Tire Inflation Research Articles

Laboratory experimental study of tire tractive performance on soft soil: Towing mode, traction mode, and multi-pass effect

Tire tractive performance, soil behavior under the traffic, and multi-pass effect are among the key topics in the research of vehicle off-road dynamics. As an extension of the study (He et al., 2019a), this paper documents the testing of a tire moving on soft soil in the traction mode or towing mode, with a single pass or multiple passes, and presents the testing results mainly from the aspects of tire tractive performance parameters, soil behavior parameters, and multi-pass effect on these parameters. The influence of tire inflation pressure, initial soil compaction, tire normal load, or the number of passes on the test data has been analyzed; for some of the tests, the analysis was completed statistically. A multi-pass effect phenomenon, different from any phenomenon recorded in the available existing literature, was discovered and related to the ripple formation and soil failure. The research results of this paper can be considered groundwork for tire off-road dynamics and the development of traction controllers for vehicles on soft soil.

Impact on the Operation of a Forwarder with the Wheeled, Tracked-Wheel or Tracked Chassis on the Soil Surface

The impact of a small forwarder with the wheeled chassis, tracked-wheel chassis, and tracked chassis traveling on the soil profile was studied. The three chassis types were assessed for the influence of the loading of forwarder cargo space and the degree of tire inflation on induced specific and actual pressures of tires on the soil surface. Penetrometric resistances of soil profile and rut depths in the forwarder driving track were measured. The effect of a layer of logging residues in the forwarder driving track on the size of induced actual pressures was determined. The practice of determining the impact of forest machines on the soil surface by means of a specific tire pressure does not have a full informative value. In the forwarder wheeled chassis, maximum values of actual pressures exceeded specific pressures established numerically by up to 203%. Average values of actual pressures could be reduced by 45% by reducing the pressure of tire inflation, by 70% with the use of tracks, or by 49% by traveling on the layer of logging residues. As compared with the wheeled chassis type, the tracked type of the forwarder chassis induced actual pressures to lower by 81% and the rut depth after ten forwarder passes was smaller by 50%.

An estimation algorithm for tire wear using intelligent tire concept

Real-time monitoring of tire wear is a hot spot in the research of automobile tires, and it has a great significance to ensure the safety of automobile driving. A tire wear estimation algorithm was proposed based on the relevant knowledge of finite element modal analysis theory and the concept of intelligent tires in this paper. First, the finite element model of the 205/55/R16 radial tire was established through the ABAQUS software, then the finite element method was used to simulate and analyze the influence of tire inflation pressure, load, tire wear, and speed on the tire radial vibration frequency. The simulation results show that inflation pressure and tire wear shows an upward trend with the increase of the vibration frequency of each order in the tire radial direction, and load and speed increase with what increases of tire radial increase frequency. Based on simulation analysis data, combined with the relationship between tire inflation pressure, load, tire wear, speed, and radial vibration frequency, a neural network-based tire wear estimation algorithm is proposed. The estimate results show that the predicted wear curve and the actual wear curve have a higher degree of overlap, the average error is 0.0874 mm, and the average error percentage is 2.78%, Thus, a feasible tire wear estimation algorithm is proposed.

Graph-Based Proprioceptive Localization Using a Discrete Heading-Length Feature Sequence Matching Approach

Proprioceptive localization refers to a new class of robot egocentric localization methods that do not rely on the perception and recognition of external landmarks. These methods are naturally immune to bad weather, poor lighting conditions, or other extreme environmental conditions that may hinder exteroceptive sensors such as a camera or a laser ranger finder. These methods depend on proprioceptive sensors such as inertial measurement units and/or wheel encoders. Assisted by magnetoreception, the sensors can provide a rudimentary estimation of vehicle trajectory which is used to query a prior known map to obtain location. Named as graph-based proprioceptive localization, we provide a low cost fallback solution for localization under challenging environmental conditions. As a robot/vehicle travels, we extract a sequence of heading-length values for straight segments from the trajectory and match the sequence with a preprocessed heading-length graph (HLG) abstracted from the prior known map to localize the robot under a graph-matching approach. Using the information from HLG, our location alignment and verification module compensates for trajectory drift, wheel slip, or tire inflation level. We have implemented our algorithm and tested it in both simulated and physical experiments. The algorithm runs successfully in finding robot location continuously and achieves localization accurate at the level that the prior map allows (less than 10 m).

