STEERING

SYSTEM
PRIMARY FUNCTION

To achieve angular motion of the front

wheels to negotiate a turn
It converts the rotary motion of the
steering wheel into angular motion of the
front road wheels
 Secondary functions
To provide directional stability of the
vehicle when going straight ahead
To provide perfect steering condition i.e
perfect rolling motion of the road wheels at
all times
To facilitate straight ahead recovery after
completing a turn
To minimize tyre wear
 Requirements of good steering system
Should be very accurate

Easy to handle

Effort required to steer should be

minimum

Should provide directional stability

 Front 0.4% C steel or 1.3% Ni steel

axle
It is a dead
axle
But for
most of the
The axle is
vehicles it
is a live I section in the central portion
axle four To take up the bending loads
wheel due to weight of the vehicle
drives
The ends are circular
To take up the torque loads due
to breaking of the wheels
 The main axle beam is connected to
the stub axle by means of king
pins
These are the short axles pivoted to
the chasis of the vehicle
 Types of stub axles
Reversed
Elliot type
is most
common
 Stub
axle

king pin D

Front axle A
Steering linkages
Square
threads or

Or pitman
arm (600 to
900)
Smaller and lighter
mechanism
Used in tractors
Worm and nut steering gear
Recirculating ball type
steering gear

Used in Tata, Fargo,

standard 20 vehicles
 Rack and pinion steering gear

Used in maruti-800 cars

Simple in construction and less linkages
Used in power assisted steering system
 Steering ratio
Number of degrees that the
steering wheel must be turned
to pivot the front wheels one
degree
Generally steering
ration is between
12:1 for cars to 35:1
for heavy vehicles

The higher the

steering ratio,
the easier it is
to steer the
car
 High steering ratios are
often called slow
steering
Low steering ratios are
often called faster quick
steering
 Reversibility

The steering system is said to

be reversible if deflection of
the steered wheels due to
road surface is transmitted
through the steering linkages
and steering box to the
steering wheel
Power steering
For cars and heavy
vehicles, esp. when the
vehicle is to be turned on
a narrow turn
This provides automatic
hydraulic assistance to
the manual steering
system.
These are operated by
fluid under pressure
Principle:
The steering wheel is slightly moved.
This slight movement actuates a valve
Due to this action of valve, the hydraulic under
pressure from the reservoir enters on the appropriate
side of a piston
Thus, pressure is applied on one side of the piston
to operate the steering linkage
Power steering
 Directional stability
is stability of a moving
body or vehicle about
an axis.
Stability of a vehicle
concerns itself with
the tendency of a
vehicle to return to
its original direction
in relation to the
oncoming medium
(water, air, road
surface, etc.) when
disturbed (rotated)
away from that
original direction
A wheel is said to have
directional stability or control
if it can:
Run straight down a road
Enter and leave a turn easily
and
Resist road shocks
 Factors which influence the
stability and control of the vehicle
1. Factors pertaining to wheels

2. Steering geometry

3. Steering linkages

4. Suspension system
 Factors pertaining to wheels
Balance of wheels
if the wheels are not in dynamic balance, the wheel
wobble (shake or vibrate) may result which
influences steering control

Inflation of tyres
The variation of air pressure from the standard
prescribed will change the rolling radius

Brake adjustment
If braking is not adjusted properly, it can pull the
vehicle to one side while braking
Wheel alignment or
Steering geometry
Positioning of the front wheels and
steering mechanism to achieve

Directional stability during straight

ahead position
Promotes ease of steering
Reduces tire wear to a minimum

is called wheel alignment

 Wheel alignment
is used in connection with the stability
and control of the vehicle in motion

Means that while moving straight ahead

the wheels should be parallel
 Wheel alignment is the adjustment of
caster, camber and toe in angles so
that they are set to the car maker's
specification.
The purpose of these adjustments is
to reduce tire wear, and to ensure
that vehicle-travel is straight and true
(without "pulling" to one side).
 Wheel alignment angularity is
the relationship of the angles
among the front wheels, front
wheel attaching parts and the
ground
They include
Toe
Camber
Caster
King pin inclination [ KPI ] or
steering axis inclination [ SAI ]
Turning radius
scrub radius
Set back
Thrust angle
 For good steering, handling and
vehicle stability, it is necessary that;
There should not be any set back
The thrust angle should be zero
Thrust line

F
r
o
n
t
Thrust angle
Angle made by the thrust
line with the longitudinal
centre of the vehicle
 Set back is the difference in vehicle
wheel base from one side to the other
longer
Wheel
base

F
r setback
o
n
t
Shorter
Wheel
Must be less than 6 mm base
 For good steering, handling and vehicle
stability, it is necessary that rear wheels
should follow the front wheels properly

This condition occurs if all the four

wheels are parallel to the frame

This is called tracking

 Toe-in and Toe-out
Toe is a measurement of how much
the front and/or rear wheels are
turned in or out from a straight-ahead
position.
When the wheels are turned in, toe is
positive (+).
When the wheels are turned out, toe
is negative (-).
The actual amount of toe is normally
only a fraction of a degree.

