AN

OVERVIEW
OF TYRE
TESTING
 TYRE TESTING FALLS INTO TWO
PERFORMANCE CATEGORIES

1. MECHANICAL CHARACTERISTICS OF THE TYRE

• LOAD DEFLECTION OF VERTICALLY LOADED MOUNTED TIRE, LOAD-

CARRYING CAPACITY, AND LOAD RATING.

• STEERING PROPERTIES SUCH AS ALIGNING TORQUE, CORNERING

CHARACTERISTICS, AND TIRE LATERAL AND TANGENTIAL

STIFFNESS.
 TYRE TESTING FALLS INTO TWO
PERFORMANCE CATEGORIES
• TRACTION AND WET SKID PERFORMANCE.

• ROLLING RESISTANCE, WHICH AFFECTS VEHICLE FUEL ECONOMY.

• RIDE CHARACTERISTICS (VIBRATION AND NOISE)

2. DURABILITY
• TREAD WEAR, WHICH ENCOMPASSES SLOW WEAR RATES, FAST
WEAR RATE, AND UNIFORMITY OF WEAR.
• CASING FATIGUE RESISTANCE.
• TIRE HEAT BUILDUP UNDER LOADED DYNAMIC CONDITIONS.
• CHIPPING, CUTTING AND TEARING RESISTANCE OF THE TREAD
AND SIDE WALL.
TYRE TESTING FALLS INTO THREE PHASES

• TYRE LABORATORY TESTING.

• PROVING GROUNDS
• COMMERCIAL EVALUATION.
 LABORATORY TESTING

(A) DESTRUCTIVE TESTING

1) CUT TYRE ANALYSIS:

CUT TYRE SECTION IS TAKEN AND PARAMETERS LIKE :

• PLY TURN UP HEIGHTS AND STEP OFFS,

• FLIPPER AND CHAFFER HEIGHTS

• CURED PLY AND BREAKER EPI, ETC. ARE MEASURED.

 LABORATORY TESTING
2) ADHESION STRENGTH OR STRIP ADHESION:
3) TENSILE PROPERTIES OF CURED CORDS.
4) PULLEY WHEEL TEST:
A) STEP LOAD TEST :
• IT IS IMPORTANT TO MEASURE THE INFLATION PRESSURE AND
THE TREAD TEMPERATURE IMMEDIATELY STOPPING THE TYRE.
B) STEP SPEED TEST
5) PLUNGER TEST:
• TO MEASURE PASSENGER CAR TYRE CARCASS STRENGTH (OR) TO
RATE RESISTANCE TO PUNCTURE THROUGH THE TREAD.
6) BEAD AREA ENDURANCE TEST.
 LABORATORY TESTING
(B) NON-DESTRUCTIVE TESTING
1) X-RAY TESTING:
IT IS MAINLY IMPORTANT TO IDENTIFY / DETECT THE FOLLOWING :
• TYRE COMPONENTS LIKE BELTS AND BEADS WERE PROPERLY
PLACED.
• PLY TURN UP ENDS WERE IN THE RIGHT PLACES.

• SPLICES WERE NOT TOO HEAVY OR CORRECTLY SPACED.

• CARCASS AND BELT CORDS AND BEAD WIRES EVENLY
POSITIONED.

• THERE WERE NO MISSING COMPONENTS AND FOREIGN

OBJECTS.

• POROSITY OR BLOWING DUE TO UNDERCURE OF THE TYRE AND

TRAPPED AIR.
 LABORATORY TESTING

2) OPTICAL METHOD (HOLOGRAPHY)

• IN THIS TECHNIQUE A LASER BEAM IS USED TO STUDY THE

IRREGULARITIES IN INTERNAL CONSTRUCTION AND IDENTIFIES
INCIPIENT FAILURES.

• HOLOGRAPHY HAS BEEN COMBINED WITH ULTRASONICS IN A

NEW TECHNIQUE CALLED HOLOSONICS.
 LABORATORY TESTING
3) INFRA-RED TESTING
• USEFUL IN NON-CONTACT TEMPERATURE MEASUREMENTS.

