stimulating loads applied to wheels by tires

Altair Forum User
Altair Forum User
Altair Employee
edited October 2020 in Community Q&A

I am attempting to design carbon fiber wheels for the 2015 Cal Poly Pomona formula SAE race car. I have been having trouble determining how tires apply the loads to the tires. I know the magnitude and direction of the forces that are applied to the tires. Does any one have any experience with applying loads to wheels in a way that simulated the effect of the tires? I am currently using the Hypermesh and Optistruct software. Thank you for your help.

Answers

  • Altair Forum User
    Altair Forum User
    Altair Employee
    edited September 2014

    Hi,

     

    What analysis do you want to perform on the rim?

     

    You can consider applying a torque or moment along with radial and axial loads and constraining the wheel at the middle,

     

    if you are interested in normal stiffness of the wheel you can constraint at the middle of the wheel (in all DoFs) and apply a normal force.

  • Altair Forum User
    Altair Forum User
    Altair Employee
    edited September 2014

    I would like to preform the analysis on the wheel as if the car is cornering. So I want to know how to apply forces from the bead of the tire to the rim of the wheel.I know how to apply a force to the room but I don't know how to apply the forces in a way that actually simulates the interaction between the wheel and the tire in a cornering condition

  • Altair Forum User
    Altair Forum User
    Altair Employee
    edited September 2014

    cppChris

     

    If its cornering, you may have to consider aligning torque and also rolling resistance moment acting on the wheels centroid.

     

    could you please explain more about what do you mean by interaction between wheel and the tire?

  • Altair Forum User
    Altair Forum User
    Altair Employee
    edited September 2014

    When I say the interaction between the wheel bead and tire in steady state cornering I mean that when a car is turning the tire responds as if a force is applied in a direction normal to the forward direction of the tire. This force then had to be transferred through the tire to the wheel. I am trying to figure out how the wheel and tire interact to transfer the normal force from cornering through the tire to the wheel.

  • tinh
    tinh Altair Community Member
    edited September 2014

    When I say the interaction between the wheel bead and tire in steady state cornering I mean that when a car is turning the tire responds as if a force is applied in a direction normal to the forward direction of the tire. This force then had to be transferred through the tire to the wheel. I am trying to figure out how the wheel and tire interact to transfer the normal force from cornering through the tire to the wheel.

    Hi

    perhaps, add tires into your model, and connect them with wheels

    then you just need to apply load on tires (you knew magnitude and direction of forces on tires)

    thinking how to connect tires to wheels...

  • Altair Forum User
    Altair Forum User
    Altair Employee
    edited September 2014

    Hi CppChris and Tinh,

     

    You may consider using contacts between tire and wheel.

  • Altair Forum User
    Altair Forum User
    Altair Employee
    edited September 2014

    Adding a tire into the model is not as easy as it sounds. Tires have a complicated construction that includes many different materials in multiple locations that vary throughout the tire. I do not think that simply adding a rubber tire to the model will give me the results I am looking for but I will give it a try. Thank you for your help.