UM-HSRI -76-1 1-1

Cont r act No. DOT-HS-4-00943

EFFECTS OF TIRE PROPERTIES ON TRUCK AND BUS HANDLI NG
R.D. Er vi n
C.B. Wi nkl er
J .E. Ber nar d
R.K. Gupta
Fi nal Summary Report
June 1976 . c
,'
Highway Saf et y Research I n s t i t u t e
The Uni v er s i t y o f Mi chi gan
Prepared f o r :
Nat i onal Highway T r a f f i c Saf et y Admini s t r a t i o n
U. S. Department o f Tr anspor t at i on
Pr epar ed f or t he Department o f Tr anspor t at i on,
Nat i onal Highway T r a f f i c Saf et y Admi ni st r at i on,
under Cont r act No. DOT-HS-4-00943. The opi ni ons ,
f i ndi ngs , and concl usi ons expressed i n t h i s
p u b l i c a t i o n ar e t hose o f t h e aut hor s and n o t
nec es s ar i l y t hose o f t he Nat i onal Highway T r a f f i c
Saf et y Admi ni s t r at i on.
8 . Pnf omonp Orgon~zateon Rmport No.
7. Author's)
R.D. Er v i n, C.B. Wi nkl er , J. E. Ber nar d, R.K. ~ u ~ t i / UM-HSRI-76-11-1
Tubni col R.port Documt at i ar Pog*
' I . R. port No ' 2. Gmverrrmt Acresst m Nm.
UM-HSRI-76-11-1
4. 111le r r d Subt ~~l o
EFFECTS OF TIRE PROPERTIES ON TRUCK AND
BUS HANDLING
11. Spysat t ng A 0 m. n ~ ~ HI * w d Addres?
Nat i onal Highway T r a f f i c Saf et y Ad mi n i s t r a t i o n
F i n a l Repor t
U. S. Depart ment o f Tr ans por t at i on
1 6/ 28/ 74 - 12/ 31/ 75
5. Rrport 0m1.
June 1976
6. Pn f o n r ~ n g O~qmn,zar,on Cod. j
Orgsra aatlon N m. ard Address
Saf et y Researcn I n s t i t u t e
1 washi ngt on, D.C. 20590
10. WorC Unvl No. (TRAI S)
16. Abstroct
The p r i n c i p a l t h r u s t o f t h i s p r o j e c t was t o i d e n t i f y t h e i mpor t ance of
t h e t r a c t i o n p r o p e r t i e s o f t r u c k t i r e s i n det er mi ni ng t h e s t e e r i n g and
br ak i ng response o f l i g h t and heavy commerci al v e h i c l e s .
The st udy
gener at ed a 1 ar ge q u a n t i t y o f par amet r i c dat a d e s c r i b i n g t he commerci a1
v e h i c l e and, e s p e c i a l l y , i t s t i r e s .
Test s on a l a r g e sampl e o f l i g h t
and heavy t r u c k t i r e s were conduct ed u s i n g t wo l a b o r a t o r y and one over -
t he- r oad t i r e t e s t devi ce. A comput er i zed s i mu l a t i o n st udy, . , provi di ng
a mechani st i c under st andi ng o f t he r esponse s e n s i t i v i t y o f t h e open- l oop
v e h i c l e t o t i r e p r o p e r t i e s was conduct ed. F u l l - s c al e v e h i c j e t e s t s per -
mi t t e d v a l i d a t i o n o f t he s i mu l a t i o n and r ei nf or cement t o . t h e b a s i c
f i n d i n g s obt ai ned t hr ough comput er i zed a n a l y s i s .
Fi ndi ngs of t h i s st udy i n c l u d e t h e i l l u mi n a t i o n o f s i g n i f i c a n t
d i f f e r e n c e s i n t h e q u a l i t a t i v e per f or mance c h a r a c t e r i s t i c s o f t r u c k t i r e s
r e l a t i v e t o passenger c ar t i r e s , and t h e manner i n whi ch t hese uni que
t r u c k t i r e p r o p e r t i e s may a f f e c t t h e yaw s t a b i l i t y o f t h e commerci al
v ehi c l e. Po t e n t i a l probl ems o f v e h i c l e s t a b i 1 i t y were d r a ma t i c a l l y
i l l u s t r a t e d by a r o l l o v e r i n c i d e n t whi ch occur r ed d u r i n g t e s t i n g o f a
heavy t r u c k .
1
IP. S.cvrity ~ ~ e s m f . (mI this 1 )
I m. b m m q C l e s ~ ~ f . (01 &i s
11. No. of Popms I 22. PVIC.
I
17. Key Words
t i r e s , heavy t r u c k , l i g h t t r u c k , van,
bus, t e s t i n g , par amet er s, s i mul at i on,
s t a b i l i t y , yaw di ver gence, r o l l o v e r
None
I
None
I I
Form DOT F 1700.7 0-72)
R 9 - M - of ~ I o t o d pop. wc)ari x. d
'
18. Di st rt hrt ~on Sfotwmmt
Unl i mi t e d
4 U. S. C O V L R N M E M PRlKIMC OFFICE : 1Q71 725-504/128
TABLE OF CONTENTS
1 . INTRODUCTION . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1
2 . RESEARCH METHODOLOGY . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5
. . . . . . . . . 2.1 I n t r o d u c t i o n t o t h e Met hodol ogy 5
2. 2 Met hods Empl oyed t o Measure T i r e
. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . T r a c t i o n Pr o p e r t i e s 6
2.3 Met hods Empl oyed t o Conduct
Ve h i c l e Test s . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 8
2.4 Si mu l a t i o n o f T i r e / Ve h i c l e Behavi o r . . . . . . . 10
3 . CONCLUSIONS AND RECOMMENDATIONS . . . . . . . . . . . . 13
3.1 Concl usi ons . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 14
3.2 Recommendati ons . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 18
4 . REFERENCES . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 25
I . 0 INTRODUCTION
This document const i t ut es the sumnary f i nal report on a
research study ent i t l ed "Effects of Ti re Properties on Truck
and Bus Hand1 ing" which was conducted by t he Highway Safety
Research I nst i t ut e of The University of Michigan. The study was
supported by the National Highway Traffi c Safety Admini st r at i on
o f the U.S. Department of Transportation under contract
DOT-HS-4-00943.
This research i s based upon the application of the funda-
mental s of t i re and vehicle mechanics t o speci f i c considerations
o f the control behavior of l i ght and heavy commercial vehicles.
