In the nearly 190 years of railway history, the technology of rail vehicles has continuously evolved. Today, the technical knowledge required for development, construction, operation, and maintenance is so complex and extensive that it can no longer be fully mastered by a single specialist. The vehicles are highly specialized depending on their intended use, resulting in significant variations in their design. They are also composed of many different subsystems, each of which can only be produced through specialized knowledge and extensive experience. While specialists who primarily focus on their specific trade are essential, generalists are still needed to fully understand a rail vehicle. The number of rail vehicle engineers trained annually is relatively low and significantly below the demand from industry, operators, and authorities. As a result, many professionals from other sectors are recruited and trained to become experts in their field through "learning by doing." However, these career changers often lack the necessary foundational and system knowledge about rail vehicles. This complicates the essential collaboration with experts from other rail vehicle trades. This book fills the gap between the numerous theoretical works available on the market that focus on one topic or a few specific topics in rail vehicle technology, and the practical books also available. The target audience includes students of railway and rail vehicle technology as well as industry professionals looking to refresh or expand their knowledge. The high-caliber international German-speaking author team from academia and industry has filled this book with solid theoretical foundations as well as extensive practical knowledge, enriched with current examples.