Mechanism and Machine Theory 35 (2000) 927943

www.elsevier.com/locate/mechmt

Synthesis and analysis of the two loop translational input

steering mechanism
P.A. Simionescu a, M.R. Smith b,*, I. Tempea a
a

Department of Mechanism and Robot Theory, Politehnica University of Bucharest, Spl. Independentei 313, Bucharest,
Romania
b
Department of Mechanical, Materials and Manufacturing Engineering, University of Newcastle upon Tyne, NE1 7RU,
UK
Received 5 November 1997; accepted 30 August 1999

Abstract
A kinematic model of a rack-and-pinion type steering linkage is developed, on the basis of which the
synthesis of the mechanism is performed using the criteria of correct turning of the wheels and good
transmissibility of the motion. The kinematic analysis of the mechanism is also carried out and output
diagrams are presented for the case of a four-wheel-drive light tractor. 7 2000 Elsevier Science Ltd. All
rights reserved.

1. Introduction

The study of the steering and suspension mechanisms of vehicles has been the subject of
many publications in the past and consequently there exists a diversity of literature on this
subject [17]. However, the works dedicated to the motor vehicle engineer [8,9] are not
particularly explicit regarding the choice of main dimensions of these mechanisms or make use
of some simplications which in certain cases are not sucient for a proper design.
On the other hand, in the literature oriented towards theoretical kinematic synthesis and
analysis of mechanisms [1013], the reference systems and parameters used for positioning the
* Corresponding author. Tel.: +44-191-222-6206; fax: +44-191-222-8600.
E-mail address: M.R.Smith@newcastle.ac.uk (M.R. Smith).
0094-114X/00/$ - see front matter 7 2000 Elsevier Science Ltd. All rights reserved.
PII: S 0 0 9 4 - 1 1 4 X ( 9 9 ) 0 0 0 5 6 - 7

928

P.A. Simionescu et al. / Mechanism and Machine Theory 35 (2000) 927943

kinematic elements (which permit a simplication of the analytical calculations) are not directly
available to the designer from the blueprints or real model measurements.
The present paper deals with the synthesis and analysis of a translational input, double loop
rack-and-pinion type mechanism (Fig. 1) employed in the steering of rigid-axle vehicles.
Because the input element is the piston of a hydraulic actuator, which is xed on the axle case,
there is no coupling eect between the steering and the axle rotation, the control being
achieved through exible hoses. This feature, together with the kinematic and force-actuating
symmetry for turns to the left and to the right, is the cause of increasing use of this mechanism
in the steering of four-wheel-drive tractors and the like.
2. The geometry of the mechanism
The geometric model of the mechanism is given in Fig. 2. The global reference frame Oxyz
attached to the axle is chosen such that Ox is the front axle axis, Oy the vehicle longitudinal
axis and Oz such that the co-ordinate system is positive. The main parameters and notation
used are as follows:
a is the kingpin inclination angle (see Appendix A1),
b is the castor angle,
yi and yo are the turning angles of the inner and outer wheels, respectively,
j01 is the reference angle of the steering arm corresponding to the straight-ahead position of
the steerable wheels (Fig. 4),

Fig. 1. Rigid axle with central hydraulic control piston steering mechanism (after Ref. [16]).

P.A. Simionescu et al. / Mechanism and Machine Theory 35 (2000) 927943

929

j1 is the angle of the steering arm while the vehicle is cornering measured from the straight
ahead position, such that j1 yi for the turn to the left and j1 yo for the turn to the
right,
OO1 is the half kingpin track length,
O1A0 is the steering knuckle arm axial oset, measured along the kingpin axis,
A0A is the eective steering knuckle arm length measured radially from ball-joint centre A to
the kingpin axis,
AB is the tie-rod length,
BB' is the hydraulic actuator piston rod length,
Smax is the maximum stroke of the hydraulic piston (a characteristic of the hydraulic actuator
usually provided by the suppliers) for which the maximum turning angle of the inner wheel
yi-max is assumed to be reached. This maximum turning angle is limited by the axle nal drive
performance (the maximum achievable angle of the universal joints) or by possible interference
between the wheel and body.
Since the mechanism is symmetrical about the vertical longitudinal plane yOz, a single loop
representation and analytical derivation are sucient for performing both the synthesis and the
analysis. In a general position (corresponding to j1 6 0), the co-ordinates of the centre A of
the steering knuckle arm ball-joint, relative to the reference frame Oxyz, are given by:

Fig. 2. Geometric model of the left loop of the mechanism.

