PROVIDING THE INERTIA PROPERTIES OF VEHICLES AND THEIR SUB SYSTEMS FOR VIRTUAL REALITY AND MECHATRONICS APPLICATIONS

摘要

There are many methods available to measure (and/or compute) the inertia properties of vehicles and their sub-systems. But no standards are presently available defining the appropriate measurement tolerances that are needed for engineering activities. The paper addresses this problem by means of both experimental and theoretical investigations. Two different validated mathematical models were used, one for the entire vehicle and the other for the powertrain. A sensitivity analysis over a selected set of performance indexes was performed by using the two models. After defining reasonable tolerances on the performance indices defining the dynamic behaviour of the vehicle and its powertrain, the proper tolerances on the inertia properties were obtained. Relatively small variations of the inertia properties may produce significant variation in the considered dynamic performances of a vehicle and its subsystem.