United States Department of Transportation
i
Influence of a Trailer's Axle Arrangement and Loads on the Stability and Control of a Tractor/Semitrailer
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1998-09-01
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[PDF-6.45 MB]
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TRIS Online Accession Number:753944
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Edition:Final Report
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Abstract:The evaluation of a basic vehicle type relative to another, in terms of stability and control properties, can be done comprehensively only by examining its behavior over a wide range of loading conditions, component selection, and operation variables, such as tire tread wear level, pavement friction, etc. While the scope of this study did not permit an evaluation at such levels of detail, the results show the safety-related dynamic performance effects of varying a trailer's axle arrangement (tandem vs. tridem), suspension type (steel vs. air), tire type (dual vs. wide-base single), and axle loading level. Typical five- and six-axle tractor/semitrailers [483-cm (190-in.) tractor and 14.6-m (48-ft) van-semitrailer] were used in this study. Vehicle safety-related dynamic performance is examined using a recent version of the constant-speed yaw/roll model developed by the University of Michigan Transportation Research Institute (UMTRI). The five- and six-axle tractor/semitrailers are examined using three loading scenarios: (1) loading the trailer with control tractor axle loads at their maximum legal limits, i.e., 5443.2 kg and 15422.4 kg (12 kips and 34 kips) at the steering and tandem drive axles, respectively; (2) loading the trailer without controlling the tractor axle loads; and (3) keeping the payload constant (constant center of gravity height) and varying the trailer axle spacing. It should be noted that the second loading scenario represents the maximum possible gross vehicle weight gain for these vehicle configurations, provided that the load on the steering axle does not exceed the maximum limit of 5443.2 kg (12 kips). Furthermore, the results of this analysis may assist in understanding the performance trends for other tractor/semitrailer configurations that have different dimensions, suspensions, tires, fifth-wheel settings, tractor parameters, and other component characteristics.
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