930

P.A. Simionescu et al. / Mechanism and Machine Theory 35 (2000) 927943

2
3 2
3
x A j1
x O1
A0 A
cosj01 j1
4 yA j1 5 M01
4 A0 A
sinj01 j1 5 4 yO1 5:
zA j1
zO1
O1 A0
2

The origin O1 of the kingpin reference frame relative to the global reference frame has been
chosen such that yO1 0 and zO1 0 while x O1 is equal to the half kingpin track.
In the above relation the rotation matrix is [13]:
2
3 2 0
3
3 2 0
1 0
0
ca 0 sa 0
0
sa 0
ca
5 4 sa 0
sb cb
M01 4 0 cb
sb 5
4 0
1 0
ca 0
sb 5:
2
0
0
0
0 sb cb
sa 0 ca
sa
cb sb ca 0
cb
where c stands for cos and s for sin.
In the case of the piston rod ball-joint centre B, the co-ordinates x B , yB , zB relative to the
same global reference frame Oxyz are:
3 2
3
2
S 0:5
BB 0
x B S
5 4 yT
5
4 yB
3
zT
zB
where S is the current piston displacement in the range Smax < S < Smax and yT and zT are
the co-ordinates dening the hydraulic trunion axis.
Knowing the expressions of the co-ordinates of the centres A and B of the two ball- joints,
the equation of constraint governing the transmission law of the single-loop mechanism in
Fig. 2 can be written as:
2 

 

4
x A j1 x B S yA j1 yB 2 zA j1 zB 2 AB 2 0:
The tie-rod length is calculated as the distance between joints A and B for the mechanism in
the reference position corresponding to j1 0:
q
2 
2

2 

5
AB x B 0 x A 0 yB yA 0 zB zA 0 :
Eq. (4) may be solved either in a closed form or numerically for the unknown j1 (assuming
translation S of the piston to be the input motion) or for the unknown S (assuming
rotation j1 of the steering knuckle to be the input).
It is a straightforward matter to obtain the analytical expression S Sj1 of
transmission law as follows.
q

 

S x A j1 AB 2 yA j1 yB 2 zA j1 zB 2 0:5
BB 0 :

the
the
the
6

For the reverse transmission law j1 j1 S, used in the present paper only for the kinematic
analysis, analytical formulae are provided in Appendix A2.
Important geometrical parameters that determine the eciency of motion transmissibility
through the linkage and avoid jamming are the pressure angles in the ball-joints FA and FB :
These are dened as the angles between the velocity vector of the joint centres and the force

P.A. Simionescu et al. / Mechanism and Machine Theory 35 (2000) 927943

931

acting through the tie-rod (Fig. 3). In the case of ball-joint A, the velocity of its centre relative
to the global reference frame Oxyz has the following components:
2
3
3
2
dx A
A0 A
sinj01 j1
1
dj
M01
4 A0 A
cosj01 j1 5
1 :
7
vA 4 dyA 5

dt
dt
dzA
0
Similarly, the components of the velocity vector of joint centre B are:
2
3 2 3
vxB
dS
1
vB 4 vyB 5 4 0 5
:
dt
vzB
0

where dS may be replaced by the unit vector (1, 0, 0) parallel to the piston rod axis. Finally,
the pressure angles FA and FB in the respective joints are given by the relations:




vA
AB
vB
AB
FA j1 arccos
and FB j1 arccos
:
9
jvA j
jABj
jvB j
jABj
From the static equilibrium of the tie-rod (Fig. 3), the expression for the single loop
mechanism transmission ratio dj1 =dS FS =M1 may be obtained, which is useful in estimating
the hydraulic force required to actuate the steering mechanism (see Appendix A3):

Fig. 3. Schematic for calculation of the pressure angles in the ball-joints and of the rotation angles of the kingpin
reference frame.

