INVESTIGATIONS OF AIR RESISTANCE ON AUTOMOBILES
THE AIR RESISTANCE IN THESE TESTS WAS DETERMINED BY PUSHING AN AUTOMOBILE PLACED ON DYNAMOMETER MOUNTING ON A RAILWAY FLAT CAR, THROUGH THE AIR AT VARIOUS SPEEDS WITH AN ELECTRIC LOCOMOTIVE. THE AIR PRESSURE AGAINST THE AUTOMOBILE WAS RECORDED ON A CONTINUOUS ROLL DEVICE GEARED TO THE AXLE OF THE FLAT CAR. THE VELOCITY OF THE WIND WAS MEASURED BY MEANS OF AN ANEMOMETER ALSO CONNECTED UP TO REGISTER ON THE RECORD SHEET. THE DIRECTION OF THE RESULTANT AIR STREAM AS THE CAR MOVED OVER THE COURSE WAS DETERMINED BY A STREAMER ATTACHED TO THE ANEMOMETER MOUNTING. IT WAS FOUND THAT THE TOTAL AIR RESISTANCE ON A MOTOR VEHICLE COULD BE ESTIMATED BY A GIVEN FORMULA, INCORPORATING THE TOTAL AIR RESISTANCE IN POUNDS, THE PROJECTED CROSS-SECTIONAL AREA OF THE VEHICLE IN SQUARE FEET, AND THE SPEED IN MILES PER HOUR.
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Supplemental Notes:
- Vol 6, pp 81-88, 6 FIG, 1 TAB. Distribution, posting, or copying of this PDF is strictly prohibited without written permission of the Transportation Research Board of the National Academy of Sciences. Unless otherwise indicated, all materials in this PDF are copyrighted by the National Academy of Sciences. Copyright © National Academy of Sciences. All rights reserved.
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Authors:
- Agg, T R
- Wolfard, N
- Publication Date: 1927
Media Info
- Media Type: Digital/other
- Monograph Title: Proceedings of the Sixth Annual Meeting of the Highway Research Board Held at Washington, D.C., December 2-3, 1926
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Serial:
- Highway Research Board Proceedings
- Volume: 6
- Publisher: Highway Research Board
Subject/Index Terms
- TRT Terms: Air resistance; Automobiles; Dynamometers; Formulas; Railroad cars; Speed
- Subject Areas: Highways; Safety and Human Factors;
Filing Info
- Accession Number: 00223283
- Record Type: Publication
- Files: TRIS, TRB
- Created Date: Jun 11 1971 12:00AM