Tool produces accurate real time vehicle system models

The MapleSim Tire Component Library is available at Adept Scientific and has been designed to allow engineers to extend multi-domain MapleSim vehicle models with high performance pneumatic tyre components. MapleSim says its Tire Component Library provides users with industry standard tyre force model components, while linear and user defined tyre models are available to provide flexibility for investigation and analysis. With the point and click graphical environment, the parameterised force models can be integrated into existing vehicle dynamics models by dragging the component into a diagram and connecting the component to the vehicle model. Features include: o Kinematic quantities, such as slip angle, longitudinal slip and inclination angle are derived automatically and available to the user. These quantities are used to determine the tyre forces and moments. o Engineers can control how the tyre slip and rolling radius are calculated and include tyre transients through differential equations involving relaxation lengths. o Support for the following industry standard tyre models: Fiala, Calspan and Pacejka 2002. For custom research and development applications, user defined tyre models can be constructed using an intuitive interface. Laurent Bernardin, executive vice president, Research and Development, Maplesoft, said: "This announcement should come as exciting news to the automotive industry. The additional components pave the way for engineers in the automotive industry to produce more accurate and complex real time models of vehicle systems. Research and analysis in the areas of vehicle dynamics and stability control can also be expanded with this new tool."