In t hi s regard, the t i r e properties of i nt er est are those which
determine shear forces and moments such as are generated during
steering a n d , braki ng maneuvers.
Shear force and moment propert i es, herei naft er referred t o
as "t r act i on properties ," ar e confined in def i ni t i on, here, t o
highway operating condi t i ons-specifi ca1 ly i nvol vi ng nondeformable
pavement-type surfaces. Vehicle maneuvering conditions are not
limited in t hei r treatment and cover the f ul l range from low-
level path-keeping tasks t o severe acci dent - avoi dancezmaneuver s.
TO the extent t h a t t hi s study examines vehicl e, meneuvering
only in reference t o the physical char act er i st i cs of the (open
loop) t i r el vehi cl e system, the term "handling" in the project
t i t J e may be judged a misnomer si nce, t o many, "handl ing" implies
the cl osed-loop control performance of the dr i verlvehicle system.
For the comnercial vehicle very l i t t l e , i f indeed any, research has
ever been reported describing examination of closed-loop behavior.
This contrasts with a subst ant i al , though by no means comprehensive,
body of 1 i t er at ur e pertaining to passenger car handl i ng .
Examination of the open-loop behavior of heavy commercial
vehicles preceded the study reported here, par t i cul ar l y i n the
f orm of a DOT-sponsored st udy e n t i t l e d "Tr uck and Bus Handl i ng"
[ I ] * i n whi ch " handl i ng" agai n was employed t o t i t l e an i n v e s t i -
g a t i o n o f open-l oop pr oper t i es . The "Truck and Bus Hand1 i ng" st udy
devel oped a s e t o f heavy- vehi cl e t e s t procedures whi ch were
employed i n f u l l - s c a l e experi ment s conduct ed dur i ng t he p r o j e c t
r epor t ed here. The unpl anned r o l l o v e r o f a 1 arge t r uc k dur i ng
a p p l i c a t i o n o f t hese t e s t procedures dur i ng t h i s st udy l e d t o
subsequent f i ndi ngs on t r uc k yaw s t a b i l i t y whi ch ar e n o t known t o
have been r epor t ed pr evi ousl y.
The p r i n c i p a l t h r u s t o f t h i s p r o j e c t was t o i d e n t i f y t he
i mpor t ance o f ti r e t r a c t i o n pr oper t i es i n det er mi ni ng t he s t eer i ng
and br aki ng responses o f t r uc k s and buses. To t h a t ex t ent , t h i s
st udy can be vi ewed as t he ext ensi on, f o r commerci al vehi cl es, o f
anot her r ec ent l y compl eted DOT-sponsored p r o j e c t e n t i t l e d " Ef f ec t s
of T i r e Pr oper t i es on Passenger Car Handl i ng" [ 2 ] . The c ont r as t
between car s and t r uc k s i s i ndeed s i g n i f i c a n t , however, des pi t e a
commonal i t y i n t he basi c physi cs i nvol ved. Si nce t he commerci al
v e h i c l e ' s mi ssi on imp1 i e s t h a t payl oad cons ti t ut es t he r ai s on d ' e t r e
f o r such vehi cl es, we f i n d l oaded- t o- unl oaded wei ght r a t i o s f o r
heavy t r ucks, f o r example, t o be on t he or der o f 2:1 t o 5 : l as
compared t o a 1. 3: l val ue o f t he same measure f o r a @pi ca1 mi d-
s i zed passenger sedan. It was f ound t h a t commercial, . vehi cl e pay-
l oads pr of oundl y i nf l uence basi c v ehi c l e p r o p e r t i e s and impose
sever e demands on t he perf ormance o f t he commerci al v ehi c l e t i r e .
Addi t i onal l y , suspensi on and ax1 e c onf i gur at i on di f f er enc es between
car s and t r uc ks pr ovi de a number o f c ont r as t i ng mechanisms and
l e v e l s o f s e n s i t i v i t y whi ch r ender t he t i r e ' s r o l e i n t he per f or -
mance o f t he r espect i ve v ehi c l e cl asses t o be wor t hy o f i ndependent
st udy .
I n f u r t h e r c ont r as t between passenger and comner ci al v ehi c l e
systems, i t shoul d be not ed t h a t t he publ i shed dat a base descr i bi ng
t h e t r a c t i o n pr oper t i es' o f c ar t i r e s i s immensely gr eat er t han
*Numbers i n br acket s r e f e r t o References l i s t e d a t t he end o f
t h i s r epor t .
t h a t des c r i bi ng t r u c k t i r e s . Accor di ngl y, i t was necessar y, i n
t h i s st udy, t o conduct a l a r g e number of t r u c k t i r e measurements
t her eby e s t a b l i s h i n g a dat a base f o r use i n comput er i zed si mul a-
t i o n s o f t r u c k and bus r esponse. Thus, t h i s st udy has gener at ed
a body o f f i ndi ngs p e r t a i n i n g t o t he t r a c t i o n pr oper t i es o f
commerci al v ehi c l e t i r e s , t hemsel ves, as we1 1 as f i n d i n g s
p e r t a i n i n g t o t he c ont r ol behavi or o f t he o v e r a l l t i r e / v e h i c l e
sys tern.
2.0 RESEARCH METHODOLOGY
2.1 Introduction t o the Methodology
The study was designed so as t o generate a large quant i t y
o f parametric data describing commercial vehicles and, especial l y ,
t he i r t i r e s . The parameter measurements were obtained t o permit
a computerized simulation study which provided a mechanistic under-
standing of the response s ens i t i vi t y of t he open-1 oop vehicle t o
t i r e propert i es. Full-scale vehicle t e s t s were al so conducted t o
permit val i dat i on of t he simulation and t o provide a reinforcement,
wherever possible, t o t he basic findings obtained through com-
puterized anal ysi s.
The focus of t he study was on the commercial vehicle t i r e
as a force and moment producing mechanism. Thus the r el evar t
parametric charact eri zat i ons derived from t he use of t r act i on
t est i ng apparatuses especi al l y sui t ed t o measurement of the shear
force and moment response of heavy t i r e s . These t e s t machines are
comparable t o apparatuses employed i n the t r act i on measurement of
passenger car t i r e s , b u t ar e appropriately scaled u p in load
capaci t i es.
Since machinery f or measuring truck t i r e t r act i on has
only been avai l abl e r ecent l y, the l i t e r a t ur e documenting such
measurements i s r el at i vel y scar ce, thus the need i n t hi s study t o
I
obt ai n, through di r ect experiment, data exempl i fyi ng' even the
more fundamental truck t i re propert i es.
