Tire running performance measurement device

Abstract

A tire running performance measurement device 1 for measuring the running performance of a measurement target tire ET includes: a vehicle V; and a measurement target tire support tool S configured separately from the vehicle yet attached to the vehicle, and configured to support the measurement target tire. The measurement target tire support tool is configured to be able to adjust a load applied to the measurement target tire.

Description

Tire running performance measuring device

[0001] The present invention relates to a tire running performance measuring device. This application claims priority to Japanese Patent Application No. 2023-208859, filed on December 11, 2023, the entire contents of which are incorporated herein by reference.

[0002] Conventionally, as a tire running performance measuring device for measuring the running performance of a tire to be measured (hereinafter also referred to as a "test tire"), there is a rail-type device configured so that a support for the test tire is slid on a guide rail within a housing (for example, Non-Patent Document 1).

[0003] Kojiro Iizuka, Takashi Kubota. "Verification of a Lunar Exploration Rover's Driving System for Traveling on Soft Ground." Science and Technology Research, Vol. 1, No. 1, 2012. https: / / www.jstage.jst.go.jp / article / sst / 1 / 1 / 1_49 / _pdf / -char / ja (accessed October 30, 2023).

[0004] However, there is a concern that the tire running performance measuring device described above has limitations on the size of the tire to be measured and the running speed.

[0005] An object of the present invention is to provide a tire running performance measuring device that can accommodate a wider range of tire sizes and running speeds to be measured.

[0006] [1] A tire running performance measuring device for measuring the running performance of a tire to be measured, comprising: a vehicle; and a tire support device to be measured that is configured separately from the vehicle and attached to the vehicle, and that is configured to support the tire to be measured, wherein the tire support device to be measured is configured to be able to adjust the load applied to the tire to be measured.

[0007] According to the present invention, it is possible to provide a tire running performance measuring device that can accommodate a wider range of tire sizes and running speeds to be measured.

[0008] 5 is a perspective view schematically showing a tire running performance measurement device according to an embodiment of the present invention, as seen from the rear right side. FIG. 6 is a perspective view schematically showing the tire running performance measurement device of FIG. 1, as seen from the rear left side. FIG. 7 is a side view schematically showing a portion of the tire running performance measurement device of FIG. 1, as seen from the left side. FIG. 8 is a rear view schematically showing the tire running performance measurement device of FIG. 1, as seen from the rear side. FIG. 9 is a top view schematically showing a portion of the tire running performance measurement device of FIG. 1, as seen from above. FIG. 10 is a top view schematically showing an enlarged view of a portion of FIG. 5. FIG. 11 is a top view schematically showing an enlarged view of a portion of FIG. 5 (however, a portion different from FIG. 6). FIG. 9 is a perspective view schematically showing the swing arm of FIG. 1. FIG. 9(a) and FIG. 9(b) are top views schematically showing different modified examples of the tire running performance measurement device of the present invention, as seen from above.

[0009] The tire running performance measuring device according to the present invention can be used to measure the running performance of any type of tire, and can be suitably used, for example, to measure the running performance of tires for lunar rovers.

[0010] DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS Hereinafter, embodiments of a tire according to the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings. In the drawings, common members and parts are designated by the same reference numerals.

[0011] 1 to 8 are diagrams illustrating a tire running performance measuring device 1 according to one embodiment of the present invention. The tire running performance measuring device 1 is configured to measure the running performance of a tire ET to be measured (hereinafter also referred to as a "test tire ET"). The test tire ET may be any type of tire, and may be, for example, a lunar rover tire. As shown in FIGS. 1 to 5, the tire running performance measuring device 1 includes a vehicle V and a test tire support S.

[0012] The vehicle V may be any type of vehicle, with a four-wheel vehicle being preferred. The vehicle V includes a vehicle body VB and a plurality of tires VT (four in this embodiment) mounted on the vehicle body VB (hereinafter also referred to as "vehicle-mounted tires VT"). The vehicle V may have any conventional vehicle configuration. For example, a lightweight vehicle (such as a buggy) suitable for soft ground is preferred as the vehicle V, as this allows stable travel and measurement even on rough roads such as soft ground.