932

P.A. Simionescu et al. / Mechanism and Machine Theory 35 (2000) 927943

FS
dj1
cos FB
1

:
M1
dS
cos FA A0 A

10

The expressions derived so far are sucient to perform both the synthesis and the analysis of
the mechanism.

3. The synthesis problem

The present work solves the problem of optimally synthesising the steering linkage with
regard to the condition of correct turning of the wheels and in the presence of a number of
constraints using the penalty function approach.
The components of the design variable vector X are chosen from those parameters dening
the mechanism geometry which are available for modication in the design process. The
kingpin angles a and b are given a priori, chosen from the condition of minimum wear of the
tyre during vehicle riding and for providing a self-aligning eect of the wheels [8,9,14,15].
Similarly, values of the kingpin track, as well as the maximum turning angle yi-max of the
wheels and the maximum stroke of the hydraulic piston Smax are imposed. Values of the
steering knuckle arm length A0 A and axial oset O1 A0 remain available for the synthesis,
together with the initial angle j01 , and the co-ordinates yT and zT locating the hydraulic
trunion axis, which can be varied within some minimum and maximum limits. In some types of
axles this assembly must be associated with the cylindrical casing of the axle dierential, and
polar co-ordinates rT , lT are more suitable for dening the allowable region in which the
hydraulic trunion is to be mounted (see Appendix A4).
3.1. Minimising the steering error
The classical approach is to express the objective function as the error between the specied
motion of the steering wheels and the real motion produced by the mechanism [11]. The
desired motion of the wheels, which is the condition of correct turning of the vehicle, must be
such that the steerable wheel axes and the rear wheel axes intersect at the same point C, called
the turning centre. The condition that points C1 and C2 in Fig. 4 coincide (known as the
Ackermann law) can be analytically expressed as:
1=tg yo 1=tg yi Wt =Wb

11

where Wb is the wheel base and Wt the front wheel track of the vehicle. It is usual to
approximate the wheel track to the kingpin track which is 2
OO1. The departure between the
desired transmission law and the actual transmission law of the mechanism is called the
steering error dy and must be suciently small to allow the wheels not to work against each
other producing an increased wear of the tyres.
A very convenient way of dening the objective function, which brings about a signicant
amount of analytical simplication [10,12] is to consider a variable length of the piston rod
which allows the two wheels to be exactly positioned relative to each other according to the
steering law (11). For a number j j 1, . . . ,n of correlated positions of the wheels within their

P.A. Simionescu et al. / Mechanism and Machine Theory 35 (2000) 927943

933

working range, the corresponding objective function to be minimised can be considered as

follows [10]:
#
" n
2 1=2
X
0
or f1 X maxjdBBj0 j with dBBj0 BBj0 BB:
12
dBBj
f1 X
j1

The former objective function is dierentiable and a gradient-based optimisation subroutine

can be employed, while the latter (which is non-monotonic) assures the closest coincidence
between the actual and desired transmission laws of the mechanism after minimisation. In a
particular design position j the length variation dBBj0 is given by the following expression,
involving S(
) as dened in Eq. (6):
dBB j0 Sj1j S j2Th j1j

13

where j2Th is the theoretical turning angle of the right wheel, obtained from the Ackermann
steering law (11), i.e.:
j2Th j1j arctg

1
ctg j1j 1=Wt =Wb

14

corresponding to the whole range of j1j which in turn is:

j1j yi-max j
Dy

with Dy yi-max yo-max =n

15

and where the corresponding maximum turning angle of the outer wheel is that given by the
theoretical transmission law, i.e. yo-max j2Th yi-max :

Fig. 4. Schematic diagram of a four-wheel vehicle during turning.

