Efficient Tire/Handling Development by Applying Virtual Vehicle- and Tire Layout

The lateral dynamic response of passenger cars is highly influenced by the interaction between the vehicle’s suspension system and tire characteristics. One important task in the development of vehicle dynamics performance is the design of the tire characteristics to the needs of the vehicle and its suspension system. Optimizing the whole system is possible in an interactive process between OEM customer and tire supplier. The approach presented in the paper differs from the classical process of building and testing in loops to a future-oriented process of introducing virtual development approaches in vehicle and tire development. On the tire side we will be discussing the use of modern simulation methods to predict tire force and moment characteristics based on tire simulation methods and on the vehicle side we will be going into the integration of virtual tire characteristics into the vehicle performance simulation. Furthermore, target setting and target fulfillment will be discussed along with taking other criteria than vehicle handling, e.g., rolling resistance requirements, into account.