Study & Analysis of Tire Wear Characteristics of TATA LPO 1618

The tires are a key sub-system of vehicles that have a big responsibility in comfort, fuel consumption and traffic safety. As we know that current tires are just passive rubber elements which do not contribute actively to improve the driving experience or the vehicle safety. During the driving of vehicle, we get few and unsatisfied information from tires. Therefore, this is the main reason to develop an intelligent tire, which could provide useful information to other systems and become an active safety system. In the Tata (LPO 1618) Vehicle an experimental tire strain-based system is used to measure tire tread deformation by means of various aids. Tests under different working conditions such as vertical load or slip angle considering a certain camber angle have been carried out using an indoor tire test (Slightly). By this project and research work, we are trying to introduce an automated tire monitoring and inflation system, which can ensure adequate tire pressure to better accommodate handling requirements. In this paper the numerical method for introducing the prediction tire where account has been introduced to reduce break down time.

Tyre inflation pressure effects on the transient handling performance of a multipurpose protected vehicle

Tyre inflation pressure effects on the transient handling performance of a multipurpose protected vehicle

The Analysis of Stone Trapping in Tire Tread for Various Road Conditions

A tire tends to trap stones in its tread pattern when the vehicle is on a move and this might affects the tire balance due to uneven tread wear of tread portion. The study aims to simulate stone trapping performance under various tire tread patterns and road conditions as well as assessing the performance of tires with stones trapped. The stone trapping phenomena on different tire tread pattern were analyzed under dry and wet road conditions. The tire models chosen were the symmetrical tire, asymmetrical tire, and directional tire. The model of these tires, stone and a flat road surface were created using SolidWorks and Fusion360 software and the static structural simulation is performed by using finite element analysis method. Tire inflation analysis and steady state rolling analysis were conducted to evaluate three parameters: total deformation, Von-Mises stress and equivalent elastic strain of the tires. It found that all three parameters are higher when stone trapped in tire for all tread pattern types. Symmetrical tread pattern provides the least wear and tear since it has the lowest increment of maximum equivalent elastic strain in both road conditions. Stone trapping in tire grooves would impact on the lifespan of the tire.

Everything for sport, everything for victory

The article tells about "KAMAZ-master" – one of the most famous teams in world motorsport. This is perhaps the only factory team in Russia that successfully represents our country in the world rally-raids. She is a multiple winner and 17-time winner of the Dakar Super Marathon. Keywords motorsport; truck; sport team; modernization; tire inflation system; tool

Tyre inflation pressure effects on the transient handling performance of a multipurpose protected vehicle

Tyre inflation pressure effects on the transient handling performance of a multipurpose protected vehicle

Tractor Tractive Performance Modelling During Ploughing Operation on a Tropical <i>Alfisol</i>: An R Software Packages Approach

Modern agriculture relies heavily on tractor applications for various operations. Field performance output from this vital machinery influences the overall production process and system efficiency. Tractor tractive performance modelling involves complex analyzes using terramechanics techniques. This study investigated the application of R software packages to model tractor tractive performance during ploughing operations on a tropical alfisol. The research farm at the National Centre for Agricultural Mechanization (NCAM) was used for the field experiment. The experimental design was a nested-factorial under a Randomized Complete Block Design having three replications. The input factors were tractor power size, T, (60, 65 and 70 hp); tyre inflation pressure, P, (83, 124 and 165 kPa); implement configuration, I, (2 and 3 bottoms disc plough); and operational speed, S, (6.31, 7.90, 9.47, 11.05, and 12.63 km/h). Standard procedures were followed to obtain the measured parameters which were statistically analyzed using the R software package. Correlation analysis and analysis of variance (ANOVA) of the measured parameters at 5% significance level were established. Multiple linear regression was used to develop the model which was validated using the 10-fold cross-validation method. The results obtained show a positive correlation of the measured variables with towing force except for the shear stress and cone index. Input factors and their interactions have a significant effect on tractive performance except for T*S, I*S, P*T*I, P*T*S, and T*I*S. The final developed model has seven variables for predicting towing force with a 6.5 percentage error and an average of 0.4735 cross validation root mean square error. The model quality of fit achieved an R2Adj = 0.8754 which satisfactorily described the response variable.