934

P.A. Simionescu et al. / Mechanism and Machine Theory 35 (2000) 927943

The objective function must be calculated together with penalty functions describing the
following constraints:
. g1 X: the condition that the maximum turning angle yi-max is achieved for the piston stroke
S = Smax (equality constraint);
. g2 X: the design variables must be within the prescribed limits;
. g3 X: the pressure angles in the ball-joints must be less than a limiting value Fadm ;
. g4 X: the mechanism loop must close for any position of the steering knuckle arm within its
working limits which is the condition that the expression under the square root in relation
(6) is positive.
The pressure angles, FAj and FBj , are evaluated for every position j1j given by relation (15). In
the real mechanism the minimum value of these angles can be below the one given by the
theoretical law (because the outer wheel maximum turning angle might exceed the estimated
yo-max ), but this uncertainty can be overcome by considering a slightly lower admissible value
for checking in the penalty function for instance 598 instead of 608.
Extra complications are encountered when synthesising a leading mechanism, where the
steering knuckle arms are divergent and the possible optimum angle j01 together with the
length A0A are constrained by the feasible location of the corresponding ball-joint A in the
space between the wheel rim and the wheel hub. In this case it is useful to dene an extra
penalty function g5 X, which becomes eective in the case when the centre of the ball-joint A
is situated outside the available space i.e. the cylindrical envelope of diameters d1 and d2 in
Fig. A2 (Appendix A5).
An improvement of the objective function f1 X is that of correcting the length variation
dBBj0 so as to have an approximation to the steering error of the mechanism (the actual
kinematic characteristic we wish to minimise). By associating in relation (10), dBBj0 with dS we
obtain:
dj2j dBB j0

cos FA j2Th j1
cos FB j2Th j1
A0 A

16

which is a close estimate to the steering error of the mechanism dy j2 j2Th : Because the
pressure angles FA and FB have already been calculated in the penalty function g3, the increase
of the CPU time required to evaluate the objective function once is insignicant. The error
introduced decreases during the optimisation and the closer to the minimum (where dBBj0 is
small), the better the approximation. For the numerical example presented below, in the case
of the optimised mechanism with rounded-value parameters, the dierence between the real
and approximate maximum steering errors is less than 20 (0.67918 and 0.67998, respectively).
Consequently, the objective functions in relation (12) can be replaced by the expression:
"
f


1 X

n
X

j1

dj2j 2

#1=2
or

f 1 X maxjdj2j j:

Finally, merging one of the above functions with the penalty functions yields:

17

P.A. Simionescu et al. / Mechanism and Machine Theory 35 (2000) 927943

F1 X f 1 X

gi X :

935

18

3.2. Maximising the eciency of motion transmissibility

In many cases the steering error is not the main criterion of evaluation of the steering
mechanism performance. There are cases when the motion and force transmissibility are more
important and cause special concern during the design process.
According to Ref. [13] the optimisation problem may be formulated to minimise the pressure
angles while the steering error is constrained to remain less than a maximum permissible value.
In this case the objective function can be dened as the maximum norm of the pressure angles
occurring in the ball-joints A and B, for the whole working range of the mechanism i.e.:


19
f2 X max FA j1j , FBj j1j :
The values considered for the pressure angles FA and FB were those given by relations (9) for
the same range of j1j as in Eq. (15). The nal objective function to be minimised will have the
same form as F1 X in relation (18):
X
F2 X f2 X
gi X
20
with the dierence that the penalty function g3 corresponding to the pressure angles has been
replaced by one checking that the maximum steering error as calculated approximately using
relation (16) is less than an imposed value dyadm :
3.3. Numerical example
The case of synthesising the steering mechanism of a light tractor has been considered. In
the optimisation process two variants have been examined, that of steering error minimisation
(objective function F1 X and that of increasing the eciency of motion transmissibility by
minimising the maximum pressure angle (objective function F2 X).
In both cases a maximum norm-based objective function has been dened with a number n
= 40 of design points. The authors of the present paper have used the Simplex optimisation
method due to Nealder and Mead which has the advantage of not requiring the calculation of
the derivatives and copes successfully with the non-monotonicity in both of the objective
functions. Another advantage is that it can deal with dependent components of the design
variable vector XO1 A0 , A0 A, BB 0 , x T , yT , j1 : It can be shown that for mechanisms with
dierent disposition of the steering knuckle arm along the kingpin axis, by a proper correlation
of the co-ordinates yT and zT and of the length BB ', identical kinematical behaviour of the
mechanism can be obtained. Obviously some of these parameters can be maintained xed, and
the minimisation performed only with regard to j1 and A0A, both of which strongly aect the
transmission law of the mechanism, adding eventually a third variable O1 A0 which aects
mainly the pressure angle in the ball-joints.
The strict equality constraint of Smax 95 mm, which is actually of no practical use, was

