Wheel Vibration Research Articles

Computational and experimental studies of vibration-protective properties of a pneumatic wheel of the MTZ-82 BELARUS tractor with external spring-hydraulic mini-suspension

BACKGROUND: Currently used in various sectors of the national economy, numerous wheeled suspensionless vehicles on pneumatic tires have a low level of vibration protection of the frame and limited cross-country ability. Therefore, the development and study of the design characteristics of a pneumatic wheel with increased elastic-damping properties and cross-country ability is a relevant technical problem. AIM: Development of the design and study the vibration-protective properties of a pneumatic wheel with an external spring-hydraulic mini-suspension to improve the ride smoothness and cross-country ability of large-sized suspensionless vehicles. METHODS: A description of the design of a wheel with mini-suspension and a support roller is presented. The wheel modeling was carried out in the PascalABC software, which takes into account the nonlinearity of the total force of the pneumatic tire and the spring-hydraulic mini-suspension, which is installed parallel to the tire at an angle to the vertical axis of the wheel. The test method consisted of comparison of free and forced vibrations of the rear pneumatic wheel of the MTZ-82 BELARUS tractor with a 400-965/15.5-38 tire, which operated without and with mini-suspension at a vertical load of 0.6 tons and various excessive pressure in the tire. RESULTS: The results of computational and experimental studies show that if the tire is radially compressed by 75 mm, the excess pressure inside the pneumatic wheel almost does not change, and if the pressure in the tire decreases from 1.6 to 0.4 bar, the resonant vibration frequency of the standard wheel axle decreases by 25%, while the dynamic coefficient remains unacceptably high (more than 5), leading to the tire breakaway from the supporting surface. Installing a mini-suspension parallel to the wheel in the form of a spring-hydraulic shock-absorbing strut leads to an increase in the resonant frequency by 1 Hz, however, the resonant peaks are reduced by almost 3 times to a dynamic coefficient of 2.5...2, which significantly increases the ride smoothness of suspensionless vehicles and reduces the likelihood of wheel breakaway from the supporting surface. CONCLUSION: It was found with the studies that the proposed wheel with a mini-suspension as a spring-hydraulic strut and a support roller has a relatively simple design, ensures high vibration-protective properties with small amplitudes of kinematic disturbance and can be used to improve the ride smoothness and cross-country ability of wheeled suspensionless vehicles.

Effect of multi-modal input to the perception of sound quality

The perception of sound quality of car interior noise is treated. The decisive factor of sound quality is car interior noise itself but our percetion varies also by the symultaneous exposure of seat and steenring wheel vibrations and the moving seanary from the window screen. We have conducted subjective experiments on the perception of car interior noise unsing car simulator located inside the sound proof room to see the effect of seat and steering wheel vibration and moving sceenary to our perception on sound quality such as pleasantness, booming sensation and powefulness. As the results, the addition of moving sceenary and seat-floor vibration together with the steering wheel viration have significant effect to our perception of sound quality.

Wheel Squeal Mitigation Under Water Lubrication

This study investigates the potential of applying water to the wheel-rail contact to reduce squealing noise. For this purpose, a twin-disc device with a single tram wheel and real wheel suspension stiffnesses was developed. Three types of tests were performed. During the tests, adhesion coefficient, sound pressure level and wheel axial vibration were measured. The tests under dry conditions were carried out to describe the frequency spectrum of wheel vibration and to establish reference values for further measurements. The tests under wet conditions were carried out to investigate the ability of water to reduce adhesion and noise. Finally, tests with varying amounts of water in contact were carried out because of the low adhesion risk. The experimental results showed that the twin-disc device was able to reproduce both the adhesion and noise properties of the contact. Tests with different amounts of water showed that the application of water can be a promising way to reduce squealing noise from wheel-rail contact.

