Abstract
A rigid ring model of the tire for the study of in-plane dynamics and a new technique for determining the parameters of the model are presented in this paper. This model can be used for studying the comfort of vehicles, problems of driving, and braking problems in the longitudinal direction. Comparison with finite element models shows that the rigid ring model of the tire is capable of describing the in-plane eigenmode shapes in the frequency range of 0–130 Hz. The well-known “brush model,” integrated into the tire model, is introduced to take into account the slide phenomena in the contact patch. The parameters of the model can be correlated with the physical properties of the tire so that designers can take advantage of such a correlation in the development of new tires in terms of time, cost, and performance. The technique used to determine the parameters of the model for some automobile tires include the direct measurements of some physical properties (mass, moment of inertia, stiffness) and a method of identification applied on the results from a dynamic test. The model is able to predict experimental data in terms of natural frequencies and relative dampings. Results from the application of this technique on two tires are reported.