LATERAL DYNAMICS OF BAJAJ REAR ENGINE AUTO-RICKSHAW

Abstract

The three wheeled vehicles are likely to see resurgence in their usage due to their advantages in being fuel efficient and relatively inexpensive. But any such possibility in a big way is hindered by their notoriety for _unstable behavior and overturning nature in turning maneuvers. Therefore there is a clear need to study the stability behavior and lateral dynamics of three wheeler. The various aspects of vehicle dynamics, vehicle's lateral motion, modeling considerations, equations of motion, eigen value analysis, stability criterion etc. that are relevant for the present work are introduced. The Three-Wheeled vehicle is studied for it's stability and Lateral dynamic behavior. The vehicle chosen for the purpose, baja] RE is modeled as a 4 DOF Bicycle model by representing it as two rigid bodies. Pitching moment due to Wind drag is incorporated into the model. Mass, inertia and frame flexibility parameters of the vehicle have been measured by conducting Static and Dynamic experiments. All the important data is presented. The equations of lateral motion used are taken from previous work[7]. The tyre forces' and moments' equations have been calculated by assuming first order lag characteristics. The eigen values of various modes of vehicle motion are evaluated by means of a program and the modes of motion are studied. The results are presented. Upon making various parametric studies, recommendations are made and conclusions drawn for improving the vehicle's Lateral dynamics. i