[0013] It is preferable that the vehicle V be configured to automatically control the vehicle speed so that the desired vehicle speed is maintained while traveling. From the viewpoint of stable measurement at various locations and speeds, it is preferable to use a laser Doppler vehicle speed sensor as the vehicle speed sensor. However, the vehicle V does not have to be configured to automatically control the vehicle speed.

[0014] The measurement target tire support tool S is configured separately from the vehicle V (and is therefore located outside the vehicle V). The measurement target tire support tool S is attached to the body VB of the vehicle V. The measurement target tire support tool S is configured to support the measurement target tire ET so that the measurement target tire ET is maintained at a predetermined height and posture. During measurement (and therefore while the vehicle V is traveling), the measurement target tire ET is supported by the measurement target tire support tool S so that its tread surface comes into contact with the road surface or the like.

[0015] The tire running performance measuring device 1 is configured to cause a test tire ET connected to the vehicle V via a test tire support S to roll on the road surface or the like (e.g., soft ground) while the vehicle V is running on the road surface or the like in response to driver driving and / or automatic driving, etc., and to measure various running performances (slip ratio, etc.) of the test tire ET during this time using various measuring devices (not shown, sensors, etc.). The measuring devices that measure the running performance of the test tire ET are preferably not mounted on the vehicle V, and may be mounted on the test tire support S, for example.

[0016] For ease of explanation, the present specification defines a support depth direction AD and a support width direction BD fixed to the measurement target tire support S. The support depth direction AD and the support width direction BD are parallel to the horizontal direction and perpendicular to each other. In the present specification, one side in the support depth direction AD is referred to as the "support depth direction first side AD1," and the other side in the support depth direction AD is referred to as the "support depth direction second side AD2." Furthermore, one side in the support width direction BD is referred to as the "support width direction first side BD1," and the other side in the support width direction BD is referred to as the "support width direction second side BD2." The support depth direction second side AD2 is the side of the measurement target tire support S as viewed from the vehicle V. In each drawing, these directions are indicated with arrows. Note that in the configuration of the measurement target tire support S described in the present specification, the support width direction first side BD1 and the support width direction second side BD2 may be reversed. That is, in this embodiment, the support widthwise first side BD1 is the left side when the support depthwise first side AD1 is viewed as the front side, but it may be the right side when the support depthwise first side AD1 is viewed as the front side. Furthermore, in this specification, unless otherwise specified, the right, left, front, and rear of the vehicle V (as viewed from the vehicle V) will be simply referred to as the "right," "left," "front," and "rear," respectively.

[0017] In this embodiment, the measurement target tire support S is located on the rear side with respect to the vehicle V. Therefore, in this embodiment, the support depth direction AD is the front-to-rear direction, the support depth direction first side AD1 is the front side, the support depth direction second side AD2 is the rear side, and the support width direction BD is the left-to-right direction. Note that in this embodiment, the support width direction first side BD1 is the left side, and the support width direction second side BD2 is the right side. However, the measurement target tire support S may be located on any side with respect to the vehicle V (e.g., the left side, right side, or front side). For example, when the measurement target tire support S is located on the right side with respect to the vehicle V, the support depth direction AD is the left-to-right direction, the support depth direction second side AD2 is the right side, and the support width direction BD is the front-to-rear direction. It is preferable that the measurement target tire support S is located on the rear side with respect to the vehicle V, as in this embodiment.

[0018] The measurement target tire support S is attached to the vehicle body VB of the vehicle V at a second side AD2 in the support depth direction (rear side in this embodiment).