936

P.A. Simionescu et al. / Mechanism and Machine Theory 35 (2000) 927943

replaced with the inequality constraint 95 0:25RSmax R95 0:25 mm, that facilitates the
convergence in the optimisation subroutine.
The corresponding input numerical data are as follows: a 108, b 88, Wb 1400 mm,
yi-max 458, OO1 437 mm, j1 2 2508; 2908 (which means a leading steering linkage
conguration is being sought), A0 A 2 100; 250 mm, O1 A0 2 50; 50 mm, BB 0 600 mm,
yT 126 mm and zT 28 mm, Smax 95 mm (the position and characteristics of the
hydraulic actuator were kept unchanged from a previous design). For expressing the constraint
upon the position of the ball-joint centre A, the values of the constructive parameters in Fig.
A2 were d1 322 mm, d2 476 mm, O1 O10 72 (measured along the kingpin axis relative to
the origin O1) and the permitted maximum distance b 114 mm in Fig. A2 (measured along
the wheel axis O10 x10 ).
In the case of the objective function F2, the maximum allowable steering error has been
taken as dyadm 58:
The exact and rounded design parameters obtained after optimisation are presented in
Table 1 together with the resulting length of the tie-rod, which in most designs is adjustable via
some threaded parts, permitting variation of the toe-angle of the front wheels.
4. Analysis of the mechanism and nal conclusions
The purpose of analysing the kinematic behaviour of the mechanisms obtained after
optimisation is to check whether the requirements imposed are fullled, since approximations
to the steering error and transmission angles have been used and also because the exact
optimum design variables have been rounded to practical values.
By inspecting the input/output law j1 j1 S, it may be seen that one of the main
requirements is fullled, i.e. for the maximum permissive stroke of the piston Smax 95 mm),
the inner maximum turning angle achieved by the wheels is 44.968 for the rst design
(minimisation of the objective function F1) and 44.668 for the second design (minimisation of
the objective function F2).
Fig. 5 is a graphical representation of the steering error dy for the whole range of j1 for the
cases of minimising the steering error and for minimising the maximum transmission angle. At
this point, since the departure between the desired and the actual transmission law of the
mechanism is the main parameter of interest in a steering linkage, it is useful to adopt some
conventions, on the basis of which comparison between dierent steering mechanisms can be
Table 1
Main parameters of the optimised mechanisms

j01 (deg)
O1A0 (mm)
A0A (mm)
AB (mm) (resultant)

F1 X 0:668 (max. steering error)

F2 X 56:48 (max. pressure angle)

301.7 (302)
45.0 (45)
194.4 (194.5)
250.2 (250.9)

298.4 (298)
44.9 (45)
186.3 (186)
234.6 (233.2)