Si mi l arl y, t he mathematical modeling of a speci f i c truck or
bus requires t hat a large array of generally unavailable design
parameters be obtained through di r ect measurement. Thus, various
laboratory apparatuses were employed t o di r ect l y measure i ner t i al
properties of the sprung and unsprung masses as well as the kine-
matic and compliance char act er i st i cs of st eer i ng and suspension
sys tems .
Pr e d i c t i o n of t he nonl i near behavi or o f t r u c k and bus
v ehi c l es i s a s u f f i c i e n t l y complex a n a l y t i c a l t as k t h a t o n l y
comput er i zed c a l c u l a t i o n s ar e f e a s i b l e . Accor di ngl y, two " s t a t e -
o f - t h e - a r t " s i mul at i ons were empl oyed t o p e r mi t a gener al st udy o f
v e h i c l e response s e n s i t i v i t i e s t o t i r e p r o p e r t i e s and t o pr ov i de
a means f o r more s p e c i f i c i n v e s t i g a t i o n o f t r u c k d i r e c t i o n a l
s t a b i l i t y .
I n t h i s s ec t i on, t h e v ar i ous met hodol ogi es empl oyed i n t h e
st udy w i l l be summarized.
2. 2 Methods Employed t o Measure T i r e Tr a c t i o n Pr oper t i es
Di r e c t measurements o f t h e t r a c t i o n c h a r a c t e r i s t i c s o f
l i g h t and heavy commerci al v e h i c l e t i r e s were obt ai ned us i ng t h r e e
d i f f e r e n t t e s t systems. Data obt ai ned wi t h each machi ne p e r t a i n
t o t h e shear f o r c e and moment r esponse o f t h e speci men t i r e s under
c ondi t i ons o f dr y , uncont ami nat ed, non- def or mabl e sur f aces.
F i r s t l y , a 1 ow-speed l a b o r a t o r y devi ce, t h e H S R I f l at - bed
machi ne, was used i n t h e t i r e t e s t program. Thi s appar at us appl i es
t h e specimen t i r e t o a f l a t pl ank whi ch t r av er s es a t a r a t e o f
1.4 mph. The t e s t t i r e i s sust ai ned a t s el ec t ed c ondi t i ons o f
P
v e r t i c a l l oad, FZ, s l i p angl e, a, and i n c l i n a t i o n angl e, y, f o r
bot h r i g h t - g o i n g and l e f t - g o i n g passes o f t h e bed. ,l ' nsofar as
t he bed v e l o c i t y i s ver y l ow, t h e dat a obt ai ned t hr ough f l a t - b e d
measurement i s most s u i t a b l e f o r t h a t oper at i ng r egi me i n whi ch
s l i p v e l o c i t i e s a r e l ow.
Thus, f l a t - b e d measurement can be l ooked upon as p r i ma r i l y
addressed t o t he exami nat i on o f s t r u c t u r a l compl i ances such as
ar e mani f est ed i n f o r c e and moment r esponse a t smal l val ues o f
angul ar s l i p .
A t o t a l o f 40 t i r e s were t e s t e d on t h e f l a t - b e d machi ne
dur i ng t h i s st udy. Each t i r e was subj ect ed t o a ma t r i x o f v e r t i -
c a l l o a d and s l i p angl e c o n d i t i o n s cover i ng t he f u l l oper at i ng
regi me.
s
The Cal span Corporation' s Ti re Research Facil i ty ( TI RF)
was employed in t hi s study t o provide measures of t r act i on sensi -
t i vi t y t o velocity and t o examine combined s l i p propert i es. The
TIRF machine employs a f l a t st eel bel t as the t e s t surface while
exposing the t e s t t i r e t o the desired conditions of s l i p , load,
and velocity.
Two t i r e types were t est ed on the TIRF f aci l ity--providing
a view of 1 ight and heavy t i r e velocity s ens i t i vi t i es as well as
an indication of the extent t o which such t i r e s a l t e r t he i r
t r act i on behavior as a consequence of t es t - i nduced wear.
The t i r e t e s t apparatus employed t o measure t r act i on pro-
per t i es "over- the-road" was the HSRI Mobi 1 e Truck Ti re Dynamometer.
This t r act or - t r ai l e r device penni t s measurement of longitudinal
behavior by way of the trailer-mounted f i xt ur e while l at er al
properties ar e obtained using an assembly mounted as an under-
carri age t o the t r act or . As with laboratory machines, the mobile
apparatus exposes the t i r e specimen t o control 1 ed conditions of
load, s l i p , and vel oci t y, b u t with the added realism of repre-
sent at i ve road surfaces. Thus the device i s par t i cul ar l y sui t ed
t o the characterization of t r act i on performance a t elevated l evel s
of slip-for which t he f r i ct i onal coupling between t i r e and
pavement determines the 1 eve1 of developed shear for/es.
I
A t ot al of sixteen l i ght and heavy truck t i r e s were t est ed
on the l at er al t r act i on machine and ei ght heavy t i r e s were al so
examined i n mobile longitudinal t es t s . All of these t i r e s were
mobile t est ed on the Portland cement concrete track a t the Dana
Truck Test Center in southeastern Michigan. Additionally, cer t ai n
mobile t e s t s were conducted a t the Texas Transportation I ns t i t ut e
(TTI) in order t o charact eri ze the surface on which vehicle t e s t s
were performed.
2 . 3 Methods Employed t o Conduct Vehicle Tests
2. 3. 7 Vehicle Sample. A sample consisting of two l i ght
and two heavy vehicles was selected f or f ul l - scal e t e s t measure-
ment. These vehicles were chosen t o represent l i ght truck and bus
( v a n ) cl asses and heavy truck and bus cl asses. In addition t o
being errployed in a program of f ul l - scal e t e s t s , the sample was
al so applied i n a s e t of laboratory measurements which provided the
design parameters needed t o simulate the four vehicle sel ect i ons.
The l i ght vehicle sel ect i ons were chosen with suf f i ci ent l y
high gvw rat i ngs t hat "LT Ser i es, " r at her than passenger car ser i es
t i r e s (as defined by the Tire & Rim Association) were provided as
ori gi nal equipment.
