Numerical analysis of natural frequency in an automobile tire having contact with ground

In this study, a 3-D finite element model of an automobile tire (175/70 R 13)which has contact with the ground is constructed and used to investigate naturalfrequencies under different vertical loads. This model is consisted of the 3-Dfinite element model of the tire and its contact with the concrete ground as a solidblock. The vertical loads are applied to the contact area which is between the tireand the concrete block as pressure. The tire is modeled as a composite materialhaving four different parts, tooth, bead bindle, side wall, and carcass. In addition,those parts are made of steel rods, textile cloths, and rubber. The effect of thevertical load, tire inflation, and coefficient of friction between the ground and thetire to the natural frequencies are analyzed numerically. Some numerical resultsare compared with experiments and it is seen that the results are reasonable.Keywords: Pneumatic Tire, Finite Element Method, Vibration