DESIGN AND SIMULATION OF A HEAVY-DUTY VEHICLE STEERING COMPONENT BY ANALYTIC AND FEA METHOD

Abstract

All vehicles need a steering system for safe driving. Drag link is a crucial component of the steering system in heavy commercial vehicles because it allows us to travel safely by transmitting the rotational movement from the arm of the pitman to the axle of the wheel linearly. The drag link used in a vehicle should be manufactured from materials that are resistant to variable loads depending on the vehicle's operating conditions. Furthermore, the rod arms must fulfill the expected function in tight spaces in the vehicle package data, and be designed in different bends and geometries depending on the regulation conditions they are subject to. In this study, different tube raw materials such as; St37-2, St 52-3, and P460 N were selected, and bending strengths calculated under various loading conditions. Finite Element (FE) models created, analyses performed, and the effects of different loads on the drag link were evaluated. Obtained results from the Finite Element Analysis (FEA) were compared with each other. Suitable material was selected based on analytic and FEA studies.

Keywords

• Design of Drag Link
• Finite Element Analysis
• Buckling Strength
• Steering System

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