Tire modeling is a critical component of vehicle models as the control forces on the vehicle come from the tires. NADS has made significant contributions to the modeling of tire and tire-terrain interaction, resulting in a suite of models and related capabilities that can be applied to different types of simulations.

Tire models can be attached to existing vehicle models (Click on the image for a larger version)
These combined models are used to perform complex real-time soil deformation (Click on the image for a larger version)

The real-time tire model for on-road vehicle simulation is highly sophisticated and requires comprehensive tire test data. It has been successfully used in simulation involving very aggressive maneuvers, such as those that cause the activation of Electronic Stability Control (ESC) systems. Off-road vehicle simulation is accomplished using the real-time dynamic tire model, a terrain model capable of describing arbitrarily uneven, rigid, or deformable terrains, and a tire-soil interaction model. Unlike the on-road tire model, which is essentially quasi-static with first-order relaxation, the dynamic tire model has internal vibration modes and performs 3D enveloping on rough terrain. Plastic soil deformation is recorded in the dynamic terrain database to correctly account for the effects of multiple passages on one soil patch by multiple wheels. The high-fidelity finite element models can be used for detailed analysis, as well as for generating parameters for real-time models. A virtual test methodology for tire, soil, and tire-soil interaction is used to support the development of a real-time tire-soil interaction model.

Models developed to support tire-soil interaction dynamics:

Example of a modeled tire (Click on the image for a larger version)
A modeled tire can then be applied to any surface (Click on the image for a larger version)

Related capabilities include: