Abstract
The subject of this paper is the study of the torque applied to the steering wheel of a vehicle in stationary conditions. A theoretical model for calculating the steering torque was presented, followed by the experimental measurements that validate it. There was chosen the static mode that is similar to parking conditions, for analyzing the maximum torque values. The vehicle chosen for the tests was a city version with a non assisted steering system. A transducer for torque measurement was created by using strain gages, and was mounted on the pinion shaft from the steering box.
For obtaining a torque steering angle dependence, there was applied a linear transducer for displacement measurements. This was rigidly fixed to the shell of the steering box and connected to one of the outer parts of the rack. For data acquisition, there was used a Spider 8 model data acquisition system. The transducer was calibrated by using a force transducer mounted on the steering wheel and pulled on a tangent direction. The results obtained are part of a dynamic analysis of a steering mechanism that takes into account the deformability of its elements.
Keywords: steering, torque, static, shaft, transducer