2009 Volume 71 Issue 2 Pages 2_60-2_65
In order to analyze the interaction between a traveling tire and soil by the two-dimensional finite element method, a tire model is required that has the same vertical and horizontal rigidities of the actual tire. An anisotropic elastic wheel model of a tire, in which the rigidities differ in the radial and tangential directions, is proposed in this paper. The anisotropic elastic moduli of the model were determined by performing vertical and horizontal rigidity tests. The results indicate that both the modulus of longitudinal elasticity in the radial direction and the modulus of transverse elasticity increase with an increase in tire inflation pressure. The results calculated using the measured anisotropic moduli agree reasonably well with the test results, demonstrating that the proposed model is appropriate.