The selected heavy truck was chosen in the two-axle con-
fi gurat i on to provide a simplified system which was more compatible
with a program concentrating u p o n t i r e propert i es. The t e s t truck
was obtained by loan from the White Motor Corporation and was incor-
porated in the program as a "st r ai ght truck" r at her than as a
t r act or , although vehicles of t hi s type are comnonly employed in
ei t her r ol e. An "original equipment" t i r e f or the heavy truck was
sel ect ed, rat her than specified by the manufacturer, since most of
such vehicles are custom-assembled according t o the pur6haser' s
request (including t i r e designation) r at her t h a n according t o a
standard design.
The selected heavy bus was of the "i nt er ci t y" vari et y and
was leased from the Greyhound Corporation. This was, 1 i kewise,
obtained in a two-axle configuration t o permit simplified i sol a-
t i ons of the t i r e ' s rol e in vehicle behavior. Again, as with the
heavy t ruck, the "original equipment" t i r e was act ual l y a baseline
sel ect i on made somewhat a r bi t r a r i l y given t h a t the vehicle user,
rat her than the original manufacturer, determines which t i r e s shal l
be employed.
2.3.2 Vehi cl e Tes t Methods - Appar at us. L i g h t and heavy
t e s t v ehi c l es were subj ect ed t o a common s e t o f open- l oop t e s t
pr ocedur es i n v o l v i n g s t e e r i n g and b r a k i ng i n p u t s whi ch were appl i e d
t hr ough t h e a c t i o n o f p r e c i s i o n servomechani sms. Thus, each t e s t
v e h i c l e was o u t f i t t e d w i t h a complement o f t e s t appar at us whi ch
a p p l i e d c o n t r o l di spl acement s t o t h e s t e e r i n g s h a f t and br ake
pedal aut omat i c al l y . Ad d i t i o n a l l y , i n p u t and r esponse dat a were
gat her ed us i ng var i ous on- boar d t r ansducer s whose o u t p u t s i g n a l s were
t el emet er ed f o r r ec or di ng a t a gr ound s t a t i o n .
2.3.3 Vehi c l e Test Met hods. Vehi c l e t e s t s were conduct ed
a t t h e f a c i l i t i e s o f t h e Texas Tr a n s p o r t a t i o n I n s t i t u t e ( TTI ) i n
Col l ege St a t i o n , Texas, accor di ng t o open- l oop t e s t pr ocedur es
devel oped under t h e r esear ch c o n t r a c t o f Ref er ence [ I ] . Test
pr ocedur es encompassed t h r e e bas i c maneuvers : b r a k i n g i n a t u r n ,
l ane changi ng, and sever e, o r J - t u r n , s t e e r i n g . ( St r a i g h t - 1 i n e
br ak i ng t e s t s were a l s o conduct ed as a means o f meaur i ng br ake
syst em par amet er s. ) Each t e s t was perf ormed t hr ough t he appl i ca-
t i o n o f p r e c i s i o n s t e e r i n g and b r a k i n g i n p u t s whose f u n c t i o n a l f or m
r ender s a maneuver o f one o f t he t h r e e descr i bed t ypes.
I n t h i s st udy, as i n t h e pr ecedi ng work [ I ] , s t e e r i n g i n p u t
l e v e l s and t e s t v e l o c i t i e s were chosen so as t o a v o i d maneuver i ng
s e v e r i t i e s i n t h e v i c i n i t y o f each v e h i c l e ' s r o l l o v e r l j m i t . Thus
t h e dat a d e r i v i n g f r om f u l l - s c al e t e s t s r epr esent s, i n gener al ,
t h e s u b l i mi t behavi or o f t h e v ehi c l es exami ned.
The s e n s i t i v i t y o f v e h i c l e r esponse t o t i r e p r o p e r t i e s was
exami ned i n a 1 i mi t e d way usi ng t i r e s et s whi ch were s e l e c t e d f r om
f l a t - b e d t r a c t i o n t e s t r e s u l t s on t h e bas i s o f t h e i r a t y p i c a l
c or ner i ng behavi or .
The l i g h t van t e s t v e h i c l e was t e s t e d u s i n g i t s " OEM t i r e
s e l e c t i o n and an " ext r eme v a r i a t i o n " s e l e c t i o n compr i sed o f t h e
OE t i r e on t h e f r o n t a x l e and a s el ec t ed snow t i r e on t h e r e a r .
Test s were r un b o t h l oaded and empty on bot h d r y and wet a s p h a l t .
The heavy t r u c k was t e s t e d i n i t s OE t i r e c o n f i g u r a t i o n on
a wet s ur f ac e b u t s u f f e r e d a demol i shi ng r o l l o v e r wh i l e at t empt i ng
c e r t a i n set up r uns i n p r e p a r a t i o n f o r br ak i ng i n a t u r n on dr y
asphal t.
The pi ckup t r u c k was subj ect ed t o t e s t s w i t h f o u r t i r e
ar r angement s. I n a d d i t i o n t o v e h i c l e t e s t s i n v o l v i n g t he OE t i r e ,
t h e v e h i c l e was oper at ed w i t h t h r e e o t h e r t i r e arrangement s c ov er i ng
c o n s t r u c t i o n v a r i a t i o n s as we l l as a r i b t r ead/ snow t r e a d mi x.
2 . 4 The Si mul at i on o f Ti r e / Ve h i c l e Behavi or
Two mat hemat i cal s i mu l a t i ons o f t i r e l v e h i c l e sys tems were
empl oyed i n t h i s st udy. A maj or par amet r i c s e n s i t i v i t y st udy was
conduct ed us i ng t h e h y b r i d s i mu l a t i o n a t t h e Appl i ed Physi cs
Labor at or y o f Johns Hopki ns Un i v e r s i t y . Thi s comput er i zed t o o l ,
based upon a f i f t een- degr ee- of - f r eedom model , was a p p l i e d i n t h e
s i mu l a t i o n o f a1 1 f o u r s el ec t ed t e s t v e h i c l e s . Si mul at i ons r epr e-
s ent i ng a l a r g e v a r i e t y o f t i r e i n s t a l l a t i o n s were per f or med, f o l l o wi n g
mo d i f i c a t i o n s t o t h e APL program p e r mi t t i n g t h e e n t r y o f t i r e -
d e s c r i p t i v e dat a i n t a b u l a r f orm.