Evaluation of steering wheel vibration in electric vehicles and application to Dynamic Motor Drive

Eliminating steering wheel vibration is a key in refining vehicle Noise, Vibration, and Harshness (NVH). The absence of masking engine noise and vibration makes this challenge harder in a pure electric vehicle. This paper provides three key insights with regards to the evaluation of steering wheel vibration in EVs using on-road test data. First, we explore the effects of steering wheel grip variation in the measured accelerometer response. Second, we identify the limitations of evaluating powertrain induced vibration in a noisy environment and propose a post-processing technique to reject irregular road-induced perturbations from the measured data. Third, we evaluate a tuned mass absorber as a localized mitigation tool for steering wheel vibration. Finally, we describe how the above techniques were brought together to deliver a refined NVH experience while integrating Dynamic Motor Drive (DMD) technology as a software-only solution which has been shown to improve EV range by 0.4% on IPM and 3% on EESM based vehicles.

Application of Finite Element Algorithms for Formula Racing Steering Wheels

The steering wheel of a Formula Student car has an important influence on the driving and handling stability of the car. The steering wheel of the racing car must have good mechanical and stable performance, taking into account lightweight and economic performance. Due to the small riding space of the car, the size of the steering wheel is not required to be too large. In this case, it is very difficult to meet its harsh stress state and control its vibration and noise. Based on the general requirements of the competition rules of the Formula Student racing competition, this paper constructs the geometric model of the steering wheel of the racing car by using the computer 3D design software CATIA. ANSYS software was used to conduct finite element analysis of the mechanical properties of the metal skeleton of the steering disc. Magnesium alloy, a light material with excellent mechanical properties, was selected, and combined with the actual working conditions of the steering disc, especially the force under extreme conditions, the computer simulation results showed that the force distribution and displacement of the steering disc met the design requirements. Considering that the noise and vibration of the steering wheel will have a great impact on the racer, the modal analysis of the steering wheel is carried out by using ANSYS software, and the analysis results show that there is no resonance or instability.

An improved YOLOv7 for the state identification of sliding chairs in railway turnout

The sliding chairs are important components that support the switch rail conversion in the railway turnout. Due to the harsh environmental erosion and the attack from the wheel vibration, the failure rate of the sliding chairs accounts for up to 10% of the total failure number in turnout. However, there is little research carried out in the existing literature to diagnose the deterioration states of the sliding chairs. To fill out this gap, by utilizing the images containing the sliding chairs, we propose an improved You Only Look Once version 7 (YOLOv7) to identify the state of the sliding chairs. Specifically, to meet the challenge brought by the small inter-class differences among the sliding chair states, we first integrate the Convolutional Block Attention Module (CBAM) into the YOLOv7 backbone to screen the information conducive to state identification. Then, an extra detector for a small object is customized into the YOLOv7 network in order to detect the small-scale sliding chairs in images. Meanwhile, we revise the localization loss in the objective function as the Efficient Intersection over Union (EIoU) to optimize the design of the aspect ratio, which helps the localization of the sliding chairs. Next, to address the issue caused by the varying scales of the sliding chairs, we employ K-means++ to optimize the priori selection of the initial anchor boxes. Finally, based on the images collected from real-world turnouts, the proposed method is verified and the results show that our method outperforms the basic YOLOv7 in the state identification of the sliding chairs with 4% improvements in terms of both mean Average Precision@0.5 (mAP@0.5) and F1-score.

Optimization of the Semi-Active-Suspension Control of BP Neural Network PID Based on the Sparrow Search Algorithm.

Electric vehicles with hub motors have integrated the motor into the wheel, which increase the unsprung mass of the vehicle, and intensifies the vibration of the underspring components. The motor excitation during driving also intensifies the wheel vibration. The coupling effect between the two makes the performance of electric vehicles deteriorate. The article employed a disc-type permanent-magnet motor as the hub motor, taking into consideration the increase in sprung mass caused by the hub motor and the adverse effects of vertical vibration from motor excitation. Based on random road-surface excitation, and considering the secondary excitation caused by wheel motor drive and vehicle-road coupling, a coupled-dynamics model of a semi-active-suspension vehicle-road system for vertical vehicle motion is investigated under multiple excitations. Using body acceleration, suspension deflection, and dynamic tire load as evaluation indicators, a BP neural network PID controller based on the sparrow search algorithm optimization is proposed for the semi-active-suspension system. Compared with PID control and particle swarm optimization (PSO-BPNN-PID), the research findings indicate that the optimized semi-active suspension significantly improves the ride comfort of hub-motor electric vehicles, and meets the requirements for control performance under different vehicle driving conditions.