Matric suction effect on distribution of stresses caused by vehicle wheels on a bare silty sand

-Soil compaction in cropping systems, caused by the external pressure of machinery, creates impermeable layers that restrict water and nutrient cycles reducing agricultural production. To evaluate the matric suction effects on distribution with depth of stresses in a soil, caused by the use of agricultural machinery, Jet Fill tensiometers were installed at two different depths (i.e. 0.15 m, 0.30 m) in a soil profile constituted by silty sand with gravel (SM); to register the increments on subsoil vertical stresses, two miniaturized load cells (i.e. 16. 5 mm in diameter) were installed in a horizontal position under the centre line of the vehicle wheels’ path, at approximately 0.15 m and 0.30 m depth. Care was taken to calibrate the load cells in field conditions. A vehicle was made to pass over the soil surface, at a speed less than 5 km/h; the tyre inflation pressure applied on wheel was 380 kPa. Response of load cells to vehicle loading was evaluated at different average matric suction measured on soil profile. Finally, measured stresses have been compared with values obtained by applying well-known elastic theoretical methods used to assess stresses applied by tyres on bare soils. The corresponding results show that the increment of vertical stresses decreases as matric suction increases, and a good correlation between measurements and simulations of the increment on subsoil vertical stress.

Pressure gauge accuracy and tire maintenance awareness among vehicle owners in Birnin Kebbi, Nigeria

Aside from human factors, tire blowouts and other tire imperfections are major contributors to the persistently high road accident rate. While tire imperfections are categorized as part of the mechanical factors affecting road accident, the tire maintenance personnel and the vehicle owners' human behavior plays a significant role in ensuring that accidents due to tire imperfections are minimized. Therefore, this study aims to determine the accuracy of the pressure gauges used by tire maintenance personnel, popularly called vulcanizers in Nigeria, and to determine the level of awareness of vehicle owners about the basic information that affects the safe use of tires on the road. The study consists of two stages. The first stage investigates the accuracy of the pressure gauges used by twenty vulcanizers in four different districts in Birnin Kebbi, the northwestern part of Nigeria. The second stage was an online survey regarding the tire maintenance behavior of 87 participants, who were formally educated from Diploma to Ph.D. level. The study's findings showed that about 25% of the vulcanizers do not use pressure gauges to measure air pressure during tire inflation, and less than 17% of the readings taken were accurate. Yet about 60% of the respondents believe that vulcanizers' pressure gauges are reliable and less than 30% of the respondents know that the expiring date of tires is four years in Nigeria. Therefore, there is an urgent need for proper awareness about tire usage and maintenance among the general population. It would also be appropriate to include such basic road safety information in the school curriculum at all levels.

Analysis of Contact Stresses and Rolling Resistance of Truck-Bus Tyres under Different Working Conditions

In this work, to analyse the changing characteristics of contact stresses in the tyre–pavement interface and the functional relationship between rolling resistance and the working conditions of truck-bus tyres, a three-dimensional tyre–pavement model is established and used to predict the distribution of contact stresses and rolling resistance under different working conditions of the tyre, comprising various tyre loads, inflation pressures, and velocities. Results show that the magnitude relationship between transverse and longitudinal contact stresses is related to rolling conditions, and overload and low tyre pressure are important contributors to the wear of the tyre shoulder. In addition, the proposed exponential equation presents a method that can be used to forecast rolling resistance related to the working conditions of the truck-bus tyre, and a similar method can be used to predict the rolling resistances of other types of tyres.

