| This research strives to enhance the safety of multi-piece wheel assemblies as injuries and fatalities are associated with their failure, yet information on this topic is limited.;Experiments were performed to determine mechanical performance and planar deformation characteristics of several tires to aid in numerical model development. For a 29.5-29 tire, observations included determining vertical versus lateral deflection relationships (0.310 mm/mm), and vertical (2.59 kN/mm) and lateral (6.29 kN/mm) stiffness.;A database capable of tracking wheel maintenance trends based on historical data was developed, allowing maintenance schedules to be estimated.;A safety shield system was proposed. Effectiveness of the design was examined through numerical simulation of the ISO 7141 impact test, a tire blowout, and a rotational side impact. Depending on the test condition, observations comparing shield-equipped versus standard wheels show reductions in von Mises stress between 15% and 55% and reductions in effective plastic strains between 20.3% and 92%. |