Multilevel Evaluation Model of Electric Power Steering System Based on Improved Combination Weighting and Cloud Theory

In order to rapidly evaluate the working performance of an Electric Power Steering System (EPS) and clarify the key indicators that affect its working condition, targeted maintenance measures can be taken to improve the vehicle’s handling, stability, and safety. This paper took an EPS system as the research object and decomposed it into five working indicators: steering lightness, steering returnability, steering wheel mid-zone performance, steering wheel vibration, and power assist characteristics. On this basis, the subjective exponential extension Analytic Hierarchy Process (AHP) was combined with the objective improved entropy weight method, and then the combination weighting method of game theory was employed to ensure that the results were reliable. At the same time, a cloud model was introduced to understand the actual situation of each indicator by using cloud parameters and multi-level feedback results. According to the principle of maximum membership and the comprehensive evaluation method, the EPS performance evaluation result was obtained. The results showed that the comprehensive cloud parameter of EPS was U (74.31, 6.08, 0.50), which indicated that its working performance was in good condition, with some minor damage that did not affect its normal use; however, attention should be paid to the maintenance and repair of vulnerable components to ensure the handling, stability, and safety of the vehicle.

Comprehensive validation of three-dimensional finite element modelling of wheel-rail high-frequency interaction via the V-Track test rig

Wheel-rail high-frequency interaction is closely related to the formation of railway short-wave defects. Finite element (FE) method has been widely used to simulate wheel-rail dynamic systems, but its validity in modelling high-frequency interaction has not been fully demonstrated in three dimensions (3D). This work aims at comprehensively validating the 3D FE modelling of wheel-rail high-frequency interaction using a downscale V-Track test rig. First, the FE model of the V-Track is developed that comprehensively includes the 3D track elasticity. The simulated track dynamic behaviours are validated against hammer tests, and the major vibration modes are analyzed employing modal analysis. Afterwards, the simulate wheel-rail dynamic responses are comprehensively compared with measurement results up to 10 kHz. Their characteristic frequencies are identified and correlated to the eigenmodes of the vehicle-track system. The results indicate that the proposed 3D FE model is capable of comprehensively and accurately simulating the 3D track dynamics and wheel-rail dynamic interaction of the V-Track up to 10 kHz. Rail vibrations dominate the wheel-rail dynamic contact within 10 kHz, while the wheel vibrations play an increasingly important role at higher frequencies and become decisive near the wheel eigenmode frequencies. The V-Track overall achieves dynamic similarity to the real vehicle-track system.

Influence of changes in tip structure on wind wheel vibration characteristics under wind wheel-tower coupling

This study conducted modal and vibration-characteristic tests using transient excitation and spectrum analysis methods to find the variation law of vibration characteristics of wind wheels with bifurcated tip structures as compared to wind wheels with unmodified tips when the coupling between a wind wheel and its tower is considered. Additionally, a finite element analysis was used to calculate the mechanical characteristics of wind power manoeuvres. The following are the major results of this study. As compared to the non-trailer state, the coupling action of the wind wheel and the tower reduced the static frequency of the unmodified wind wheel and the bifurcated blade tip structure wind wheel under the trailer state. The static frequency of the bifurcated blade tip structure wind wheel under the coupling action decreases more significantly. Compared with the single wind wheel which is not affected by coupling, the dynamic frequency of the whole machine decreases after being affected by coupling, and the bifurcated blade structure has less influence on the coupling effect. Compared with the non-trailer state, the dynamic frequency curves of the two blade tip structure wind wheels in the trailer state decrease, the speed range in the resonance area is shortened, and the corresponding speed in the resonance area is reduced. The results of this study provide data support and design reference for reliable design of wind turbines.

Vibration Response Analysis of a Time-varying Stiffness Wheel with Contrate Gear under Unbalanced Excitation

The vibration and response of multi-contact interface micro-motion time-varying stiffness wheel are analyzed, and the nonlinear vibration response characteristics caused by the unbalance force of multi-contact interface contrate gear face of a gas turbine rotor are studied. Firstly, the local sliding model of dry friction-damped contact is extended to establish a holistic and local unified sliding model. The equivalent stiffness and damping of the damping device are calculated by means of the equivalent linearization method and the first harmonic balance method. Finally, the finite element model of multi-contact contrate gear rotor wheel is established to analyze the influence of different unbalanced masses on vibration response under nonlinear frictional contact. The results show that the response caused by the unbalance mass of multi-contact interface wheel with contrate gear is mainly radial response, and the peak value of resonance response increases with the increase of unbalance force.