 The purpose of toe is to ensure that

the wheels roll parallel.
Toe also serves to offset the small
deflections of the wheel support
system that occur when the vehicle
is rolling forward.
In other words, with the vehicle
standing still and the wheels set with
toe-in, the wheels tend to roll parallel
on the road when the vehicle is
moving.
Improper toe adjustment will cause
premature tire wear and cause
steering instability.
 The front
wheels are
pointing TOE-IN
inward +

The front
wheels are TOE-OUT
pointing _
outward

Both these conditions are undesirable as they

lead to tread wear, heavy steering & more fuel
consumption
 Toe in or toe out

Toe in = B-A
General Toe-in = 3mm
Toe-out on turn
( Turning radius)

Turning radius is the

difference in angles
between the two front
wheels and the car
frame during a turn.

Turning radius
In cars=5m to7.5m
Buses or trucks=13.85m
 CAMBER The tops of a car's wheels tilt
Definition: Tilt of inward when the camber is
the car wheels negative, outward when it is
from the vertical. positive
Or The angle
between the
plane of a
wheel's
circumference
and a vertical
line, measured in
degrees and
minutes.
The tyre tend to roll
like a truncated Front left tyre (positive camber)
cone about centre of
rotation O.
Thus the tendency
of the wheel would
be to toe out

EFFECT
OF
CAMBER

CAMBER
 Initial positive camber is provided to
the wheels so that when the vehicle
is loaded, they automatically come
to a vertical position

Positive camber
The tyre life
will be causes the wheel
maximum to toe out
when the Camber should
camber angle not generally
in running
exceed 20
condition is
zero with
average load
 The kingpin is the
KING PIN main pivot in the
KING PIN steering mechanism
of a car or other
vehicle.
Originally this was
literally a steel pin on
which the moveable,
steerable wheel was
mounted to the
suspension.
It is usually made of
metal.
 King pin inclination or
steering axis inclination
Inclination of the king pin from
vertical

Also called as Steering axis

inclination where the king pin is
replaced by ball joint in modern
cars
Effect:
Helps the straight ahead recovery thus providing
directional stability
Reduces the steering effort(esp. if the vehicle is
not moving)
It reduces the tyre wear
Amount: about 7- 80
King pin
inclination
Combined angle or included angle
The angle formed in the
vertical plane between the
wheel center line and the
king pin center line
Camber + KPI
It is not an adjustable
angle
Amount:
Combined angle about 9-100
Scrub radius about 12mm
 Scrub radius
(not an alignment angle)
The scrub radius is
the distance in
front view between
the King pin or
Steering Axis and
the center of the
contact patch
where both would
theoretically touch
the road
It is measured in
mm
Effect of combined angle variation in
rear wheel drive vehicle

a) Above the ground ( negative scrub radius) toe in

b) Just at the ground ( zero scrub) center point steering
c) Below the ground (positive scrub radius) toe outs
Caster The angle between
the king pin center
line and the
vertical, in the
plane of the wheel
If the king pin center meets the
ground at a point ahead of the vertical
wheel center line positive castor
Positive castor provides
directional stability and control
steering returnability
increased steering effort
Toe - in
Amount: about 30 gives good results
In both cases positive
castor is provided
This causes the wheel
to be pulled in any
direction
 Correct steering angle

The perfect steering is achieved when all

the four wheels are rolling perfectly
under all conditions of running.
While taking turns, if the axes of the front
wheels when produced meet the rear
wheel axis at one point perfect rolling
This point is the instantaneous center of
the vehicle I.
>
The larger the steering angle((Max 440))
the smaller is the turning circle
Steering linkages
 AC=EF
=E I - F I
B
= AE cot CF cot
A C = AE (cot cot )
D

