Indoor Vehicle Test Facility with Displaceable Track Section
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Solution Overview
Problem
Current test facilities for vehicle tires cannot conduct realistic and reproducible tests under real environmental conditions due to their location outside, which leads to inconsistencies and limitations in testing vehicle characteristics like service life, material stability, and braking properties.
Innovation Solution
A test facility with an acceleration track, test section, and return track, where the vehicle is guided by a slide within a building, allowing the test section to be displaced transversely or longitudinally, enabling flexible and accurate testing under various conditions, including dry, wet, icy, or snowy conditions, without the need for external test tracks.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Reliability
If the test track is located outside in natural environmental conditions, then realistic test conditions can be achieved, but the test results lack reproducibility due to environmental variations
Solution Approach 1:
The test facility combines both indoor and outdoor testing capabilities in a single integrated system. The vehicle can travel on outdoor tracks to experience realistic environmental conditions (wet, icy, snowy roads) and then return indoors for controlled measurement and data collection. This multi-functional design allows the same facility to provide both realistic environmental exposure and reproducible measurement conditions.
Solution Approach 2:
The test track is divided into separate outdoor and indoor sections. The outdoor portion exposes the vehicle to natural environmental conditions, while the indoor portion provides a controlled environment for consistent measurement. This segmentation allows each zone to fulfill its specific function optimally - the outdoor section provides realistic conditions while the indoor section ensures reproducible results.
2Reliability
If the test track is located inside a building, then environmental control and reproducibility are improved, but realistic environmental conditions cannot be provided
Solution Approach 1:
Rather than building a completely enclosed indoor facility, the test track is segmented into outdoor sections for environmental exposure and indoor sections for controlled measurement. This partial indoor configuration provides environmental control where needed while avoiding the excessive construction complexity of a fully enclosed facility.
3Reliability
If external test tracks are used, then realistic conditions are achieved, but costs and time consumption increase
Solution Approach 1:
The facility merges outdoor testing capabilities with indoor measurement capabilities into a single integrated system. The vehicle travels outdoors on realistic road conditions and then returns indoors for measurement without requiring transportation to separate facilities. This combination eliminates the time loss associated with moving vehicles between external test tracks and measurement facilities.
Data Source
AI summary
A test facility for a vehicle having at least one tire includes an acceleration track; a test section; a return track; a guide defining a direction of travel; a slide configured to run on the guide and to guide the vehicle; a building defining an interior space; at least a part of the test facility being disposed in the interior space of the building; and, the test section being configured to be displaceable in at least one of a first direction transverse to the direction of travel and a second direction in the direction of travel.