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A methodology is presented to estimate lateral tire force dynamics. The methodology is based on EKF (extended Kalman filter) and makes it possible to determine lateral tire force dynamics on the basis of the results obtained from various on-road handling manoeuvres such as lane change, slalom, and circuit driving. A vehicle model having four degrees of freedom is used to estimate the lateral tire dynamics where the lateral tire forces are described by the Magic formula with transient behavior. Several handling tests including subjective and objective are performed. The objective data are used to extract lateral tire dynamics during handling test manoeuvres. The estimated lateral tire forces are compared with the experimental one measured from indoor Flat-trac machine. Also, the subjective ratings are compared with the estimated lateral tire characteristics such as cornering stiffness, lateral peak friction and load sensitivity.

Since the environmental problems and new stricter regulations are forcing the industries to introduce more ecological materials for their products, biodegradable materials have attracted increasing attention. Among these materials, Polylactic acid (PLA) is remarkable for its modulus, strength, chemical resistance. However, PLA could not be used for automobile industries for its low heat resistance and impact strength. Therefore, in this study natural fiber was introduced as reinforcements in order to improve the properties of PLA. And for various experiments, Polypropylene (PP) was used as matrix resin instead of PLA. Especially for improving the properties of PLA composites, surface treatments, annealing, and adding rubber elements were performed. With surface treatments, we found that the mechanical properties of composite were improved. And with annealing treatment, we found the remarkable increase of heat resistance of PLA composite.