• INFRA-RED CAN BE USED AS PASSIVE METHOD OF TYRE

INSPECTION BY THE HEATING THE TYRE ON ONE SIDE AND
THEN USING AN INFRA-RED DETECTOR ON THE OTHERSIDE TO
MEASURE THE HEATFLUX PASSING THROUGH THE TYRE.

• AN ANOMOLY, SUCH AS SEPARATION WILL IMPEDE THE FLOW

OF HEAT AND THUS BE DETECTABLE AS A COOL SPOT.
 TYRE UNIFORMITY TESTING
“TYRE UNIFORMITY IS THE DEGREE OF PERFECTION OF
THE FINISHED TYRE WITH RESPECT TO FORCE,
DIMENSION AND BALANCE”

THE VARIATIONS IN THE FORCES AND MOMENTS AT THE

GROUND AS THE TYRE ROLLS DUE TO TYRE / WHEEL
ASSEMBLY NON-UNIFORMITIES SUCH AS,

FORCE VARIATIONS (RADIAL, LATERAL AND LONGITUDINAL) .

• DIMENSIONAL VARIATIONS (RADIAL AND LATERAL RUN-OUTS).
• MASS IMBALANCE.

TRANSMITTED TO THE AXLE OF THE VEHICLE AND ACT AS

EXCITATION SOURCE FOR RIDE VIBRATIONS.
 FORCE VARIATIONS

A) RADIAL FORCE VARIATIONS

RADIAL FORCE VARIATIONS OCCURS AS A RESULT OF RADIAL

RUNOUT, CIRCUMFERENTIAL STIFFNESS VARIATIONS OR VARYING
MASS DISTRIBUTION.

THE VARIOUS HARMONICS OF RADIAL NON-UNIFORMITIES IN A

TYRE / WHEEL ASSEMBLY ARE FUNCTIONALLY EQUIVALENT TO
IMPERFECTIONS IN THE TYRE SHAPE LIKE, ECCENTRICITY,
ELLIPTICAL (OVALITY), TRIANGULAR, SQUARE, ETC.
 FORCE VARIATIONS
ECCENTRICITY:
THE TYRES, WHEELS AND HUB INDIVIDUALLY MAY EXHIBIT RADIAL
ECCENTRICITY, RESULTING IN A FIRST HARMONIC NON-UNIFORMITY WHICH
PRODUCES BOTH RADIAL AND TRACTIVE EXCITATION ON THE AXLE. SINCE,
THERE IS A ONE HIGH POINT AND ONE LOW POINT ON THE ASSEMBLY, THE
EXCITATION OCCURS AT THE ROTATIONAL SPEED OF THE WHEEL (10 - 15 Hz
AT NORMAL HIGHWAY SPEEDS). HIGH AND LOW POINTS OF DIFFERENT
PARTS ARE MATCHED IN THE ASSEMBLY TO MINIMISE FIRST HARMONIC
NON-UNIFORMITIES OF THE ASSEMBLY.

MEASUREMENT OF LOADED-RADIAL RUNOUT ARE ALSO VALID AND CAN BE

TRANSFORMED TO RADIAL FORCE VARIATION BY SIMPLY MULTIPLYING BY
THE RADIAL SPRING RATE OF THE TYRE.
FORCES: RADIAL, LATERAL & TANGENTIAL
DIRECTION OF FORCES ACTING ON A TYRE
TYRE : LOCKED WITH A ROATING DRUM
TYRE : RADIAL FORCE VARIATIONS
TYRE : VARIATION OF LOAD
TYRE : LATERAL & CONICITY FORCE VARIATION
 FORCE VARIATIONS

B) LATERAL FORCE VARIATIONS

LATERAL FORCE VARIATIONS MAY ARISE FROM NON-UNIFORMITIES IN

THE TYRE, BUT CANNOT BE READILY RELATED TO LATERAL RUNOUT
EFFECTS IN THE WHEEL OR HUB COMPONENTS.

