Efficient flexible tire-terrain interaction modelling

The analysis of tire dynamics is essential in simulating vehicle behavior. The forces exerted on a tire depend on the interaction between the tire and the terrain at the contact patch, and the tire structure directly influences this interaction. Complex models, such as finite element or lumped-parameter models, are typically required to represent tire flexibility accurately. However, these models are computationally expensive, making them unsuitable for real-time simulation.

In this work, we develop a reduced model for flexible tire-terrain interaction. A reduced model is a lower-fidelity representation that captures essential features of a complex system at a significantly lower computational cost. Our model efficiently represents the influence of tire flexibility on vehicle dynamics by computing the effective stiffness of the tire and combining it with a rigid body wheel model.

We observe that the contact patch size, which depends on tire deformation, directly affects traction forces. A larger contact patch enables the generation of greater frictional force before slipping. In the proposed model, effective stiffness is used to determine the contact patch size, which then scales the friction coefficient accordingly.

Simulation results demonstrate efficient real-time performance with high accuracy, making the model well-suited for diverse vehicle simulation applications.