The radiation from railway wheel modes and their effect on loudness, sharpness, and equivalent pressure level

The noise of railway wheels is one of the main contributors to railway rolling noise. Auralization, the rendering of sound fields from virtual sources, is a promising tool for studying rolling noise, as it enables the study of perceptual qualities of noise. Generating such sound fields based on physical models requires knowledge of the structural vibrations and radiation characteristics of the wheels. The vibration and radiation of a railway wheel are typically dominated by highly undamped modes. The amplitudes of the various modes depend on the roughness excitation and the contact position of the wheel on the rail. For auralization, it is relevant to investigate which modes are significant in reproducing the equivalent sound pressure level (SPL), as well as psychoacoustic quantities. Identifying significant modes can also help simplify the physical model. This article explores the influence of lateral contact positions on wheel radiation and analyzes the modal contributions to pass-by SPLs. Using a timedomain prediction model for the sound pressure produced by one wheel as it passes a stationary track side position, the psychoacoustic quantities loudness and sharpness were investigated. The smallest number of modes required to reproduce equivalent pressure levels and psychoacoustic quantities is identified for two contact positions. For simplicity, the discussion is limited to one wheel, surface roughness, and vehicle speed. The results show possible simplifications in auralization models and can enable noise mitigation with a focus on psychoacoustic parameters.

Steering Feedback in Dynamic Driving Simulators: The Influence of Steering Wheel Vibration and Vehicle Motion Frequency

Steering Feedback in Dynamic Driving Simulators: The Influence of Steering Wheel Vibration and Vehicle Motion Frequency

Development of analytical model for a wheel and rail vibration associated with curve squeal noise of railways

In this study, an analytical model for the vibrations of both a railway wheel and rail related to curve squeal noise was developed. The model was based on lumped parameter systems from the vibration characteristics of the wheel and rail and contact forces between them. Moreover, this model included two coupling factors between a wheel and rail, and between two vibration directions. The parameters of an actual wheel and track were applied to the model and their vibrations were estimated. The measurement of the curve squeal was also carried out at a curved section in an actual railway test line. From these measurement results, the peak frequencies in the estimated wheel vibration when passing through a curve are well simulated. Although the model needs to be improved in terms of the vibration magnitude, it has sufficient potential to simulate the vibration related to squeal noise.

Simulation of grinding surface topography considering wheel wear and wheel vibration

Simulation of grinding surface topography considering wheel wear and wheel vibration

Vibration-reducing modelling of a mecanum wheel based on equivalent stiffness and strength analysis

The mecanum wheel-chair offers unparalleled manoeuverability due to its ability to move in any direction by independently rotating its wheels. However, this innovation, characterized by hub and rollers, brings along a set of challenges, including vertical vibrations induced by successive roller-ground contacts. This manuscript presents a comprehensive investigation into the dynamic features and vertical vibration characteristics of mecanum wheels. Our study focuses on understanding the impact of roller curvature on vertical vibrations. To achieve this, authors employed top-to-top and quadratic mean values of accelerations and displacements. Additionally, authors described the results of a vertical vibration simulation conducted in SolidWorks. A key element of our research involves the implementation of a spring mechanism within the mecanum wheel's centre to dampen vibrations. Through systematic experimentation and analysis, authors determined the optimal geometric arrangement for minimizing vertical vibrations. Our findings reveal a superior design approach for reducing wheel vibrations and enhancing manoeuverability. By addressing this important issue, authors contribute to the advancement of mecanum wheel technology, making it more efficient and practical for a wide range of applications. Specifically, our results demonstrate an impressive 99.98% reduction in vertical vibrations, marking a significant improvement in the mecanum wheel-chair's efficiency and enhancement in wheel efficiency.