[0019] As described above, the tire running performance measuring device 1 of this embodiment includes a vehicle V and a test target tire support S that is configured separately from the vehicle V and attached to the vehicle V to support the test target tire ET. This, unlike conventional rail-type devices, enables the use of larger test target tires ET and measurement at higher speeds, thereby expanding the range of test target tire ET sizes and running speeds that can be accommodated. Furthermore, while conventional rail-type devices are basically limited to indoor installation locations, the tire running performance measuring device 1 of this embodiment is configured to be movable by the vehicle V, so there are no restrictions on the location of use or storage, and it can be used anywhere, both indoors and outdoors. Therefore, it can be used on a variety of ground types, in large areas such as vacant lots, etc. As another method for measuring the running performance of the test target tire ET, it is also possible to mount the test target tire ET on a vehicle body VB. In this case, it would be sufficient if the type of vehicle body VB and the types and sizes of the tires VT mounted thereon could be unified; however, in reality, discrepancies often occur, such as when the type of vehicle body VB is different from the vehicle model suitable for the measurement target tire ET (for example, when the measurement target tire ET is for a lunar rover while the vehicle body VB is for a passenger car), or when the types and sizes of the remaining tires VT mounted on the vehicle body VB are different from the type and size of the measurement target tire ET (for example, when the measurement target tire ET is for a lunar rover while the remaining tires VT mounted on the vehicle body VB are for passenger cars), and in such cases, there is a risk that measurement cannot be performed under the intended conditions. In this regard, with the tire driving performance measuring device 1 of the present embodiment, the measurement target tire ET is independent of the vehicle V, so it is possible to use, as the measurement target tire ET, tires of a type and size that are significantly different from the type of the vehicle body VB on the vehicle V and the types and sizes of the tires VT.

[0020] The test subject tire support S is configured to adjust the load applied to the test subject tire ET. More specifically, the test subject tire support S is configured to adjust the height of the rotation axis of the test subject tire ET to adjust the load applied to the test subject tire ET. By raising the height of the rotation axis of the test subject tire ET while the tread surface of the test subject tire ET is in contact with the road surface, the load applied to the test subject tire ET can be reduced, making it possible to reproduce, for example, a load state in an environment with lower gravity than that of Earth (e.g., the surface of the moon). On the other hand, by lowering the height of the rotation axis of the test subject tire ET while the tread surface of the test subject tire ET is in contact with the road surface, the load applied to the test subject tire ET can be increased. As described above, in the tire running performance measuring device 1 of this embodiment, the test subject tire support S, which is configured separately from the vehicle V (i.e., located outside the vehicle V), is configured to adjust the load applied to the test subject tire ET, so that the weight of the vehicle V is not applied to the test subject tire ET. Therefore, the load applied to the measurement target tire ET can be adjusted independently of the vehicle V, and therefore, unlike the case where the measurement target tire ET is mounted on the vehicle body VB as described above, there is no need to adjust the weight of the vehicle V when adjusting the load applied to the measurement target tire ET. This makes it easy to adjust the load applied to the measurement target tire ET.

[0021] As shown in Figures 1 to 8, in this embodiment, the measurement target tire support S has a swing arm pivot shaft SP, a swing arm SA, a measurement target tire mounting portion ST, a power cylinder SS, and one or more (in this embodiment, multiple) power cylinder fixing members SF.

[0022] The swing arm pivot shaft SP is attached by fastening or the like to the vehicle body VB of the vehicle V. In this embodiment, the swing arm pivot shaft SP is attached to a portion of the vehicle body VB on a second support depth direction side AD2. The swing arm pivot shaft SP extends substantially horizontally, and more specifically, extends substantially in the support width direction BD (FIGS. 5 and 6).

