FTire and puzzling tyre physics: teacher, not student

ABSTRACT By means of some instructive examples, the contribution shows how even complex phenomena and relations in tyre physics are better understood by using a physics-based tyre simulation model like FTire. In contrast to approximation-based phenomenological models, such an approach will give insight into, rather than requiring description of, the tyre's behaviour. Examples studied here comprise predicted influence of wheel load, inflation pressure, camber angle, and slow rolling speed on parking torque, predicted influence of inflation pressure on cornering stiffness and pneumatic trail, relaxation length: ramping up and down slip angle and wheel load, handling characteristic on very rough roads, a strange phenomenon: cleats that ‘attract’ a tyre. Related to these studies, user-friendly simulation tools on the basis of FTire are introduced, which help in understanding the above-mentioned complex tyre properties. One of these tools, being valuable both in teaching and for vehicle/tyre dynamics experts in industry and research, allows the user to interactively modify, during a running simulation, tyre geometry, material data, and operating conditions. The impact of these variations both on tyre forces and moments as well as on internal tyre states can be directly seen in a running animation, and later analysed with a large variety of post-processing tools. Animations for all case studies are available for download on www.cosin.eu/animationswww.cosin.eu/animations. All registered trademarks used here are properties of their respective owners.