Tire Modeling by Finite Elements

Abstract

Abstract Recent advances in the development of a general three‐dimensional finite element methodology for modeling large deformation steady state behavior of tire structures is presented. The new developments outlined here include the extension of the material modeling capabilities to include viscoelastic materials and a generalization of the formulation of the rolling contact problem to include special nonlinear constraints. These constraints include normal contact load, applied torque, and constant pressure‐volume. Several new test problems and examples of tire analysis are presented.