Search Results

Research focusing on automotive rollovers has garnered a great deal of attention in recent years. Substantial effort has been directed toward the evaluation of rollover resistance. Issues related to crashworthiness, such as roof strength and restraint performance, have also received a great deal of attention. Much less research effort has been directed toward a more detailed study of the rollover dynamics from point-of-trip to point-of-rest. The reconstruction of rollover crashes often requires a thorough examination of the events taking place between point-of-trip and point-of-rest. Increasing demands are placed on reconstructionists to provide greater levels of detail regarding the roll sequence. Examples include, but are not limited to, roll rates at the quarter-roll level, CG trajectory (horizontal and vertical), roll angle at impact, and ground contact velocity. Often the detail that can be provided in a rollover reconstruction is limited by a lack of physical evidence.

The aerodynamic drag of rolling vehicles was studied by towing pairs of side-by-side identical small-scale models in rolling contact with the bottom of a water-filled trough. An instrumented towbar measured the difference in the models' overall drag forces in order to determine the effect of changes in a model's configuration on its aerodynamic drag. The effects of wheel-rim covers, axle fairings, and wheel-housing volume on vehicle drag were studied with the test apparatus. The magnitude of the effects were well outside the range of experimental error, and correlated well with published results of similar studies performed in wind tunnels. Testing indicated that lift-induced changes in vehicle rolling resistance would not significantly alter results of tow testing under normal circumstances. Advantages of the underwater tow test include the ability to inexpensively simulate rotating wheels and to study the interaction between rotating wheels on a moving vehicle and the ground plane.