OPERATIONAL PERFORMANCE OF AN AGRICULTURAL TRACTOR UNDER DIFFERENT TIRE INFLATION PRESSURES IN THE SUBSOILING OPERATION

For the agricultural tractor's best performance, it must be correctly adapted to the job. Among other factors, the adequacy of tire inflation pressure is one of the most important and may influence the operation's efficiency and productivity. This study aimed to evaluate an agricultural tractor's operational performance with different tire inflation pressures in the subsoiling operation. The study was carried out in an experimental area of the Agricultural Machinery and Mechanization Laboratory of the experimental farm “Água Limpa,” belonging to the University of Brasília. The experimental design used was in randomized blocks with the following values, 206.8 kPa (30 psi), 137.9 kPa (20 psi), and 68.9 kPa (10 psi), of inflation pressure for agricultural tractor tires. The mechanized set used was a tractor model TM7020 2WD MFWD pulling a subsoiler with five shanks, SPCR model, in a Latossolo Vermelho-Amarelo. The higher inflation pressure resulted in greater slippage, advance, hourly fuel consumption, and lower speed and operational field capacity.

Application of Computer Vision for Estimation of Moving Vehicle Weight

Heavy vehicle weights need to be closely monitored for preventing fatigue-induced deterioration and critical fractures to highway infrastructure, among many other purposes, but development of a cost-effective weigh-in-motion (WIM) system remains challenging. This paper describes the creation and experimental validations of a computer vision-based non-contact WIM system. The underlining physics is that the force exerted by each tire onto the road is the product of the tire-road contact pressure and contact area. Computer vision is applied (1) to measure the tire deformation parameters so that the tire-roadway contact area can be accurately estimated; and (2) to recognize the marking texts on the tire sidewall so that the manufacturer-recommended tire inflation pressure can be found. In this research, a computer vision system is developed, which is comprised of a camera and computer vision software for measuring tire deformation parameters and recognizing the tire sidewall markings from images of individual tires of a moving vehicle. Computer vision techniques such as edge detection and optical character recognition are applied to enhance the measurement and recognition accuracy. Field experiments were conducted on fully loaded or empty concrete trucks and the truck weights estimated by this novel computer vision-based non-contact WIM system agreed well with the curb weights verified by static weighing. This research has demonstrated a novel application of the computer vision technology to solve a challenging vehicle WIM problem. Requiring no sensor installation on the roadway or the vehicle, this cost-effective non-contact computer vision system has demonstrated a great potential to be implemented.

Modelling of perpetual pavement performance subjected to varying European three-dimensional truck tire loading

There have been developments to the set-up of trucks in the European Union (EU). A significant development for pavement performance has been the widespread adoption of super single tires for truck trailer axles. This is in contrast to the US that has continued with dual tires for truck trailer axles. These EU trucks have particular operating conditions in terms of tire types, axle loading and inflation pressure. The three tire types used on a EU truck were modelled using finite element analysis for varying inflation pressures and varying axle loading. These loads were represented in the modelling as three dimensional (3-D) contact pressures with vertical, transverse and longitudinal contact pressure components. These loads were modelled as moving loads on a perpetual pavement with a visco-elastic surface course to understand the influence of these loads on the performance of the pavement. The pavement design and the material properties are from the Long Term Pavement Performance Program (LTPP). Surface cracking, top down cracking, bottom up cracking and subgrade rutting were assessed using key strains and the Mechanistic-Empirical Pavement Design Guide (MEPDG) predictive equations for the different loading combinations. It was found that there was variability in pavement performance for the different loading combinations with the steering axle giving lower performance than the drive axle for surface and top down cracking. The super single trailer tire gave the lowest performance across all the distress types. This means more than just axle loading is required to assess the distress caused by axles.

