabs are made from 4 mm (0.157 in) thick steel plate. The front window panes can be utilised on either side of the locomotive, and are simply glued into the body without window frame. The roof of the driver's cab is part of the body, not the roof. The four doors on the sides lead directly into the driver's cabs and are made of light alloy.

The side windows in the driver's cab in the class 101 featured swiveled windows, in order to avoid a window well, which often proved to be susceptible to corrosion (the windows in class 145 and 152 were continued to be counter-sunk). All windows and doors are completely pressurised by means of a special sealant section.

The body side panels are 3 mm thick, and are carried by columnar sections, in between which parts of the cabling channels are laid. The side panels encompass the area from the back end of the driver's cabs up to the beginning of the sloped roof section, which is part of the removable roof sections. They end toward the top in a hollow section, which then takes on the roof sections. The side panels are connected together by two welded wicket/belt made up of steel plate.

The roof is made of aluminum and is made up of three separate sections. The fan grills and roof slope area belong to the roof sections, and can be removed as part of the roof, making the entire width of the body available for work on the machinery inside. The roof sections are resting on the side panels, their connecting belts, and the fixed roofs of the driver's cabs, and a floating seal is built into the sections. The roof sections are completely flat for aerodynamic reasons, with the exception of the pantographs, the signal horns, and the antenna for radio communication.

Since everything on the roof is mounted just a little under the top edge of the roof of the driver's cab, almost nothing catches any wind—even a lowered pantograph is difficult to detect. In comparison to other German locomotives, the pantographs are mounted "the wrong way around"—the hinges are pointing inwards. This is also for aerodynamic reasons—since the pantograph rocker needs to be located above the center of the bogies, the pantographs would have protruded into the raised roof of the driver's cab.

A special feature in class 101 units are the bogie side frame covers. They are mounted alongside the frame and cover the area down to the wheel bearings.