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In this paper, a simple vehicle model was investigated for the study of vehicle behavior in the straight-ahead motion. The vehicle model has two degrees of freedom without any suspension effect included. Through the analyses of the model with the various tire properties, we can explain how force and moment characteristics of the tires can cause lateral drift in the straight- ahead motion in free control mode. In the second part of the paper, a commercially available car was selected for the validity of the analyses. This car was modeled in detail with one of the multi-body dynamics simulation programs. The simulation results show that the amount of vehicle deviation from the intended straight path is directly related to a characteristic of the front axle tires, known as ATSP (Aligning Torque Static Phase).

Sound transmission into a vehicle is classified as either airborne of structure-borne sound. From the point of view of noise control, the reduction of noise transferred by different paths requires different solutions. Coherence function analysis is often used to identify transmission paths. However it can be difficult to separate the airborne from structure-borne components. The principle of acoustic reciprocity offers a convenient method for overcoming this difficulty. The principle states that the transfer function between an acoustic volume velocity source and an acoustic receiver is independent of a reversal of the position of source and receiver. The work done on this study involves exciting a stationary tire and measuring the surface velocity of the tire at a number of discrete points. The acoustic transfer functions between each point on the tire and a receiver point are measured reciprocally.

Despite the disadvantages in aspects of ride comfort due to the thick sidewall, sidewall reinforced run-flat tires, compared to other types of run-flat tires, have more advantages in use of commercially available rim, easy assembly of tire and rim and manufacturing processibility. In this paper, the design concepts and problems encountered in the development of sidewall reinforced run-flat tires are studied. The condition of no internal air pressure under the vertical load induces the severe bending force on the sidewalls of the tire. To develop the sidewall reinforcing rubber compound and the sidewall construction to support this bending force efficiently are the core concerns for designing the sidewall reinforced run-flat tire. The bending force also causes a problem of bead unseating from the rim. In addition to that, another problem is how to solve the manufacturing process problems which come from thicker sidewall compared to the standard tires.