Tyre non-uniformities: comparison of analytical and numerical tyre models and correlation to experimentally measured data

Abstract

Ride requirements of modern vehicles mandate that tyres have a high degree of uniformity. However, tyre non-uniformities are unavoidable and result in dynamic force variation at the spindle during steady-state rolling. The present work aims at illustrating the tyre’s role in generating these non-uniformity induced dynamic force variations. Both analytical and numerical approaches are studied. In particular, the effects of mass, stiffness and geometric non-uniformity are investigated. The effects of tyre resonances on the non-uniformity force amplitudes are demonstrated and results are compared with measured data. The numerical tyre model FTire is used to verify and support the analytical tyre models. Excellent agreement is found. Experimentally measured data support the conclusions developed with both the analytical models and the FTire simulations.

Keywords:

• Tyre uniformity
• Spindle force variation
• High-speed uniformity
• Tyre run-out

Acknowledgements

The author would like to thank the Hankook Tire Co. for permission to publish this work and also Dr Marvin Janssen, Tire Engineering Technology, for many helpful discussions.

Additional information

Notes on contributors

Hans R. Dorfi

Email: [email protected]