Features of an elastic wheel motion along a curvilinear and rectilinear trajectory with a slip

The results of the study of the motion of an elastic wheel as an integral mechanism along a curvilinear and a rectilinear trajectory with a slip on the ground plane having a high adhesion coefficient are presented. The previous researches analysis has shown that the most complete theory of wheel skidless rolling without slipping on elastic pneumatics was formulated by Keldysh V. M. who proposed the equation for calculating the curvature of the motion trajectory. Due to the difficulty of this equation coefficients determining, its use is currently limited. In this paper, the dependences for determining the components of the equation of the elastic wheel motion trajectory curvature have been proposed. According to the shimmy theory, during an elastic wheel rolling along a curvilinear trajectory, the rim turn and its lateral displacement relative to the tire-ground contact patch occur simultaneously. The rim turn causes tire body torsion, and the lateral displacement causes the elastic wheel moving with a slip angle. It is established that the absolute value of the tire body torsion angle is equal to the slip angle, and their values depend on the trajectory curvature, on the tire-ground contact patch longitudinal axis, and on the existence of traction there. The condition, under which the tire body energy distribution on the rim relative rotation and on its lateral displacement during the movement along a curved trajectory is uniform, has been determined. The experimental confirmation of the hypothesis of uniform distribution of the energy supplied to the elastic wheel during its movement along a curvilinear trajectory on the rim relative turning and its lateral displacement has been obtained. When the elastic wheel moves along a rectilinear trajectory with a slip, only the rim lateral displacement occurs, this displacement is accompanied by a cornering force applied in the center of the tire-ground contact patch and by the tire alining torque relative to the vertical axis passing through the contact patch geometric center. The energy consumption for the rim lateral displacement during the wheel rolling along a rectilinear trajectory with a slip has been also determined. The results of the research can be useful to professionals improving the wheeled vehicles performance characteristics, including maneuverability, handling, and road stability.

Backstepping sliding-mode control for active suspension system matching mechanical elastic wheel with uncertainties

For the purpose of anti-puncture and lightweight, a new type of mechanical elastic wheel (MEW) is constructed. However, the large radial stiffness of MEW has a negative effect on ride comfort. To make up for the disadvantage, this paper proposes a novel control strategy consisting of backstepping control and integral sliding-mode control, considering the uncertainties of active suspension and MEW. First, an active suspension system matching MEW is established, discussing the impact of uncertainties. The nonlinear radial characteristic of MEW is fitted based on the previous experiment results. Then, in order to derive ideal motions, an ideal suspension system combining sky-hook and ground-hook damping control is introduced. Next, ignoring the nonlinear characteristics and external random disturbance, a backstepping controller is designed to track ideal variables. Combined with the backstepping control law, an integral sliding-mode control strategy is given, further taking parameter uncertainty and external disturbance into account. To tackle chattering problem, an adaptive state variable matrix is applied. By using Lyapunov stability theory, the whole scheme proves to be robust and convergent. Finally, co-simulations with Carsim and MATLAB/Simulink are carried out. By analyzing the simulation results, it can be concluded that the vehicle adopting backstepping sliding-mode control performs best, with excellent real-time performance and robustness.

Decoupling control of active suspension and four-wheel steering based on Backstepping-ADRC with mechanical elastic wheel

Mechanical elastic wheel (MEW) has the advantages of explosion-proof and prick-proof, which is conducive to the safety and maneuverability of the vehicle. However, the research on the performance of the full vehicle equipped with MEW is rare. Considering the particular properties of the radial and cornering stiffness of MEW, this paper aims to take into account both ride comfort and yaw stability of the vehicle equipped with the MEW through a nonlinear control method. Firstly, a 9-DOF nonlinear full vehicle model with the MEW tire model is constructed. The tire model is fitted based on experimental data, which corrects the impacts of vertical load on the cornering characteristic of the MEW. Then the full vehicle system is decoupled into four subsystems with a single input and a single output each according to active disturbance rejection control (ADRC) technology. In this process, the coupling relationship between different motions of the original system is regarded as the disturbance. Afterward, a novel nonlinear extended state observer is proposed, which has a similar structure of traditional linear extended state observer but smaller estimation error. Next, the control law of Backstepping-ADRC for different subsystems are derived respectively based on the Lyapunov theory. For the first time, the Backstepping-ADRC method is applied to the decoupling control of four-wheel steering and active suspension systems. Furthermore, the parameters of the controllers are adjusted through a multi-objective optimization scheme. Finally, simulation results validate the effectiveness and robustness of the proposed controller, especially when encountering some disturbances. The indices of vehicle body attitude and ride comfort are improved significantly, and also the yaw stability is guaranteed simultaneously.

Radial stiffness analysis of circular ring with uncertain boundary conditions: Mechanical elastic wheel as an example

The paper studies the radial stiffness of mechanical elastic wheel (MEW), which is regarded as a circular ring with uncertain boundary conditions for the first time, and proposes a ring-chain model to solve the radial stiffness of the ring. Different from assuming the boundary conditions by experience or building finite element model with complex processes from previous researches, the ring-chain model coupling circular ring model and dynamics of multi-rigid body is accurate and simple to find the loaded positions of ring and make the boundary conditions clear. The results show that the ring-chain model can be solved to get the deformations and loaded positions of ring, the radial stiffness of MEW is large, and the radial displacement of MEW increases non-linearly. The results are consistent with that from finite element model under the same settings, but the time cost of ring-chain model is less. In addition, the influence factors of ring radial stiffness are also found and analyzed. The method presented in this paper can provide data for the response analyses of vehicle and references for the analysis of circular ring with uncertain boundary conditions.

Use of the kinematic radius in the rolling mechanics of an elastic wheel

The analysis of the physical essence of the kinematic and dynamic radii of the wheel is given. It is stated that the rolling radius of the wheel is a conditional kinematic parameter that characterizes only the rolling mode of the wheel. It is not the shoulder of all longitudinal forces acting on the wheel and should not be used to determine tractive forces, rolling resistance and wheel braking forces. Specific examples are given to illustrate the inappropriateness of using the kinematic radius to determine forces and moments. Keywords: elastic wheel, rolling radius, kinematic radius, dynamic radius, arm of force, traction force, rolling resistance force, braking force, rolling mode

Using the kinematic radius in the mechanics of elastic wheel rolling

As you know, in the mechanics of a wheel with an elastic tire, both dynamic (rd) and kinematic (rk) radius are widely used. At the same time, specialists in the theory of the motion of wheeled vehicles still do not have a clear understanding of the scope of their application. Keywords: elastic wheel, kinematic radius, circumferential force, dynamic radius, wheel traction force, instantaneous center of speeds, torque, solid, rolling resistance

Analytical determination of application point and normal reaction arm when rolling a wheel on a drum

Evaluation of the rolling resistance of car tires is now often performed on drum stands like car tests. This necessitates the study of the mechanics of interaction between the wheel and the drum in order to determine its force and kinematic characteristics, including the values and points of application of tangential and normal forces in contact with the drum. These problems can be solved taking into account that the mechanics of elastic wheel rolling on a drum is the same as when rolling on a flat rigid support surface. In this paper, from consideration of the mechanics of interaction between an elastic wheel and a drum, using the equations of power balance and force equilibrium of the wheel, the equations for determining the point of normal reaction in contact and its arm relative to the wheel axis during its rolling along one and two drums have been derived.. These dependencies have a simple form and can be applied when considering the rolling of both a single wheel and the car as a whole on a drum stand.