THE AVERAGE VALUE OF THE LATERAL FORCE VARIATION CAN BE

DIVIDED INTO TWO FACTORS, CONICITY AND PLY STEER.
 FORCE VARIATIONS
CONICITY
CONICITY DERIVES FROM SMALL SIDE-TO-SIDE DIFFERENCES IN THE
TYRE SUCH AS AN ASYMMETRICAL OFFSET IN THE POSITIONING OF THE
BELT.

THE EFFECT OF CONICITY IS TO CREATE A PULL IN THE STEERING

SYSTEM, OR A “DRIFT” IN THE TRACKING OF THE CAR. PULL REFERS
TO A CONDITION WHERE THE DRIVER MUST APPLY A CONTINUOUS
TORQUE TO THE STEERING WHEEL HOLDING IT OFF-CENTRE TO
MAINTAIN THE VEHICLE ON A STRAIGHT PATH, OR WITH THE WHEEL
FREE AND IN THE CENTRE POSITION, THE VEHICLE WILL FOLLOW A
CURVED PATH.
 FORCE VARIATIONS
PLY STEER
PLY STEER, ARISES FROM THE ANGLE OF THE CORDS IN THE BELT LAYERS.
TO AVOID THIS BIAS IN THE TYRE’S PREFERRED ROLLING DIRECTION,
BELTS ARE CONSTRUCTED WITH ALTERNATING BELT LAYERS AT OPPOSITE
ANGLES, BUT A PERFECT BALANCE IS IMPOSSIBLE TO ACHIEVE. THUS A
FREE ROLLING TYRE WILL EXHIBIT A TENDENCY TO DRIFT FROM ITS
DIRECTION OF HEADING.

PLY STEER IS LIKELY TO ACT ON ALL WHEELS IN THE SAME DIRECTION, A

VEHICLE MAY EXHIBIT A SLIGHT DRIFT DUE TO PLY STEER FORCES. THIS
MAY REQUIRE SOME STEERING WHEEL OFFSET TO COMPENSATE AND KEEP
THE VEHICLE TRAVELLING STRAIGHT, NO STEERING PULL IS LIKELY.
TYRE : LATERAL FORCE VARIATION
TYRE : DISTRIBUTION OF CONICITY & PLY STEER
 FORCE VARIATIONS
C) TRACTIVE FORCE VARIATIONS

TRACTIVE FORCE VARIATIONS ARISE FROM DIMENSIONAL AND

STIFFNESS NON-UNIFORMITIES. ITS MAGNITUDE WILL BE
DEPENDENT ON THE LOAD CARRIED AND THE AMOUNT OF
ECCENTRICITY, HOWEVER, IT IS INDEPENDENT OF SPEED.
 DIMENSIONAL VARIATIONS

A) RADIAL RUN-OUT
IT IS THE VARIATION OF THE TYRE RADIUS MEASURED IN A
PLANE PERPENDICULAR TO THE SPIN AXIS ON A TRUE RUNNING
WHEEL.

B) LATERAL RUN-OUT

IT IS THE VARIATION IN POSITION MEASURED PARALLEL TO

THE SPIN AXIS AT THE POINT OF MAXIMUM TYRE SECTIONAL
WIDTH ON A TRUE RUNNING WHEEL.
 DIMENSIONAL VARIATIONS

THE TYRE BEING AN ELASTIC BODY ANALOGOUS TO AN ARRAY

OF RADIAL SPRINGS, MAY EXHIBIT VARIATIONS IN STIFFNESS
ABOUT ITS CIRCUMFERENCE DUE TO RADIAL AND LATERAL
RUNOUTS. VARIATIONS IN STIFFNESS CAUSES RIDE
VIBRATIONS.
 MASS IMBALANCE

