KINEMATIC STUDY OF THE FOUR-WHEELED STEERING SYSTEM

Abstract

Introduction.Since the second half of the 20th century the safety in the automotive industry has been bringing to the forefront. Therefore, researches pay special attention to stability and controllability. These properties increase in a variety of ways, one of which is using of the four-wheel steering system (4WS). Foreign literature presents technical solutions on the example of sport cars and some Japanese models.Materials and methods.The paper provided an analysis of the four-wheeled steering passenger car’s kinematics. The authors considered the turning geometry with positive and negative steering angles of rear axle, on the basis of which the researches proposed calculation formulas for determining the turning radius of the car and the angles of the wheels’ rotation. The kinematic relations used in designing a steering system with four steered wheels.Results.The authors on the example of Volkswagen Polo calculated the turning radius and controllability depending on the steering wheels’ angles of the front and rear axles. As a result, the paper demonstrated the change in parameters and the effect on the safety and handling of the vehicle. The authors also highlighted the advantages of using a four-wheeled steering system.