Tire and soil effects on power loss: Measurement and comparison with finite element model results

In the present study, the effect of vertical load, tire inflation pressure and soil moisture content on power loss in tire under controlled soil bin conditions were investigated. Also a finite element model of tire-soil interaction in order to achieve a suitable model for predicting power loss in tire was created. Increasing the vertical load on the tire had a noteworthy impact on increasing the tire contact volume with the soil, reducing the percentage of slip, and increasing the rolling resistance; although, reducing the load on the tire had the opposite effect. At a constant inflation pressure, by increasing the vertical load on the tire, the amount of power loss due to the rolling resistance and the total power loss in the tire increased. Increase in soil moisture content increased the power loss caused by slip. Increasing the inflation pressure at a constant vertical load, also increasing the soil moisture content, led to an increase in the power loss caused by rolling resistance, and increase total power loss. The obtained error for estimating power loss of rolling resistance and total power loss was satisfactory and confirmed the acceptability of the model for power loss estimation.

Rolling resistance prediction of off-road tire using advanced simulation and analytical techniques

This paper focuses on developing a relationship between the rolling resistance coefficient of an off-road truck tire running over different terrains and at various operating conditions. The various operating conditions include tire speed, vertical load, and inflation pressure. The different terrains include dry and moist sand, flooded surface, snow, dense sand, clayey soil, and sandy loam with moisture. The off-road truck tire size 315/80R22.5 is modeled and validated using the finite element analysis technique, while the terrains are modeled and calibrated using smoothed-particle hydrodynamics technique. Artificial neural network and genetic algorithm (GA) are then used to develop a relationship between the rolling resistance coefficient and the terrains and operating conditions. The results of both algorithms are compared to the simulation results in terms of R-square goodness of fit and the mean squared error. Finally, a numerical equation is presented that determines the rolling resistance coefficient as a function of the terrains parameters and the operating conditions. It was found that both techniques provide a suitable solution, however, the GA provides an explicit equation.

Secondary tire inflation system for blown out tire

Automobile is one of the greatest inventions of mankind which helps people to migrate from one place to another in a short span of time with comfort. In the last few decades, many innovative technologies have been emerging. One such technology is Self Tire Inflation System. This system will monitor the tire pressure continuously and inflates or deflates the tire depending upon the road conditions. But there are many chances for the tire to get blown out, hence the plan of implementing an additional tire-tube setup in the tire has been brought up, which will act as a secondary tube until the primary tube gets blown out. This tube setup makes use of the Self Tire Inflation System and immediately inflates when the primary tire-tube setup gets damaged. This will act as an immediate remedy for reducing the accidents that are caused due to sudden blown out of tire, especially for the Off-Road vehicles and military vehicles that roll their wheels on tough terrain and extreme weather conditions.

Construction of modern wide, low-inflation pressure tyres per se does not affect soil stress

The interaction between rolling gear and soil is complex, but most important for the stress distribution in the soil profile. We explored the effect of three types of wide, low-inflation pressure tyres with similar dimensions on mean normal stress throughout the soil profile. We first tested the hypothesis that the stress is not affected by specific tyre-construction. Second, we tested the benefit of lowering the tyre inflation pressure to a minimum for the tyre with the lowest recommended inflation pressure. Finally, we tested the effect of tyres with similar tractive potential at different wheel loads, i.e. with a different weight-pull ratio. Stress measurements were made with Bolling probes at six positions simultaneously: both beneath the centreline (centre) and at 0.3 m lateral distance (+0.3 m) of the centreline of the wheel track, at 0.2, 0.4, and 0.6 m depth. The results revealed a very limited effect of tyre construction on mean normal stress. No differences were measured beneath the centre, and the differences at +0.3 m were found only at 0.2 m depth for the tyres at the rear axle. The effect of minimising tyre inflation pressure was limited to the upper parts of the soil profile for the measurements beneath the centre of the tyre (significant at 0.2 m depth and a trend at 0.4 m depth). Finally, our study did not reveal significant benefit of tyres with a lower wheel load while potentially having similar tractive performance, although the reduction of wheel load and associated lower inflation pressure potentially reduce stress in both top- and subsoil. The results emphasize that in order to reduce soil stress, tyre design and use should allow for a large contact area and low inflation pressure.