Anot her p o r t i o n o f t h e s t udy i n v o l v e d comput er i zed si mul a-
t i o n s empl oyed i n t h e HSRI "Phase 11" d i g i t a l s i mu l a t i o n o f heavy
t r u c k s and t r a c t o r - t r a i l er s. Th i s t h i rty-two-degree-gf:freedorn
model was a p p l i e d i n a s e t o f s t e e r i n g - o n l y c a l c u l a t i o n s aimed a t
exami ni ng t h e s e n s i t i v i t y o f t r u c k yaw s t a b i l i t y t o a v a r i e t y o f
v e h i c l e desi gn and l o a d i n g par amet er s. The l i mi t e d st udy o f yaw
s t a b i l i t y was prompt ed by t h e obs er v at i on t h a t a mi l d yaw di ver gency
had r e s u l t e d i n t h e i n a d v e r t e n t r o l l o v e r o f t h e heavy t r u c k d u r i n g
t e s t i n g .
The HSRI s i mul at i on, val i d a t e d d u r i n g pr evi ous e f f o r t s , was
exer ci sed f i r s t t o exami ne t h e e x t e n t t o whi ch t h e t e s t i n c i d e n t
may have been mer el y an i s o l a t e d anomal y, and, secondl y, t o i d e n t i f y
t h e pr i mar y v e h i c l e c o n f i g u r a t i o n par amet er s whi ch i n f l u e n c e t h e
d i r e c t i o n a l 1 i mi t s o f heavy t r u c k s . These c a l c u l a t i o n s were n o t
r e s t r i c t e d t o v a r i a t i o n s i n t i r e c h a r a c t e r i s t i c s , al one, b u t r a t h e r
i ncl uded t he maj or el ement s o f heavy t r u c k desi gn whi ch mi ght be
hypot hesi zed t o i mpi nge upon t he bal anci ng of t h e d i r e c t i o n a l
moment d u r i n g a J - t u r n t ype o f maneuver.
I n s o f a r as t he t e s t t r u c k was of t he t y pe c o mo n l y a p p l i e d
as t h e t r a c t o r o f a combi nat i on v ehi c l e, a d d i t i o n a l c a l c u l a t i o n s
were r un wi t h t h i s t r u c k coupl ed t o a s u i t a b l y matched s e mi - t r a i l e r
t o det er mi ne t h e g e n e r a l i t y o f t h e obser ved yaw r esponse anomal i es .
Resul t s o f t h i s s i mu l a t i o n e f f o r t c l a r i f y t h e obser vat i ons o f
mar gi nal t r u c k yaw s t a b i l i t y and f or m a bas i s f o r t he concl usi on
t h a t a f i n d i n g o f p o t e n t i a l s i g n i f i c a n c e t o t r a f f i c s a f e t y has been
di scover ed.
3.0 CONCLUSIONS' AND RECOMMENDATIONS
.This study has endeavored t o apply t he principles of
engineering mechanics in a concentrated examination of the heavy
truck and bus t i r e and i t s influence on the control behavior
of comnercial vehicles. A primary o u t p u t of t hi s study has been
the expansion of the data base defining the t r act i on properties
o f the comnercial vehicle t i r e . An equally important output,
however, i s the extension of the s t a t e of knowledge concerning
the mechanicdl properties of comnercial vehicles themselves--with
t hi s extension putting i nt o focus numerous features f or which an
analogy with the passenger car f a i l s . The f ai l ur e of various
"rul es of thumb" concerning control rel at i onshi ps based upon
passenger car experience and technology appears t o be a si gni -
f i cant general finding. Insofar as the great preponderance of
1 i t er at ur e t reat i ng the mechanics of motor vehicles i s based upon
passenger cars a nd upon t i r e s suited t o passenger car s, i t i s
relevant t o be concerned about the val i di t y of applying the s t a t e
of the a r t in passenger veh,icle dynamics t o trucks. Although
there should be no "surprises" in applying the basics of passenger
car analysis t o t rucks, the application appears t o become
increasingly tenuous as one endeavors t o simp1 i fy a commerci a1
t i r e- vehi cl e system according t o general iztitions t h a t ar i s e o u t
o f passenger car experience .
, +
A number of speci f i c findings a nd observations have derived
from t hi s study in support of t he foregoing general conclusion.
A1t h o u g h cert ai n of these findings are be1 ieved t o const i t ut e new
di scoveri es, others have been ci t ed in the t ext as confirming
previously pub1 ished r esul t s. The following conclusions summarize
speci f i c observations of the study a nd serve t o el uci dat e the
mechanical behavior of commercial vehicles and t hei r t i r e s .
3.1 Concl us i ons - Conc er ni ng. t h e ( d r y ) 1 ongi t u d i n a l t r a c t i o n
p r o p e r t i e s o f comner ci al ti r es:
'1)
The commerci al v e h i c l e t i r e e x h i b i t s a l a r g e f a l l -
o f f i n l o n g i t u d i n a l shear f o r c e c a p a b i l i t y a t val ues
o f l o n g i t u d i n a l s l i p beyond whi ch peak t r a c t i o n
p r e v a i l s . Thi s behavi or c o n t r a s t s mar kedl y w i t h
passenger c a r t i r e s whi ch t y p i c a l l y y i e l d a smal l
f a l l o f f , i f any, on d r y pavements.
2 )
The v ar i ous t r e a d and car cass c o n s t r u c t i o n s c u r r e n t l y
used i n commerci al v e h i c l e t i r e s e x h i b i t a br oad
r ange o f l o n g i t u d i n a l s t i f f n e s s (namel y, l o n g i t u -
d i n a l f o r c e p e r u n i t s l i p i n t h e domai n o f normal
b r a k i ng ) .
3 )
Peak br ak i ng t r a c t i o n a f f o r d e d by commerci al v e h i c l e
t i r e s i s comparabl e t o t h a t obt ai ned w i t h passenger
car s, al t hough " s l i d e " val ues a r e mar kedl y l ower .
4 )
Bot h peak and s l i d e val ues o f t h e b r a k i n q t r a c t i o n
o f comner ci al t i r e s nor mal i zed wi t h r es pec t t o
t h e v e r t i c a l l o a d a r e s i g n i f i c a n t l y s e n s i t i v e t o
t h e i mposed val ue o f v e r t i c a l l oad, i n v a r i a b l y
r educi ng t h e i r t r a c t i o n p o t e n t i a l as l o a d i hcr eases.
P
5)
Sl i d e val ues o f b r a k i n g t r a c t i o n r educe m&kedly
w i t h v e h i c l e v e l o c i t y , e s p e c i a l l y i n t he r ange f r om
0 t o 30 mph, whereas peak t r a c t i o n i s o n l y s l i g h t l y
i n f l u e n c e d by v e l o c i t y .
