Effect of Road Irregularities in the Dynamic Behavior of a Heavy Vehicle 2014-01-2302

Most of road accidents are caused by human factors. However, there are other factors involved in the occurrence of vehicular crashes, such as the physical condition of the road and vehicle itself. In order to increase road safety is essential to fully understand the interaction of those factors on vehicle's dynamic behavior, especially on heavy vehicles due to their greater mass, dimensions and potential damage that can provoke. This document presents information about the effect of some road surface irregularities on dynamic behavior of a three-axle heavy vehicle, based on a road with an ideally good condition (baseline). To do that, a numerical simulation model that includes both vehicle and road is used. It is able, at some degree, to simulate surface road conditions, such as potholes, friction coefficients at height levels of adjacent lanes. Results show that road surface irregularities affect the vehicle's dynamic behavior negatively, reaching differences beyond 100% in some cases. It was also evident that road pavement irregularities can promote vehicle accidents.