[0023] The swing arm SA is made of a rigid body such as metal or resin. The swing arm SA is configured to be swingable around the central axis SPC of the swing arm pivot shaft SP ( FIGS. 1 to 3 , 5 to 6 , and 8 ). More specifically, the swing arm SA has a pivot portion SAP at its end on the first side AD1 in the support depth direction. The pivot portion SAP forms a pivot mechanism with the swing arm pivot shaft SP and is configured to be swingable around the central axis SPC of the swing arm pivot shaft SP. In this embodiment, the pivot portion SAP of the swing arm SA extends substantially in the support width direction BD ( FIGS. 5 to 6 ). The pivot portion SAP has a pair of opposing portions SAPF that face each other in the up-down direction, forming a bifurcated shape ( FIGS. 2 to 3 , and 8 ). The pair of opposing portions SAPF are located on both the top and bottom sides of the swing arm pivot shaft SP. In this embodiment, the pivot portion SAP has one or more (in this embodiment, multiple) fastening holes SAPh. More specifically, each of a pair of opposing portions SAPF has one or more (in this embodiment, multiple) fastening holes SAPh. The pivot portion SAP is connected to the swing arm pivot shaft SP via these fastening holes SAPh with one or more (in this embodiment, multiple) fastening members fa (bolts, pins, etc.). The swing arm pivot shaft SP is attached to the vehicle body VB so as to be pivotable about its central axis SPC. This allows the pivot portion SAP of the swing arm SA to be pivotable about the central axis SPC of the swing arm pivot shaft SP. However, the pivot mechanism consisting of the pivot portion SAP of the swing arm pivot shaft SP and the swing arm SA is not limited to that of this embodiment and may be any. For example, the pivot portion SAP of the swing arm SA may be configured to be swingable around the swing arm pivot shaft SP (i.e., relative to the swing arm pivot shaft SP), thereby configuring the pivot portion SAP of the swing arm SA to be swingable around the central axis SPC of the swing arm pivot shaft SP.In this case, the swing arm pivot shaft SP may be fixed to the vehicle body VB so as not to be able to swing. The shape and configuration of the pivot portion SAP may be different from those in this embodiment.

[0024] The swing arm SA further has a holding portion SAS and an extension portion SAE in addition to the pivot portion SAP.

[0025] In this embodiment, the holding portion SAS of the swing arm SA is located at the end of the swing arm SA on the second side AD2 in the support depth direction. The holding portion SAS is configured to hold the measurement target tire mounting portion ST (specifically, the knuckle integrated portion STN) ( FIGS. 4 , 5 , and 7 ). The holding portion SAS is bifurcated by having a pair of opposing portions SASF that face each other in the vertical direction ( FIGS. 1 , 4 , and 8 ). The pair of opposing portions SASF are located on both the upper and lower sides of the measurement target tire mounting portion ST (specifically, the knuckle integrated portion STN). In this embodiment, the holding portion SAS has one or more (in this embodiment, multiple) fastening holes SASh. More specifically, each of the pair of opposing portions SASF has one or more (in this embodiment, multiple) fastening holes SAPh. The retaining portion SAS is connected to the measurement target tire mounting portion ST (specifically, the knuckle integrated portion STN) via these fastening holes SASh and one or more (in this embodiment, multiple) fastening members fb (bolts, pins, etc.). The shape and configuration of the retaining portion SAS may be different from those in this embodiment.

[0026] The extension portion SAE of the swing arm SA extends between the pivot portion SAP and the retaining portion SAS in the support depth direction AD. In this embodiment, the end of the extension portion SAE on the first support depth direction side AD1 is connected to the end of the pivot portion SAP on the second support width direction side BD2, and the end of the extension portion SAE on the second support depth direction side AD2 is connected to the end of the retaining portion SAS on the second support width direction side BD2. As a result, the swing arm SA has a generally U-shape when viewed from above ( FIG. 5 ). However, the shape of the swing arm SA may be different from that of this embodiment.

[0027] When the swing arm SA swings around the central axis SPC of the swing arm pivot shaft SP, the holding portion SAS of the swing arm SA (and thus the measurement target tire mounting portion ST held by the holding portion SAS, and the measurement target tire ET mounted on the measurement target tire mounting portion ST) moves approximately in the vertical direction along an arc centered on the central axis SPC of the swing arm pivot shaft SP.

[0028] The measurement target tire mounting portion ST is fixed to the swing arm SA and is configured to mount a measurement target tire ET (FIGS. 4 and 5). In this embodiment, the measurement target tire mounting portion ST includes a wheel STW configured to mount the measurement target tire ET, a hub STH, a drive shaft STD, and a knuckle integral portion STN (FIG. 4). The wheel STW is fixed to the hub STH connected to the drive shaft STD. The knuckle integral portion STN includes at least a knuckle. The knuckle integral portion STN is located on the outer periphery of the drive shaft STD and rotatably supports the drive shaft STD. The knuckle integral portion STN may be composed of only the knuckle, or may include, in addition to the knuckle, other members fixed to the knuckle (and thus integral with the knuckle). The knuckle integral portion STN is fixed to the retaining portion SAS of the swing arm SA by fastening or the like. In this embodiment, the wheel STW and the tire ET to be measured mounted thereon are located on a first side BD1 in the support width direction with respect to the holding portion SAS of the swing arm SA. The rotation axes of the wheel STW and the tire ET to be measured are maintained in the substantially left-right direction.

