A CRITICAL ASSESSMENT OF THE EFFECTS OF A TRAILER-HITCH LOAD-TRANSFER DEVICE ON THE HANDLING CHARACTERISTICS OF A CAR-TRAILER COMBINATION

Trailer-hitch load-transfer devices are commonly employed to redistribute the vertical tire loads in a car-trailer system thereby levelling the car and the trailer. It has been found in practice that the use of load-transfer devices has a significant effect on the handling characteristics of car-trailer systems. A mathematical model of a particular load-transfer device shows that the influence on vehicle handling is due to friction in the device which produces an articulation stiffness having a stick-slip characteristic. Because of the definite beneficial effect on vehicle handling created by this articulation torque, the use of purely elastic articulation restraints is studied in depth. Both steady-state and transient response are considered using linear and non-linear vehicle models. Articulation stiffness is shown to be effective in stabilizing a car-trailer combination with a trailer-swing instability with little degradation of the steady-turning response. For the covering abstract of the conference see TRIS 378303. (Author/TRRL)

• Availability:
  • Find a library where document is available. Order URL: http://worldcat.org/isbn/902650392X
• Supplemental Notes:
  • Proceedings of the 7th IAVSD Symposium on the Dynamics of Vehicles of Roads and Tracks, held in Cambridge, September 7-11, 1981.
• Corporate Authors:

  Swets & Zeitlinger

  Heereweg 347B
  2161 CA Lisse,   Netherlands 
• Authors:
  • ANDERSON, R J
  • Kurtz, E F
• Conference:
  • Proceedings of the 7th IAVSD Symposium on the Dynamics of Vehicles of Roads and Tracks, held in Cambridge, September 7-11, 1981.
• Publication Date: 1982

Media Info

• Features: Figures; References;
• Pagination: p. 127-140

Subject/Index Terms

• TRT Terms: Automobiles; Conferences; Driving; Economic efficiency; Equipment; Friction; Handling characteristics; Joints; Load transfer; Loads; Mathematical models; Motor vehicles; Stability (Mechanics); Stiffness; Tires; Torque; Trailers; Yaw; Yaw
• Uncontrolled Terms: Articulated vehicles; Efficiency
• Old TRIS Terms: Articulation
• ITRD Terms: 1225: Articulated vehicle; 1243: Car; 8525: Conference; 5911: Efficiency; 3674: Equipment; 5567: Load; 6473: Mathematical model; 1203: Trailer; 1381: Tyre; 1646: Vehicle handling; 1636: Yawing (veh)
• Subject Areas: Economics; Highways; Vehicles and Equipment; I91: Vehicle Design and Safety;

Filing Info

• Accession Number: 00378313
• Record Type: Publication
• Source Agency: Institute for Road Safety Research, SWOV
• ISBN: 902650392X
• Files: ITRD, TRIS
• Created Date: Oct 30 1983 12:00AM