ABSTRACT
A tribological based Extended Creep Force model (ECF model) developed for wheel-rail contact conditions is presented. This model has been adapted to tire-road contact conditions (ECF4Tire). Tires on dry asphalt, gravel and packed snow have been considered and the results have been compared to data from the literature. It has to be highlighted that the adaption of parameters is not only a simple fitting of model parameters but physically interpretable. The model adaption and the physical interpretability have been supported by Discrete Element Method (DEM) simulations carried out with gravel. Furthermore, the model has been implemented in a two-track vehicle dynamics simulation environment to check its feasibility in this context. Even though there are still several tire-road specific assumptions in the ECF4Tire model which need to be further investigated, the initial results are reasonable and promising. The presented approach—combination of tribological based creep force model with DEM simulations and principle experiments—could lead to a better understanding of the physical phenomena in the tire-road contact and improve predictions regarding all types of vehicle dynamics investigations under very different road conditions.