6)
The l u g o r cr oss- bar t y pe t r u c k t i r e t y p i c a l l y
e x h i b i t s l ower l e v e l s o f br ak i ng t r a c t i o n t han t i r e s
c onf i gur ed w i t h t h e r i b - t y p e t r e a d p a t t e r n . Thi s
c h a r a c t e r i s t i c o f l u g t i r e s p a r t i c u l a r l y i n f l u e n c e s
t h e b r a k i n g perf ormance o f heavy t r u c k s and t r a c t o r s
because o f t h e wi despr ead, year - ar ound use o f t hese
t i r e s on t h e d r i v e ax l es o f t hese v e h i c l e s .
7 )
The braking traction of t i r es employed on heavy
comnercial vehicles i s observed t o be remarkably
st ab1 e throughout extended t es t sequences whereas
1 imi ted measurements have shown 1 igh t truck t i r es
t o be rather sensitive t o test-induced wear.
Concerning (dry) l at eral t ract i on properties:
8)
A large range in values of cornering st i f f ness, Ca ,
i s available among the various tread and carcass
constructions represented in the comercial t i r e
market.
9) The C sensi t i vi t y t o vertical load i s perhaps the
a
most si gni fi cant l at eral t ract i on charact eri st i c
distinguishing the truck t i r e from t h e passenger car
t i r e . I n part i cul ar, the truck t i r e exhibits a s k e p
slope in i t s C versus FZ relationship in the
a
vi ci ni t y of rated l oa d thereby providing a si gni f i -
cant f i rst-order adjustment in cornering st i ffness
t o compensate for the placement of payload. Some
l i ght truck t i r es were found t o be so nearly l i near
in t hei r C versus FZ behavior (over the operating
a
range) t hat t he linear directional properties of
l i ght trucks out fi t t ed with comon t i r es on al l wheels
would be vi rt ual l y insensitive t o changes in payload.
10)
Nonnalized l at eral forces ( F / F ) generated a t high
Y Z
s l i p angles (above a = 8" ) decrease si gni fi cant l y
with increased vertical 1 oad.
11)
The sensi t i vi t y of l at eral traction t o velocity has
been observed t o be vi rt ual l y insignificant for a l l
t i r es examined in t hi s program.
12) Lateral force saturation of commercial t i r es has been
observed t o occur a t normalized traction levels com-
parable t o t hat obtained with passenger car t i r es .
Since most heavy trucks and buses will roll over prior
t o t i r e side force sat urat i on, however, t hi s property
i s of l i t t l e significance.
13)
The basic feat ures distinguishing the 1 at er al
t r act i on properties of radial versus bias and r i b
versus lug constructions ar e, in general, comon
t o both truck and car t i r e s . For example, charac-
t e r i s t i c s typifying radial t i r e s used on motor cars
ar e al so generally seen in l at er al t r act i on measure-
ments of heavy truck r adi al s. The r el at i vel y lower
values of cornering s t i f f nes s possessed by lug-type
t i r e s i s , probably, of great er significance t o the
heavy truck because of the tendency t o use them
almost exclusively on driving ( r e a r ) axl es.
14)
Test-induced shoulder wear si gni f i cant l y influences
the l at er al t r act i on generated by comnercial t i res
and thus poses a si gni f i cant confounding influence
in t he i nt er pr et at i on of experimental data.
15)
The dependency of cornering s t i f f nes s on i nf l at i on
pressure i s a property distinguishing commercial
t i r e s from passenger car t i r e s . Whereas decreased
i nf l at i on pressure t ypi cal l y reduces the cornering
s t i f f nes s of the passenger car t i r e , the commercial
t i r e (most si gni f i cant l y, the l i ght truck t i r e ) does
not exhi bi t a comparable systematic behavior. Thus,
manufacturer' s recomnendations f or i nf l at i on pressure
di f f er ent i al s between axles h o l d the potential f or
randomly influencing vehicle di rect i onal properties
depending upon the pol ar i t y and the strength of the
sensi t i vi t y of i nst al 1 ed-t i re cornering s t i f f nes s t o
changes in i nf l at i on pressure.
Concerning the mechanics of commercial vehicles :
16)
The "t ypi cal " heavy truck has been found t o be
capable of e l i c i t i ng a yaw i ns t abi l i t y while i ni t i a t -
ing a turn whose severi t y i s much lower than t hat
I
16
needed t o achieve .l imi t response of passenger cars.
Further, i t i s significant t h a t a marked degrada-
tion in directional control 1 abi 1 i ty can accrue we1 1
in advance of the maneuver severity required for
comnercial vehicle rollover. A corollary t o these
observations i s t h a t truck yaw i nst abi l i t y can be
precipitated while t i r es are operating a t rel at i vel y
low s l i p angles. I n contrast, passenger cars (which
are spinout-1 imi t e d) generally destabilize as a con-
sequence of side force saturation (l arge s l i p angles)
occurring a t the rear t i r es .
17)
A primary mechanism serving t o aggravate truck yaw
st abi l i t y i s the rear-biased distribution of suspen-
sion roll st i ffness. Further, typical truck and
t ract or frames are quite compliant in t hei r transmission
of roll moments. Thus, the high roll st i ffness in-
corporated into rear suspensions i s seen as a design
necessity given the need t o react the rear-biased
roll moments imposed by straight-truck payloads and
by semi t r ai 1 ers.
18)
The use of tandem rear axles tends t o markedly improve
the directional st abi l i ty of ful ly-loaded trucks and
#
t ract ors.
19)
The i nst al l at i on of differing t i r e constructions a t
front and rear axles has been seen t o provide a power-
ful mechanism for influencing the directional behavior
of 1 ight and heavy trucks. The classical ly-degrading
mixes (radial frontlbias rear, and/or ri b-tread front/
lug rear) can serve t o destabilize vehicles which, by
di nt of unfavorable payload placement a nd roll s t i f f -
ness di st ri but i on, tend t o be otherwise marginal ly
stable in the small disturbance regime. This (perhaps
unsurprising) finding is particularly noteworthy since
i t i s the practice of heavy truck manufacturers t o
provide vehicles with a great vari et y of t i r e
combinations as requested by t he purchaser.
20)
The di rect i onal behavior of heavy trucks and t r act or s
i s markedly sensi t i ve t o the longitudinal as we11 as
ver t i cal placement of payload (or f i f t h wheel king-
pi n).