(cot cot ) =
AC/AE= b / l
l

E I
F

b=distance between pivots of front axle

l = wheel base
,= angles turned by the stub axles
(cot cot ) = b / l
This is the fundamental equation for
correct steering (Ackerman principle)
If this equation is satisfied, there will not
by any lateral slip of the wheels when the
vehicle is taking a turn
The mechanisms used for automatically
adjusting the values of & for correct
steering are known as steering
mechanisms
 Steering mechanism

For perfect steering we must have an

instantaneous center
For this the inner wheel has to turn more
than the outer wheel (>)
To achieve this condition two
mechanisms have been devised
Davis mechanism
Ackermann mechanism universally used &
simple
 Davis steering mechanism
Straight

a
a

K L

M N
h
C D
B
A c

b
 x
x
K Kl L Ll

M N

B
C
A c

b
Let
x=horizontal displacement of cross link
MN when steering is affected
h= distance from cross link MN and
front axle AC
2a= difference between AC and KL
,=angles turned by stub axles
= angle of inclination of links AK and
CL to the vertical line
tan (+) = (tan +tan) / (1-tan tan)
= (a+x)/h
But tan = a/h
So, tan = xh/(h2+a2+ax)
Also
tan ( ) = (tan - tan ) / (1+tan tan)
= (a-x) / h
tan = xh / (h2+a2-ax)
For correct steering
cot cot = 2a/h = 2 tan = b / l
Or
tan =b / 2l
The correct steering is given by
tan = b/2l
b= AC= distance between the pivots of
front axles
l=wheel base
The range of b / l is 0.4 to 0.5, hence angle
lies between 11.3 and 14.1

The main limitation is due to high friction at

sliding pairs the contact surfaces wear
out rapidly and impairs the efficiency of
the mechanism
Ackermann Steering mechanism
 When a vehicle is steered, it
follows a path which is part of
the circumference of its
turning circle, which will have
a centre point somewhere
along a line extending from
the axis of the fixed axle.
Since the wheel on the
outside of the turn will trace a
larger circle than the wheel on
the inside, the wheels need to
be set at different angles.
 The Ackermann steering geometry
arranges this automatically by moving
the steering pivot points inward so as
to lie on a line drawn between the
steering kingpins and the centre of the
rear axle.
The steering pivot points are joined by
a rigid bar, which is usually also part of
the steering mechanism, for example a
rack and pinion.
This arrangement ensures that at any
angle of steering, the centre point of all
of the circles traced by all wheels will
lie at a common point.
 Has only turning pairs
AB- track rod
RA & SB are integral with the stub axles
When the vehicle is in straight ahead position
these links make equal angles with the center
line of the car
Dotted lines - position of the mechanism when
the car is turning left
Let l = length of track rod
r = length of links RA and SB
x = movements of A and B in the horizontal
direction
Then
sin (+) = (y+x) /r
and
sin (-) = (y-x) /r
adding
sin (+) + sin (-) = 2y /r = 2 sin
Cornering force and slip angle
Side thrust is produced
on the vehicle when the
vehicle is taking a turn
To sustain the force the
plane of the wheel must
take some angle (slip
angle) with the direction
of motion of the vehicle
The fore produced to
counteract the side
thrust is called
cornering force
slip angle or sideslip angle is the angle
between a rolling wheel's actual
direction of travel and the direction
towards which it is pointing
This slip angle results in a force
perpendicular to the wheel's direction
of travelthe cornering force.
This cornering force increases
approximately linearly for the first few
degrees of slip angle, then increases
non-linearly to a maximum before
beginning to decrease.
 The value of slip angle depends on
Amount of side force
Flexibility of tyre
Load on wheel
Camber angle
Road surface condition\

The magnitude of slip angle is small at

low speeds and less sharp curves and
increases at high speed and on sharp
turns till on excess of speed and
sharpness of curves the wheel skids
sideways
 For the same slip angle, positive
camber increases the cornering force
while negative camber decreases it.
The alteration in the cornering force,
due to camber is called camber force
The ratio of side force and slip angle
is called the cornering power.
 When the slip angle of the front
wheel is greater that the rear
wheel it is called understeer
When the slip angle is greater
at the rear wheel than the front
the vehicle tends to oversteer
When the front and rear slip
angles are the same
neutral steer occurs
Understeer

Oversteer
 Both understeer and oversteer are
unwanted, yet understeer is less
undesirable

In case of oversteer, the driver is

always conscious of losing the
control and therefore greater care ios
needed
Self-righting torque

Cornering
force
 Modern cars do not use
pure Ackermann
steering, partly because
it ignores important
dynamic and compliant
effects, but the principle
is sound for low speed
manouevres.
End