Steering Kinematics

To maneuver a vehicle we need a steering

mechanism to turn wheels.
The kinematic steering analysis applicable in
different vehicle wheel configurations. Such as:
1. front-wheel-steering with two axle vehicles
2. rear-wheel-steering with two axle vehicles
3. Kinematic steering condition for a vehicle
with different tracks in the front and in the
back.
4. Vehicles with More Than Two Axles
5. Vehicle with Trailer
 Front
steer

Rear
steer
Kinematic steering condition for a vehicle with different tracks in the front and in the back.
Vehicles with More Than Two Axles
Vehicle with Trailer
• A front-wheel-steering of 4WD vehicle
that is turning to the left, as shown in
Figure below.
• When the vehicle is moving very slowly,
there is a kinematic condition between
the inner and outer wheels that allows
them to turn slip-free. The condition is
called the Ackerman condition and is
expressed by:
Where, δi is the steer angle of the inner wheel
and
δo is the steer angle of the outer wheel.
where δ is the cot-average of
the inner and outer steer
angles.
 Space requirement during steering

• The kinematic steering condition can

be used to calculate the space
requirement of a vehicle during a
turn.
• The outer point of the front of the
vehicle will run on the maximum
radius RMax, whereas a point on the
inner side of the vehicle at the
location of the rear axle will run on
the minimum radius Rmin. The front
outer point has an overhang distance
‘g’ from the front axle. The maximum
 Rear-wheel-steering

• Rear-wheel-steering is used where high

maneuverability is a necessity on a low-
speed vehicle, such as forklifts.
• Rear-wheel-steering is not used on
street vehicles because it is unstable at
high speeds.
• The center of rotation for a rear-wheel-
steering vehicle is always a point on
the front axle.
• The kinematic steering condition
remains the same analysis for a front-
wheel steering vehicle.