[0029] The swing arm SA has an extension portion SAE extending substantially in the support tool depth direction AD, so that the holding portion SAS and therefore the measurement target tire ET can be moved farther away from the vehicle V toward the second support tool depth direction side AD2. This makes it possible to accommodate a larger size measurement target tire ET.

[0030] The power cylinder (electric power cylinder) SS extends in a generally vertical direction (see FIGS. 1 to 5). The power cylinder SS includes a cylinder portion SSS and a rod portion SSR. The rod portion SSR has a smaller diameter than the cylinder portion SSS and is located on the inner periphery of the cylinder portion SSS. The rod portion SSR is configured to be displaceable relative to the cylinder portion SSS along the extension direction (generally the vertical direction) of the power cylinder SS. A portion of the rod portion SSR extends below the lower end of the cylinder portion SSS. The power cylinder SS is configured to control the displacement of the rod portion SSR relative to the cylinder portion SSS in response to an external input. As described below, the load applied to the test tire ET can be adjusted by adjusting the input to the power cylinder SS and, ultimately, the displacement of the rod portion SSR relative to the cylinder portion SSS. The rod portion SSR of the power cylinder SS is fixed to the swing arm SA. More specifically, in this embodiment, the lower end of the rod portion SSR of the power cylinder SS is fixed to the portion of the swing arm SA on the second side AD2 in the support depth direction (more specifically, the end of the extension portion SAE on the second side AD2 in the support depth direction) by fastening, etc. However, the rod portion SSR of the power cylinder SS may be fixed to any location on the swing arm SA.

[0031] As described above, in this embodiment, the swing arm SA is configured to be swingable about the central axis SPC of the swing arm pivot shaft SP, the test tire mounting portion ST configured to mount the test tire ET is fixed to the swing arm SA, and the rod portion SSR of the power cylinder SS, which extends in a substantially vertical direction, is fixed to the swing arm SA. With this configuration, when the power cylinder SS displaces the rod portion SSR upward or downward relative to the cylinder portion SSS by an amount corresponding to an external input, the swing arm SA, which is fixed to the rod portion SSR, swings upward or downward about the central axis SPC of the swing arm pivot shaft SP. Accordingly, the test tire mounting portion ST, which is held by the holding portion SAS of the swing arm SA, and the test tire ET mounted on the test tire mounting portion ST move upward or downward along an arc centered on the central axis SPC of the swing arm pivot shaft SP. As a result, the load applied to the tire ET to be measured is decreased or increased. In this way, the load applied to the tire ET to be measured can be adjusted. To adjust the load applied to the tire ET to be measured, it is only necessary to apply an input to the power cylinder SS, so that the load applied to the tire ET to be measured can be adjusted easily and immediately.

[0032] The input to the power cylinder SS may be performed by a human operation before the measurement, and / or may be performed by a control device (not shown) while the vehicle V is traveling (and thus during the measurement) through active control so that the load applied to the tire ET to be measured is constant regardless of unevenness of the road surface, etc. The control device may be, for example, one configured to include a CPU, an MPU, etc. configured to perform predetermined processing according to a program.