The Study of the Performance of the Diamond Wheel’s Steel and CFRP Hubs in Tungsten Carbide (WC) Grinding

Tungsten carbide (WC) has been widely utilized in recent years in the hardware, mechanical, and chemical industries and in national defense because of its high hardness, anti-wear, low temperature, and anti-corrosion properties. However, using it for grinding is also challenging because the WC material has high hardness and brittle characteristics. The typical hub of a diamond wheel is made of steel. In high-speed grinding, the steel hub of the diamond wheel is subjected to gravity and centrifugal forces, which cause grinding wheel vibration, poor workpiece processing quality, and a short machine life. Therefore, this study used a carbon-fiber-reinforced thermoplastic (CFRP) hub to replace the steel hub when grinding the WC workpiece. It aimed to investigate methods to reduce oscillation, improve chip efficiency, and increase accuracy in the WC workpiece. The research results demonstrated that using a CFRP hub in the grinding wheel can reduce the oscillation when the peripheral speed of the grinding wheel is at 20–100 m/s. Additionally, the surface roughness average (Ra) of the workpiece can be reduced to 3.2–25.4% and the ten-point height of irregularities (Rz) can be reduced to 18.9–44% compared to using a steel hub in the grinding wheel.

Investigation of the effect of longitudinal creepage on wheel squeal

Wheel squeal is generally attributed to the lateral wheel vibration induced by lateral creepage. It should be noted, however, longitudinal creepage also exists at wheel/rail interface. Given the significance of longitudinal creepage in vehicle dynamics, a test rig that can introduce various longitudinal creepages by changing the teeth number of synchronous pulley is developed in this research, and measurement results show that squeal spectrum has three dominant peaks, whose sound pressure levels decrease with longitudinal creepage. In order to investigate the reason why longitudinal creepage can mitigate wheel squeal, a model of a wheel/rail system is developed in this research to analyse this phenomenon using complex eigenvalue method, and the results show the inner wheel tends to generate unstable vibration at three different vibration modes, correlating well with the dominant peaks of sound spectrum. Further analyses can illustrate the reason why longitudinal creepage can mitigate wheel squeal: the absolute value of effective damping ratio of each mode decreases with longitudinal creepage, so structural damping and frictional damping are less likely to be overcome by negative damping.

Influence analysis of dynamic changes of wheel alignment parameters on high-speed rocking vibration of steering wheel

The control of high-speed rocking vibration of steering wheel is very important for vehicle comfort performance. Among vibration control methods, the reasonable design of wheel alignment parameters is the most effective method. At present, the alignment parameters are obtained through quasi-static test. However, under high-speed driving conditions, the wheel alignment parameters change dynamically, which intensifies the vibration of the steering wheel. Therefore, it is more meaningful to study and control the dynamic characteristics of wheel alignment parameters. In order to analyze the dynamic characteristics of wheel alignment parameters and the problem of high-speed rocking vibration of steering wheel, the method of dynamic identification and dynamic control of alignment parameters is presented in the paper. By controlling the wheel dynamic unbalance and lateral force variations, the dynamic variation of the toe angle is significantly reduced, which reduces the vibration of the steering wheel.

Vibration and Noise Analysis and Experimental Study of Rail Conveyor

The rail conveyor is a new type of energy-saving system for the long-distance transportation of bulk materials. Operating noise is an urgent problem that the current model faces. It will cause noise pollution and affect the health of workers. In this paper, the factors causing vibration and noise are analyzed by modeling the wheel-rail system and the supporting truss structure. Based on the built test platform, the system vibration of the vertical steering wheel, the track support truss, and the track connection were measured, and the vibration characteristics at different positions were analyzed. Based on the established noise and vibration model, the distribution and occurrence rules of system noise under different operating speeds and fastener stiffness conditions were obtained. The experimental results show that the vibration amplitude of the frame near the head of the conveyor is the largest. The amplitude under the condition of 2 m/s running speed at the same position is 4 times that under the condition of 1 m/s. At different welds of the track, the width and depth of the rail gap have a great influence on the vibration impact, which is mainly due to the impact of the uneven impedance at the track gap, and the greater the running speed, the more obvious the vibration impact. The simulation results show the trend of noise generation, the speed of the trolley, and the stiffness of the track fasteners have a positive effect on the generation of noise in the low-frequency region. The research results of this paper will play an important role in the noise and vibration analysis of rail conveyors and help to optimize the structure design of the track transmission system.