MASS IMBALANCE DERIVES FROM UNEVEN DISTRIBUTION OF MASS

ABOUT ITS AXIS OF ROTATION. THIS COULD BE CAUSED IN A TYRE
THROUGH OFF-CENTERED COMPONENTS, HEAVY SPLICES, LONGER
OR STRETCHED COMPONENTS LIKE TREAD, SIDE WALL, ETC. WHEN
THE TYRE ROTATES, THIS EXTRA MASS EXERTS A CENTRIFUGAL
FORCE. SINCE TYRE ROTATES AROUND FIXED AXIS, THIS FORCE
(INDUCED THROUGH A HEAVY SPOT) TRIES TO MOVE AWAY AS WELL
AS ALIGN WITH THE AXIS OF ROTATION, THUS AN UNEVEN
ROTATION AROUND THE AXIS IS CAUSED.
DIMENSIONAL NON-UNIFORMITY : RUN OUT
TYRE: RADIAL RUN OUT MEASUREMENT
TYRE: PLY STEER FORCES
TYRE : EFFECT OF SHORT TREAD LENGTH
TYRE : DIFFERENT FORCE DEFINITIONS
TYRE : DIFFERENT FORCE VARIATIONS
TYRE : EFFECT OF PLY STEER
TYRE : EFFECT OF CONICITY FORCE
TYRE MANUFACTURING PROCESS
TYRE ASSEMBLY : RADIAL & LATERAL RUN OUT
 Correlation of Tyre Uniformity with cord
characteristics
Tyre uniformity is measured in terms of the radial force
variation around the circumference of a rotating tyre in
contact with a test wheel. Fundamentally, one is
measuring the modulus of the tyre section in contact
with the test drum. The body cords can adversely affect
the tyre uniformity in several ways;
• Variable cord properties
• Variable cord spacing
• Large spilice width
• Poor cord dimensional stability
• Tyre building / curing uniformity
 PROVING GROUNDS

THE MOST DEFINITIVE METHOD OF DETERMINING THE

BEHAVIOR OF A TYRE IS TO EXAMINE ITS PERFORMANCE WHEN
SUBJECTED TO ROAD TESTING.

RIDE COMFORT TESTS

VEHICLE RIDE COMFORT TESTS ARE CONDUCTED ON A VARIETY

OF TEST SURFACES FOR DETERMINING CHARACTERISTICS LIKE :-

- VEHICLE VIBRATION

- NOISE

- HARSHNESS
 PROVING GROUNDS
ARE EVALUATED IN THE VEHICLE INTERIOR. THESE
EVALUATIONS ARE MADE EITHER SUBJECTIVELY (BY
HUMAN FEEL) OR OBJECTIVELY (BY ON-BOARD
INSTRUMENTATION), E.G. HUMAN RESPONSE VIBRATION
METER.
 TRACTION PERFORMANCE TESTS

TRACTION (AND BRAKING) CHARACTERISTICS OF A TYRE ARE

EVALUATED EITHER SUBJECTIVELY ( WHEREBY THE DRIVER RATES
EACH TYRE) OR OBJECTIVELY ( BY INSTRUMENTED MEASUREMENT OF
THE FORCES RESISTING TYRE SLIPPAGE AND THE SPEED OR
ACCELERATION AT WHICH TRACTION IS LOST).

TRACTION TESTS MAY BE PERFORMED

- ON DRY ROADS FOR DRY TRACTION

- ON WET ROADS TO DETERMINE THE SKID PERFORMANCE AND WET
TRACTION AT SPECIFIC WATER DEPTHS.
- ON SNOW COVERED ROADS FOR SNOW TRACTION, ETC.

INSTRUMENTS USED: CORRSYS - CORREVIT SENSORS, ‘g’ ANALYST, ETC.

 FUEL EFFICIENCY TEST

THIS TEST IS CARRIED OUT FOR THE MEASUREMENT OF THE

FUEL CONSUMPTION OF THE VEHICLE FITTED WITH A
PARTICULAR TYPE OF TYRES. THIS TEST ALSO PROVIDES
FAIRLY GOOD IDEA ABOUT RR OF TYRES.