[0033] One or more (in this embodiment, multiple) power cylinder fixing members SF are configured to fix the cylinder portion SSS of the power cylinder SS to the body VB of the vehicle V. The power cylinder fixing members SF are made of a rigid body such as resin or metal. The power cylinder fixing members SF fix the position of the cylinder portion SSS of the power cylinder SS to the body VB of the vehicle V, thereby enabling stable adjustment of the load applied to the tire ET to be measured. In this embodiment, the power cylinder fixing members SF extend linearly and are configured in a pipe or rod shape. The power cylinder fixing members SF extend from the vehicle V side toward the second support depth side AD2. The end of the power cylinder fixing member SF on the first support depth side AD1 is fixed to the vehicle body VB by fastening or the like, and the end on the second support depth side AD2 is fixed to the cylinder portion SSS of the power cylinder SS by fastening or the like. Because the power cylinder fixing member SF extends from the vehicle V toward the second side AD2 in the support depth direction, the power cylinder SS can be positioned away from the vehicle V toward the second side AD2 in the support depth direction, so that the load applied to the tire ET to be measured can be adjusted using only the power cylinder SS, separated from the vehicle V. This makes it easy to adjust the load applied to the tire ET to be measured. However, the power cylinder fixing member SF may have a shape or configuration different from that of this embodiment.

[0034] The tire running performance measuring device 1 may include a drive motor M ( FIG. 4 ) configured to rotate the test tire ET. This allows the test tire ET to be rotated at a desired speed while the vehicle is running, and the slip ratio and other parameters of the test tire ET can be measured during this rotation. The tire running performance measuring device 1 may also include a speed reducer in addition to the drive motor M. As illustrated in FIG. 4 , the drive motor M is preferably an in-wheel motor disposed on the inner periphery of the wheel STW on which the test tire ET is mounted. In this case, the drive motor M may be provided coaxially with the test tire ET. Alternatively, the drive motor M may be provided on the body VB of the vehicle V. In this case, the rotational drive force from the drive motor M may be transmitted to the wheel STW on which the test tire ET is mounted via a rotational drive force transmission means such as a chain. As described above, when the drive motor M is an in-wheel motor arranged on the inner periphery of the wheel STW for the test tire ET, sand and dust can be prevented from entering the drive motor M and loss due to the rotational drive force transmission means can be avoided, compared to when the drive motor M is provided on the vehicle body VB and connected by a rotational drive force transmission means such as a chain. However, the tire running performance measuring device 1 does not have to be equipped with a drive motor M configured to drive and rotate the test tire ET.

[0035] The drive motor M is preferably controlled by controlling the rotational speed thereof, and more preferably controlled by feedback control with a predetermined slip ratio as a target.

[0036] The tire running performance measuring device 1 may further include a clutch, and may be configured to be able to switch between a rotating shaft free mode in which the tire ET to be measured is run without braking or driving by a drive motor M or the like, and a braking / driving mode in which the tire ET to be measured is run while being braked or driven by a drive motor M or the like.

[0037] In this embodiment, the test object tire support S is configured to allow adjustment of the angle between the tire equatorial plane of the test object tire ET and the longitudinal direction of the vehicle V (and thus the slip angle of the test object tire ET). More specifically, as illustrated in FIG. 7 , the holding portion SAS of the swing arm SA (more specifically, each of the pair of opposing portions SASF) has a plurality of fastening holes SASh. For example, by changing the combination of the fastening holes SASh through which a plurality of fastening members fb are passed or by changing the positions of the fastening members fb in one or more elongated fastening holes SASh, the knuckle integrated portion STN of the test object tire mounting portion ST can be fixed to the holding portion SAS of the swing arm SA in a state in which the angle between the tire equatorial plane of the test object tire ET and the longitudinal direction of the vehicle V (and thus the slip angle of the test object tire ET) is changed. This allows the vehicle to be run with the test object tire ET at a desired slip angle, and the running performance of the test object tire ET to be measured. However, the measurement target tire support S does not have to be configured so that the angle formed by the measurement target tire support S can be adjusted.

