Lightweight Design Optimization of Nonpneumatic Tires under Radial-Stiffness Constraints

Nonpneumatic tires (NPTs) have good safety and a good load-carrying capacity, and they replace the function of air in pneumatic tires with a solid spoke component. The radial stiffness and weight are the important indexes for evaluating the performance of an NPT. In this research, we designed an NPT...

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Main Authors: Ting Xu, Jianglin Yang, Liangliang Zhu, Fei Gao
Format: Article
Language:English
Published: MDPI AG 2022-10-01
Series:Machines
Subjects:
Online Access:https://www.mdpi.com/2075-1702/10/10/889
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author Ting Xu
Jianglin Yang
Liangliang Zhu
Fei Gao
author_facet Ting Xu
Jianglin Yang
Liangliang Zhu
Fei Gao
author_sort Ting Xu
collection DOAJ
description Nonpneumatic tires (NPTs) have good safety and a good load-carrying capacity, and they replace the function of air in pneumatic tires with a solid spoke component. The radial stiffness and weight are the important indexes for evaluating the performance of an NPT. In this research, we designed an NPT according to the requirements of vehicle Chery eQ1 based on weight minimization. Taking the radial stiffness related to the bearing-capacity performance as the constraint condition, a topology-optimization algorithm is proposed to find the best thickness distribution of the spokes with the objective of minimizing the mass. First, the mechanical properties of the material were obtained with the test. Then, the FE model of an NPT with a Fibonacci spoke structure was built and validated with a radial-stiffness test on a five rigid test machine. The optimization algorithm was carried out by searching for the best thickness distribution of the spoke after verifying the reliability of the FE model. Finally, the optimized tire was manufactured, and the stiffness test was carried out to verify the feasibility of the optimization results. The results show that the spoke mass can be reduced by 9% by using the proposed optimization algorithm while satisfying the radial-stiffness constraint.
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spelling doaj.art-438d3077cade470799577c62e6386c8a2023-11-30T22:50:56ZengMDPI AGMachines2075-17022022-10-01101088910.3390/machines10100889Lightweight Design Optimization of Nonpneumatic Tires under Radial-Stiffness ConstraintsTing Xu0Jianglin Yang1Liangliang Zhu2Fei Gao3Ji Hua Laboratory, Foshan 528200, ChinaJi Hua Laboratory, Foshan 528200, ChinaJi Hua Laboratory, Foshan 528200, ChinaState Key Laboratory of Automotive Simulation and Control, Changchun 130025, ChinaNonpneumatic tires (NPTs) have good safety and a good load-carrying capacity, and they replace the function of air in pneumatic tires with a solid spoke component. The radial stiffness and weight are the important indexes for evaluating the performance of an NPT. In this research, we designed an NPT according to the requirements of vehicle Chery eQ1 based on weight minimization. Taking the radial stiffness related to the bearing-capacity performance as the constraint condition, a topology-optimization algorithm is proposed to find the best thickness distribution of the spokes with the objective of minimizing the mass. First, the mechanical properties of the material were obtained with the test. Then, the FE model of an NPT with a Fibonacci spoke structure was built and validated with a radial-stiffness test on a five rigid test machine. The optimization algorithm was carried out by searching for the best thickness distribution of the spoke after verifying the reliability of the FE model. Finally, the optimized tire was manufactured, and the stiffness test was carried out to verify the feasibility of the optimization results. The results show that the spoke mass can be reduced by 9% by using the proposed optimization algorithm while satisfying the radial-stiffness constraint.https://www.mdpi.com/2075-1702/10/10/889nonpneumatic tiresradial stiffnesslightweightthicknesstopology optimization
spellingShingle Ting Xu
Jianglin Yang
Liangliang Zhu
Fei Gao
Lightweight Design Optimization of Nonpneumatic Tires under Radial-Stiffness Constraints
Machines
nonpneumatic tires
radial stiffness
lightweight
thickness
topology optimization
title Lightweight Design Optimization of Nonpneumatic Tires under Radial-Stiffness Constraints
title_full Lightweight Design Optimization of Nonpneumatic Tires under Radial-Stiffness Constraints
title_fullStr Lightweight Design Optimization of Nonpneumatic Tires under Radial-Stiffness Constraints
title_full_unstemmed Lightweight Design Optimization of Nonpneumatic Tires under Radial-Stiffness Constraints
title_short Lightweight Design Optimization of Nonpneumatic Tires under Radial-Stiffness Constraints
title_sort lightweight design optimization of nonpneumatic tires under radial stiffness constraints
topic nonpneumatic tires
radial stiffness
lightweight
thickness
topology optimization
url https://www.mdpi.com/2075-1702/10/10/889
work_keys_str_mv AT tingxu lightweightdesignoptimizationofnonpneumatictiresunderradialstiffnessconstraints
AT jianglinyang lightweightdesignoptimizationofnonpneumatictiresunderradialstiffnessconstraints
AT liangliangzhu lightweightdesignoptimizationofnonpneumatictiresunderradialstiffnessconstraints
AT feigao lightweightdesignoptimizationofnonpneumatictiresunderradialstiffnessconstraints