|
Tyres
The Basic Principles
There are a number of basic principles which can all be used to discuss the performance or behavior of a car tyre.
Contact Patch (of Foot-print)
The part of the tyre which is contact with the road surface.
Mechanical Locking
The tyre material deforms to try to match the imperfections in the road surface. This phenomenon is called mechanical locking.
Chemical Locking / Adhesion / Bonding
The chemicals in the tyre react with the chemicals in the road surface to create a molecular level adhesion.
Slip Angle
One of the major cornerstones of car tyre performance. The slip angle is the difference in the angle the wheel rim is pointing, and the direction the wheel / tyre is traveling.
Traction Circle
Another big one. The traction circle is graphical way of describing the trade off forces between longitudinal (accelerating / braking) and lateral (cornering) demand / performance.
Percent Slip
Similar property to Slip Angle, but longitudinally (accelerating / braking). This is a tough one to get your head around fully, so we'll leave this until later!
Vertical Load
As we will discover, a vital part of the performance capability of a tyre at a given moment.
Pressure
No prizes for guessing this one! The air pressure inside the tyre in PSI, or BAR.
The list goes on and on, but for the sake of keeping this article below 10,000 pages, we'll focus mainly on the ones listed above.
|
