Analysis of combined effect of caster angle and SAI on steering performance of the vehicle

Proper selection of wheel geometry during design stage can lead to easier steering and direction stability. So it is very important to study about these wheel geometries in order to achieve reduced steering effort. In this work combined effect of caster angle, steering axis inclination and scrub radius on steering performance of the vehicle has been analysed. SUV vehicle was built in ADAMS/Car and SLC tests were performed at the speed of 50 km/hr. The SLC test at same speed was done using actual vehicle by performing outdoor tests. The steering torque graphs from virtual and outdoor tests were compared for different caster settings. Results obtained by both the methods were almost equal. After validation of ADAMS model, Design of Experiment (DOE) study was performed using ADAMS insight. The selected wheel geometry parameters after DOE study resulted in 3.6 % reduction in steering torque.