9/4/2009

Introduction to Road Vehicle

Performance
Roadway design is governed by:
Road Vehicle Performance: 
 Vehicle capabilities
Introduction and Resistance  acceleration/deceleration
 braking
 cornering (chap. 3)

CE 322  Human capabilities (late chap. 2, chap. 3)

 perception/reaction times
Transportation Engineering  eyesight (peripheral range, height above
roadway)
Dr. Ahmed Abdel-Rahim

Introduction to Road Vehicle

Performance Introduction
 Basis for roadway design guidelines:  Studying vehicle performance serves
 length of acceleration / deceleration lanes two important purposes:
 maximum grades 1. insight into
 stopping-sight distances 1. roadway design
traffic operations and
 passing-sight distances 2.

3. compromises
 setting speed limits
 timing of signalized intersections
2. basis to assess impact of advancing
 How does performance affect max vehicle technologies on design guidelines
grades?

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Tractive Effort and Resistance Tractive Effort and Resistance

 Opposing forces determining straight-  Major sources of vehicle resistance:
line performance  Aerodynamic
 Tractive effort = force available to  Rolling (originates from the roadway
perform work surface/tire interface)
 Resistance = force impeding vehicle  Grade or gravitational
motion

Tractive Effort and Resistance Aerodynamic Resistance

 Illustration of forces with vehicle force diagram  Effect of speed?
Air  Sources:
Fig. 2.1  Turbulent air flow around vehicle body (≈ 85%)

 Friction of air passing over vehicle body (≈ 12%)

Gravity, Rg

Rolling
Tractive  Air flow through vehicle components (≈ 3%)

Ff + Fr = ma + Ra + Rrlf + Rrlr + Rg
F = ma + Ra + Rrl + Rg

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Aerodynamic Resistance Aerodynamic Resistance

 Aerodynamic resistance force equation:  Air density properties (Table 2.1).
  altitude,  density
  temperature,  density
Ra  CD Af V 2
(Eq. 2.3) 
2

Ra = aerodynamic resistance in lb (N)

ρ (rho) = air density in slugs/ft3 (kg/m3)
CD = coefficient of drag (unitless)
Af = frontal projected area of vehicle in ft2 (m2)
V = vehicle speed* in ft/s (m/s)

Aerodynamic Resistance Aerodynamic Resistance

 Drag coefficient accounts for all 3 sources  How sensitive is Ra to speed?.
 Road vehicle drag coefficients Table 2.2
(for different types)
 Let’s develop a relationship for how
 Drag coefficients trend  Table 2.3 much power is needed to overcome Ra.
(past 35 years)
 What is the trend?
 What impact could this have on roadway design?

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Aerodynamic Resistance Rolling Resistance (Rrl)

 Power is the product of force and speed, so  Source
multiplying Eq. 2.3 by speed gives:  vehicle’s internal mechanical friction
  Pneumatic tires and interaction with the roadway.
PRa  CD Af V 3 (Eq. 2.4)
2  Tire deformation (≈90%)
 Tire slippage and air circulation around tire &
or, since 1 horsepower = 550 ft-lb/sec, wheel (about 6%)
CD Af V 3  Tire penetration/surface compression (about 4%)
hpRa 
1100

Sensitivity of power to speed…

Rolling Resistance (Rrl) Rolling Resistance (Rrl)

 Factors affecting Rrl  Approximated as product of a friction term
(coefficient of rolling resistance) and vehicle weight.
 Rigidity of tire and roadway surface
 Tire inflation pressure and temperature  Coefficient of rolling resistance (frl) on paved surfaces

 Vehicle speed (Eq. 2.5)

 V 
f rl  0.011   with V in ft/s
 147 

 V  with V in m/s
f rl  0.011  
 44.73 

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Rolling Resistance (Rrl) Rolling Resistance (Rrl)

 Rolling resistance approximation:  Power required to overcome rolling
resistance:
Rrl  f rlW cos  g
(Eq. 2.7)
For a 10% grade, what is the cosine term? f WV

hp Rrl  rl horsepower
550
Rrl  f rlW
PRrl  f rlWV N-m/s

(Eq. 2.6)

Grade Resistance (Rg) Grade Resistance (Rg)

 What is the grade resistance to vehicle
motion? Rg  W sin  g

sin  g  tan  g

Rg  WG
(Eq. 2.9)