Tire Temperature Measurements for Validation of a New Rolling Resistance Model

Abstract

Rolling resistance of inflated tires contributes greatly to the total load and fuel consumption of heavy vehicles. Correct modeling of rolling resistance is hence very important in order to be able to predict fuel consumption and emissions by computer simulations.Traditional models for rolling resistance are normally only valid under steady state conditions. A new model with improved transient characteristics has been derived in previous work. In this work the temperature dependent part of the adopted model is evaluated by experiments on a heavy truck tire. The measurements have been carried out on both a chassis dynamometer as well as on a truck in actual driving. The temperature has been measured on several positions inside the tire and in the encapsulated air. The results show very good repeatability indicating that tire temperature is an appropriate input to the model. The temperature rise due to a change in velocity shows an exponential relation to time, which corresponds to the new model. The study has been carried out for a number of different velocities and vertical loads. The results show that the temperature model can accurately capture both load and speed dependence. The study clearly shows that the model is able to reproduce tire temperatures measured on a truck driving on real roads with very good accuracy.