Insofar as many road t r act or s ar e out f i t t ed
w i t h so-called "sl i der " (movable) f i f t h wheels, t he
si gni fi cance of kingpin location t o t r act or yaw
st abi l i t y deserves special consideration.
21)
The addition of payload t o an i nt er ci t y bus, a1 t h o u g h
cl ear l y more constrained in placement t h a n truck pay-
loads, gener al l j increases the understeer of the bus
because of the t ypi cal l y rearward mass cent er location
of an unloaded bus with i t s engine located a t the r ear .
Overall, the commercial t i r e by di nt of i t s tread compounding,
carcass const ruct i on, uni t loading, a nd operating load range has
been found t o exhi bi t a number of unique char act er i st i cs which
impact di r ect l y upon truck and bus control behavior. The com-
mercial vehicle, and most notably, the heavy truck a nd t r a c t or ,
have been found t o exhi bi t cer t ai n unusual control char act er i st i cs
which deri ve, in large par t , from various f eat ur es unique t o the
construction and usage of such vehicles.
I
I
3 . 2 Recommends t i ons
I t would appear t h a t the f i r s t item of follow-up t o t hi s
study should be an i nvest i gat i on of t he si gni fi cance of the
finding concerning the marginal yaw s t a bi l i t y of heavy trucks
and t r act or - t r ai l er s . Signi f i cance should be evaluated a1 ong
two f r ont s, one s c i e nt i f i c - ut i l i z i ng the engineering and psycho-
physical di sci pl i nes t o study the vehicle control problem
directly---and the ot her empi r i c a l - s t udyi ng the evidence afforded
by the accident record. Primary questions t o be asked in the
s c i e nt i f i c pursui t ar e:
a )
To what e x t e n t can t he p r o f e s s i o n a l t r u c k d r i v e r
c o n t r o l a d i r e c t i o n a l l y uns t abl e t r u c k o r t r a c t o r -
t r a i l e r , gi v en t h a t t h e p o s i t i v e ex ponent i al s
d e f i n i n g t h e di v er genc i es a r e l i k e l y t o be r a t h e r
smal l ?
b)
Ar e t h e r e s p e c i f i c maneuver i ng c o n d i t i o n s , such as
encount er i ng c i r c u l a r f r eeway e x i t ramps a t e l e v a t e d
v e l o c i t i e s , whi ch r ender t h e d r i v e r ' s s t a b i 1 i z a t i o n
t as k v i r t u a l l y i nsur mount abl e?
c )
What l e v e l o f i mprovement i n t h e d i r e c t i o n a l
s t a b i l i t y o f t r u c k s w i l l be s i g n i f i c a n t w i t h r e s p e c t
t o d r i v e r a b i l i t y t o c o n t r o l v e h i c l e mot i ons?
An e mp i r i c a l st udy o f t r u c k a c c i d e n t dat a may we l l pr ove
unenl i ght eni ng u n t i l such t i me as a c c i d e n t evi dence can be
gat her ed t o i n c l u d e t h e r e l e v a n t i n f o r ma t i o n . I n p a r t i c u l a r . ,
s i n c e l o s s o f c o n t r o l i n a yaw di ver gency i mp l i e s v e h i c l e r o l l -
over i n t h e case o f a s t r a i g h t t r u c k , and j a c k k n i f e , p o s s i b l y
f o l l o we d by r o l l o v e r , i n t h e case o f a t r a c t o r - t r a i l e r , t h e
di ver gency i n c i d e n t may we l l be masked by t h e d i s t r a c t i n g evi dence
associ at ed w i t h t h e r o l l o v e r o f a heavy v e h i c l e . Fu r t h e r , s i n c e
heavy v e h i c l e s p i n o u t can be p r e c i p i t a t e d wi t h o u t t i r e s encount er i ng
h i g h val ues o f l a t e r a l s l i p , t i r e marks may n o t be e v i d e n t o r
v i s i b l e .
I t woul d seem t h a t t h e ac c i dent i n v e s t i g a t i o n comnuni t y
woul d be we1 1 advi sed, never t hel ess, t o begi n c ons i der i ng t r u c k
and t r a c t o r - t r a i l e r l o s s o f c o n t r o l acci dent s w i t h t h e r ec ogni -
t i o n t h a t yaw di ver gency can, i ndeed, pr ecede r o l l o v e r . I t shoul d
be f u r t h e r emphasi zed t h a t t h e t r a d i t i o n a l n o t i o n t h a t j a c k k n i f i n g
accr ues o n l y dur i ng heavy b r a k i n g i s n o t a comprehensi ve r u l e .
From a c a u s a l i t y p o i n t of vi ew, i t shoul d be made c l e a r t h a t a
heavy v e h i c l e oper at or may have encount er ed t h e c hal l enge o f yaw
s t a b i l i z a t i o n p r i o r t o any v a r i e t y o f f i n a l i mpact , r o l l o v e r , o r
r a n - o f f - r o a d consequences.
Going beyond the matter of f ur t her yaw s t a bi l i t y i nvest i -
gat i ons, i t appears t hat much remains t o be learned a b o u t the
mechanics of motor trucks. A broad study of the imp1 i cat i ons of
frame compliance would serve t o est abl i sh the extent t o which
r i g i d body models of heavy vehicles may be inadequate. There
a1 so renain numerous kinematic and compl iance properties of truck
st eer i ng a nd suspension systems which have not been adequately
examined, I n addition, the i ner t i al properties associated with
many of the comnon truck body configurations have n o t been formally
evaluated. Overall, there i s a need t o obt ai n, f or heavy t rucks,
a level of understanding of common control properties such as
obtains f or passenger car s, thereby providing a sol i d and cornpre-
hensive basis u p o n which t o found i nvest i gat i ons of speci f i c
i nt er es t .
With regard t o ar t i cul at ed vehi cl es, one speci f i c item seems
relevant t o the foregoing discussions. By way of extension t o
the recommended study of frame compl iance ef f ect s , the torsional
compliance of semi -t rai l ers i s a si mi l arl y crucial item i nsofar as
i t determines the di st r i but i on of t r a i l e r r ol l moment reaction
between t r act or suspensions a nd t r a i l e r suspensions ( a nd thus
between the respective t i r e s e t s ) . An associated inventory of
r ol l st i f f nesses afforded by common t r a i 1 e r suspensi oni should
accompany any study of the ef f ect s of t r a i l e r frame compliance.
