Drag Forces Experienced by Two, Full-Scale Vehicles at Close Spacing University of Southern California

Format:

Conference/Event

Author/Creator:

Hong, Patrick, author.

Conference Name:

Future Transportation Technology Conference and Exposition (1997-08-06 : San Diego, California, United States)

International Congress & Exposition (1998-02-23 : Detroit, Michigan, United States)

Language:

English

Physical Description:

1 online resource

Place of Publication:

Warrendale, PA SAE International 1998

Summary:

The present study aims to document the drag reduction for a two-vehicle platoon by operating two full-scale Ford Windstar vans in tandem on a desert lakebed. Drag forces are measured with the aid of a special tow bar force measuring system designed and manufactured at USC. The testing procedure consists of a smooth acceleration, followed by a smooth deceleration of the platoon. Data collected during acceleration allows the calculation of the drag force on the trail-vehicle, while data collected during deceleration is used to calculate the drag on the lead vehicle. Results from the full-scale tests show that the drag behaviors for the two vans are in general agreement with the earlier conclusions drawn from the wind tunnel testsænamely, both vans experience substantial drag savings at spacings of a fraction of a car length

Notes:

Vendor supplied data

Publisher Number:

980396

Access Restriction:

Restricted for use by site license