[0038] In each example described herein, as schematically shown in FIG. 9 , the measurement target tire support S may be configured to allow the measurement target tire ET to be positioned so as not to follow the tracks of the vehicle-mounted tires VT on both the left and right sides of the vehicle V. This prevents the measurement target tire ET from traveling in ruts during measurement. More specifically, for example, the measurement target tire support S may be configured to allow the entire measurement target tire ET to be positioned in either a first region X1 ( FIG. 9( a) ) located laterally inward of the vehicle-mounted tires VT on both the left and right sides of the vehicle V (in each of the examples in FIGS. 9( a) and 9( b) , there are two vehicle-mounted tires VT on each side), or a second region X2 ( FIG. 9( b) ) located laterally outward of the vehicle-mounted tires VT on both the left and right sides of the vehicle V. The target tire support S may be configured so that the entire target tire ET can be positioned within either a first region X1 ( FIG. 9( a) ) located laterally inward of the vehicle-mounted tires VT on both left and right sides of the vehicle V, or a second region X2 ( FIG. 9( b) ) located laterally outward of the vehicle-mounted tires VT on both left and right sides of the vehicle V, and at a position that does not follow the trajectories of the vehicle-mounted tires on both left and right sides of the vehicle V. Note that the "inner side in the left and right direction of the vehicle V" refers to the side closer to the center of the vehicle V in the left and right direction, and the "outer side in the left and right direction of the vehicle V" refers to the side farther from the center of the vehicle V in the left and right direction.

[0039] In each example described in this specification, the test-target tire support S may be configured to adjust the camber angle (CA) of the test-target tire ET, thereby enabling measurement of the test-target tire ET with the camber angle adjusted to any angle.

[0040] In each example described in this specification, the tire support S to be measured may be positioned on the left side, right side, or front side of the vehicle V.

[0041] The tire running performance measuring device according to the present invention can be used to measure the running performance of any type of tire, and can be suitably used, for example, to measure the running performance of tires for lunar rovers.

[0042] 1: tire running performance measuring device, V: vehicle, VB: vehicle body, VT: tire mounted on vehicle (tire), S: tire support to be measured, SP: swing arm pivot shaft, SPC: central axis, SA: swing arm, SAP: pivot portion, SAPF: opposing portion, SAPh: fastening hole, SAS: holding portion, SASF: opposing portion, SASh: fastening hole, SAE: extension portion, ST: tire mounted portion to be measured, STW: wheel, STH: hub, STD: drive shaft, STN: knuckle integrated portion, SS: power cylinder, SSS: cylinder portion, SSR: rod portion, SF: power cylinder fixing member, M: drive motor, ET: tire to be measured (tire), fa, fb: fastening members, AD: support depth direction, AD1: support depth direction first side AD2: second side in the depth direction of the support, BD: width direction of the support, BD1: first side in the width direction of the support, BD2: second side in the width direction of the support, X1: first area, X2: second area

Claims

1. A tire running performance measuring device for measuring the running performance of a tire to be measured, comprising: a vehicle; and a tire support device to be measured that is constructed separately from the vehicle and attached to the vehicle and configured to support the tire to be measured, wherein the tire support device to be measured is configured to be able to adjust the load applied to the tire to be measured.

2. The tire running performance measuring device as described in claim 1, wherein the test subject tire support tool comprises: a swing arm pivot shaft attached to the vehicle and extending in a substantially horizontal direction; a swing arm configured to be swingable about the central axis of the swing arm pivot shaft; a test subject tire mounting section fixed to the swing arm and configured to mount the test subject tire; and a power cylinder extending in a substantially vertical direction, wherein a rod portion of the power cylinder is fixed to the swing arm.

3. A tire running performance measuring device as set forth in claim 2, wherein the measurement target tire support further comprises a power cylinder fixing member configured to fix the cylinder portion of the power cylinder to the vehicle.

4. The tire running performance measuring device according to claim 1, further comprising a drive motor configured to rotate the measurement target tire.

5. A tire running performance measuring device as described in claim 1, wherein the test object tire support is configured so that the angle that the test object tire's equatorial plane makes with respect to the longitudinal direction of the vehicle can be adjusted.

6. The tire running performance measuring device as described in claim 1, wherein the test subject tire support tool is configured so that the test subject tire can be positioned in either a first region located laterally inward of the vehicle-mounted tires on both left and right sides of the vehicle, or a second region located laterally outward of the vehicle-mounted tires on both left and right sides of the vehicle, and in a position that does not follow the trajectories of the vehicle-mounted tires on both left and right sides.

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