Additionally, the ar t i cul at ed comnercial vehicle i s seen as a con-
fi gurat i on tendi ng , in general , t o f ur t her exacerbate whatever
control anomalies exi s t in s t r ai ght trucks. Accordingly, st udi es
of ar t i cul ated vehicle control behavior are recommended as logical
extensions t o research programs which have ef f ect i vel y addressed
and resolved the mysteries of the unit truck.
In the speci f i c area of t i r e mechanics, the most s i gni f i -
cant unresolved item involves the combined s l i p behavior of
commercial vehicle t i r e s . This complex regime of t r act i on
behavior remains vi r t ual l y unexplored. In the authors ' view, no
serious analyses and predictions of braki ng-in-a-turn response
of comnercial vehicles can be ent ert ai ned unt i l these data are
avai l abl e.
Additionally, there i s a need t o expand the dry surface
measures of longitudinal and l at er al t r act i on of commercial t i r e s
t o include measurements on wetted and snow-covered pavements.
Although some limited measurements of heavy truck t i r e s have been
made on wet pavements [ 3 ] , these experiments should be extended
t o const i t ut e a general inventory of wet t r act i on produced by
comnercial t i r e s employed in the U.S.
Also, t he prevalent usage of wheel s l i p control systems on
heavy trucks since promulgation of FMVSS 121 suggests a need t o
examine the influence of dynamically varying longitudinal s l i p
on t ract i on behavior. While such i nvest i gat i on might concentrate
i ni t i a l l y upon the rel at i onshi p between s l i p dynamics and longi-
tudinal t r act i on, the influence of s l i p dynamics on t r act i on
response in combined braking and cornering seems a1 so pert i nent
f or study.
Observations of the non-classi cal sensi t i vi t y of cornering
st i f f ness t o i nf l at i on pressure on many l i ght and heavy truck
t i r e s suggests t h a t follow-up i nvest i gat i ons ar e in order t o
evaluate t he control significance of manufacturer recommendations
f or an i nf l at i on pressure bias. While current recorrunendati ons of
i nf l at i on pressure bias may be prompted by considerations of load-
carrying capacity rat her than vehicle di rect i onal response t o
st eer i ng, t he dest abi l i zi ng ef f ect of comonly recomended biases
suggests t hat the recomended practices deserve serious scrut i ny.
Wi t h respect t o the t e s t practices which may be employed
in future f ul l - scal e experiments conducted with commercial vehi cl es,
cert ai n recomnendat i ons are prompted by the experience obtained
in t hi s study. Fi r s t l y, i t would appear wise t hat no f ul l - scal e
t est of a heavy vehicle proceed wi thout adequate rol l -prot ect i ve
st ruct ures deployed. Further, in t es t s conducted t o exami ne
directional behavior a t l at er al acceleration l evel s which even
s l i ght l y exceed the normal maneuveri ng range, i t i s recommended
t h a t experiments be conducted ei t her in an unmanned (remotely
cont rol l ed) mode or i n a manual mode with a human operator who
i s sui t abl y protected using rollover preventing hardware.
Reflecting upon passenger car experience, the ant i - r ol l over out-
rigger i s an i ndi spensi bl e component in severe maneuvering
studies--but only when the outrigger design can be confidently
demonstrated t o provide a conservative 1 eve1 of protection.
While such devices have been reported in st udi es investigating
the dynamics of heavy trucks [ 4 ] , the adequate fastening of such
hardware t o heavy truck frame r a i l s i s n o t al t oget her st r ai ght -
forward.
An overall assessnent of the technology of truck dynamic
prediction would suggest t h a t f ul l - scal e t est i ng should proceed
cautiously when t es t s ar e in order a t a l l . The general f ami l i ar i -
zation of the researcher with a new regime or mode of maneuvering,
however, should be i ni t i at ed (before t est i ng) using computerized
simul ation and laboratory measurement of mechanical parameters.
A t r ul y general view of the foregoing st udy' s potential f or
impacting programs in truck and bus safet y suggests t hat we
recognize the user-dominated character of the commercial vehicle
system. To the extent t hat heavy vehicles, especi al l y trucks and
t r act or s, ar e largely specified by t hei r purchaser, i t would appear
t hat cert ai n safet y advisory information must ultimately be
directed a t "t he t rucker. " Accordingly, recommended practices
concerning t i r e i nst al 1 at i on, pay1 oad placement, f i f t h wheel
l ocat i on, e t c . , must be ef f ect i vel y presented t o the professional
driving comnuni ty and t o the associated f l eet owners. Correspond-
ingly, i t would appear t h a t the r esul t s of broadened research
i nt o t he mechanical behavior of trucks as derives from vehicle
design features ( i . e . , suspensions, frames, st eeri ng systems,
e t c . ) should be ef f ect i vel y disseminated to the truck engineering
comnunity. The truck manufacturer could then be expected t o
r at i onal l y constrain the avai l abi l i t y of those assembly options
( or combinations of options) which ar e found to yi el d undesi rable
control qua1 i ty.
Whi l e r ul emaki ng i n t he ar ea o f comner ci al v ehi c l e handl i ng
may be a f acet of NHTSA' s o v e r a l l c har t er , i t i s recommended t h a t
near - t er n i mprovenent s i n heavy v ehi c l e saf et y may we l l be e f f e c t e d
t hr ough i nf or mat i on i n i t i a t i v e s t h a t b u i l d upon r ec ent r esear ch
f i ndi ngs such as t hose devel oped i n t h i s p a r t i c u l a r st udy.
4.0 REFERENCES
1. Wei r , D.H., e t a l . , Anal y s i s o f Tr uck and Bus Handl i ng,
F i nal Repor t , Con t r a c t DOT-HS-242-2-421, June 1974.
2. Rol and, R. D. , Ri ce, R. S. , and De l l ' Ami co, F. , The
I n f l u e n c e o f T i r e Pr o p e r t i e s on Passenger Vehi c l e
Handl i ng, Fi n a l Repor t , Cont r ac t DOT-HS-053-3-727,
June 1974.
3. Di j k s , A, , "Wet Sk i d Resi st ance o f Car and Tr uck Ti r es , "
T i r e Sci ence & Technol ogy, TSTCA, Vol . 2, No. 2, May 1974,
---
pp. 102-116.
4. St r andber g, L. , Nar dst r om, O., and Nordrnark, S., " Saf et y
Probl ems i n Commerci al Vehi cl e Handl i ng ," Pr oceedi ngs o f
a Symposium on Commercial Vehi c l e Br ak i ng and Handl i ng,
Uni v. o f Mi chi gan, May 5-7, 1975, pp. 463-528.