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The purpose of this study was to conduct an initial examination of the effect of two different motorscooter brake control configurations on operator braking response time. The method was a basic laboratory response time test of light stimulus to brake control activation using stationary vehicles. Operator braking response times were longer for a hand lever front brake/ foot pedal rear brake configuration than for a hand lever front brake/ hand lever rear brake configuration.

Knowing motorcycle speeds at various points throughout an accident sequence is valuable in reconstructing an accident. Often, the motorcycle slides on its side for some distance during the accident sequence. In order to account for the sliding segment in the speed calculations, a suitable slide coefficient must be selected or determined. During this study, an accurate measurement methodology was developed for determining slide coefficients. Once the test methodology was established, eight different motorcycles were tested to determine their slide coefficients at 48 and 97 km/h. The test surfaces were asphalt pavement, dirt, and gravel, and the motorcycles were tested on the right and left sides. Some motorcycles were tested multiple times on one side also. The test group included standard, cruiser, sport, and touring motorcycles.

Motorcycle brake testing for accident reconstruction, compliance, or research, requires the measurement of several parameters to document system performance. To fully document brake system performance requires a data acquisition system with sensors for measuring speed, braking distance, temperatures, line pressures and actuation forces. Until recently, data acquisition systems have been, in general, too heavy, bulky, or limited in function for use on motorcycles. This study describes the design features, hardware, and performance of an on-board data acquisition system developed for motorcycle brake testing. The self-contained package has analog, digital, and counter channels which can be scanned at high frequency. The fully programmable unit can be optimized for varied applications. Speed and distance measuring accuracy are verified and compared to commonly used measurement methods such as speed traps, radar guns, and chalkmarkers.

The concept of utilizing an electrically actuated aircraft braking system could result in greater fire safety, the elimination of centralized hydraulics, and compatibility with an all-electric aircraft. Using the Air Force A-10 as a test bed, the first fully functional electric brake was laboratory tested, qualified, and installed on an aircraft for testing. On-aircraft testing was curtailed due to a dynamic instability between the brake and landing gear. An extensive laboratory dynamometer test program was substituted. The prototype electric brake demonstrated performance nearly equivalent to the production hydraulic brake with a potential for more accurate torque control.

The rapid repair of bomb-damaged runways is of increasing concern to the U.S. Air Force, therefore, expedient repair concepts are being developed. Aircraft performance effects imposed by the repair treatments include: tire flotation, aircraft weight, landing dynamics, and the forces generated at the tire/runway surface interface. This study focuses on tire/runway surface interface forces and was initiated to evaluate several surfaces with respect to their relative tractive and lateral force potential. Three damage repair surface materials, a baseline concrete surface, and a ceramic aluminized marking strip were tested. Quasi-static tests were run at seven tire yaw angles, with and without braking under dry, wet, and icy conditions.