FLUIDYNE INSTRUMENT (MADE IN U.S.A) IS USED TO MEASURE

THE FUEL CONSUMPTION..
 HANDLING TESTS

• HANDLING TESTS ARE CARRIED MAINLY TO CHARACTERISE

THE RESPONSIVENESS OF A VEHICLE TO DRIVER INPUT.

• VEHICLE HANDLING TESTS MAY BE CONDUCTED ON EITHER

DRY OR WET ROADS TO EVALUATE A GIVEN SET OF TYRES.

COMMON TESTS FOR HANDLING:

• STEERING RESPONSE CHARACTERISTICS.

• CORNERING CHARACTERISTICS, ETC.

 HANDLING TESTS

AS A MEASURE OF THE HANDLING PERFORMANCE OF TYRES,

THE FORCES AND MOMENTS GENERATED IN THE TYRE’S
FOOTPRINT UNDER DIFFERENT OPERATING CONDITIONS ARE
MEASURED USING “FORCE AND MOMENT” TRANSDUCERS. THE
FORCES AND MOMENTS GENERATED AT DIFFERENT SLIP AND
CAMBER ANGLES, AS THE TYRE ROLLS, ARE RELATED TO
VEHICLE PERFORMANCE IN VARIOUS MODES OF
MANEUVERING
 HANDLING TESTS
STEERING CHARACTERISTICS ARE DETERMINED USING
TORQUE / ANGLE TRANSDUCER WHICH GIVES VALUE OF
TORQUE APPLIED TO GET REQUIRED STEERING
PERFORMANCE WHEN TESTED ON THE STEERING PAD ON A
CIRCLE OF CERTAIN RADII.

HIGHER THE TORQUE MEANS POOR THE STEERING

RESPONSE AND WILL CAUSE MORE STRAIN ON THE
SHOULDERS OF THE DRIVER.
 TREAD WEAR
MOSTLY WEAR TESTS ARE CONDUCTED ON A ROAD BUT RECENTLY
ATTEMPTS ARE BEING MADE TO A CONDUCTED SIMULATED FULL-
SCALE TESTS IN LABORATORY TO STUDY WEAR NATURE.

THE RATE OF WEAR IS MEASURED BY MONITORING THE CHANGE IN

NON-SKID DEPTH WITH DISTANCE.

THE FOOTPRINT SHAPE AND THE PRESSURE DISTRIBUTION ARE

IMPORTANT PARAMETERS AFFECTING WEAR NATURE.

CIRCUMFERENTIAL TREAD WEAR IMAGING SYSTEM (CTWIST) IS

EMERGING AS A FAST, AUTOMATED AND TRULY STANDARDISED
TREAD WEAR MEASUREMENT SYSTEM WHICH PROVIDES COMPLETE
WEAR PROFILE OF A TYRE AND QUANTIFICATION OF IRREGULAR
WEAR THROUGH NON-CONTACT TECHNIQUE.
 COMMERCIAL EVALUATION
(FLEET TESTING)
FOR MOST TYRES FLEET TESTING IS USED FOR VALIDATION
PURPOSE, WHERE A PREDEFINED QUANTITY OF TYRES WILL BE
PLACED WITH A COMMERCIALLY FLEET AND THEIR PERFORMANCE
WILL BE MONITORED CONTINUOUSLY.

DATA COLLECTED FROM SUCH TESTS INCLUDE TREAD WEAR,

UNIFORMITY OF WEAR, CASING DURABILITY, AND DRIVER
ASSESSMENT PERTAINING TO RIDE AND HANDLING.

CUSTOMER INPUT IS ONE OF THE KEY PARAMETERS IN SUCH

STUDIES.

TYRES ARE COMMERCIALLY RELEASED AFTER SUCCESSFUL

COMPLETION OF SUCH VALIDATION TEST.