P.A. Simionescu et al. / Mechanism and Machine Theory 35 (2000) 927943

937

made. For instance, Ardayo and Qiao [1] studied the actual trajectory of the centre of
intersection C between the front wheel axes and the desired straight-line trajectory coincident
with the rear wheel axis, while Felzien and Cronin [3] considered the steering error as the
distance between the points of intersection C1 and C2 of the same axes and the rear wheel axes
(see Fig. 4). Visa and Alexandru [5] analysed the steering linkage as a function-generating
mechanism, and considered the steering error as the angular departure between the actual and
the desired transmission law evaluated at the inner wheel. Because the inner wheel has an
imposed denite maximum pivoting angle, yi-max , the authors of the present paper suggest that
it is better to assess the steering error at the the outer wheel and to consider the inner wheel as
the input. In Fig. 5 the steering error is shown for both the inner and outer wheel, for the
whole range of j1 :
Fig. 6 shows that the pressure angle variation is in compliance with the requirements that
these angles must be less than 608. As expected, for the case of minimising the transmission
angles, the maximum values are smaller than for the case of minimisation of the steering error.
Fig. 7 shows the variation of individual input/output transmission ratios of Fs/M1 and Fs/
M2. It is known that the wheel pivoting moments M1 and M2 depend strongly on the nature of
the surface on which the vehicle stands and on the load upon the front axle. They also vary
with the wheel turning angle j1 and j2 due to the eect of the load upon the front axle and of
the castor oset and of kingpin axis inclination. Fig. 8 shows the sum of these individual
transmission ratios which is the overall transmission ratio Fs/M. In this case, a constant
resisting turning moment of a single wheel, M, must be assumed to permit the calculation of
the approximate hydraulic force Fs required to actuate the steering mechanism. This graph
shows the actuating symmetry of the mechanism with minimum control force occurring at the
straight-ahead position of the vehicle.
The nal graph in Fig. 9 was obtained by considering a variable tie-rod length and a xed
piston in its median position S 0 in the equation of constraint (4): j1 j1 AB dAB:
The adjusting range of the tie-rod has been considered as dAB 2 1:5; 1:5 mm, for which one

Fig. 5. Steering error of the optimised mechanisms.

938

P.A. Simionescu et al. / Mechanism and Machine Theory 35 (2000) 927943

Fig. 6. Variation of ball-joint pressure angles.

can observe that there is no signicant dierence between the two variants. This graph is very
useful for the designer in choosing the toe-out angle of the wheels. Since the tie-rod is the main
deformable element in the steering mechanism (due to both elasticities and clearances occurring
in the bushings), the toe-out angle can be estimated with ease, j1 dAB being almost
rectilinear.
The nal choice of one or other of the variants is up to the designer. It might be
useful to consider a greater steering error and further improve the force and motion
transmissibility of the mechanism. The consequent outer wheel oversteer occurring in the

Fig. 7. Input/output transmission ratios of left and right loops of the mechanism.

P.A. Simionescu et al. / Mechanism and Machine Theory 35 (2000) 927943

939

Fig. 8. Overall transmission ratio of the steering mechanism.

second variant is also useful according to Reimpell and Stoll [9], permitting a diminishing
of the minimum turning radius of the vehicle which is of some importance in everyday
practice.
In the case analysed, the steering mechanism is located on the vehicle axle, and there is no
coupling eect between the axle oscillation and the steering linkage kinematics. However, the
above considerations can also be used in the design of an automobile steering mechanism with
independent wheel suspension. The kinematics of the suspension must rst be assessed and a
supplementary constraint must be added to the objective functions F1 X or F2 X which is that

Fig. 9. Left wheel toe angle vs. tie-rod length variation.

940

P.A. Simionescu et al. / Mechanism and Machine Theory 35 (2000) 927943

the point B is located at the approximate centre of curvature of the trajectory of point A while
the wheel oscillates within its range. The reader is referred to Felzien and Cronin [3] for a more
detailed solution to this problem.
Acknowledgements
The research work was supported by the Romanian Ministry of Education grant number
5843/1996 while the rst author was a guest member of sta at Newcastle University. Thanks
are also extended to Mr. L. Nicoara and Mr. V. Marosi from ``Tractor Project'' S.A. Brasov,
Romania for providing the numerical data of the example presented in the paper.

Appendix A
1. In Fig. 3 the following three relations hold:
tan a 0

P2 P3
,
O1 P 2

cos b

O1 P1
O1 P2

and tan a

P1 P4
P2 P3

O1 P1
O1 P 1

A1

which, by elimination, gives:

tan a 0 cos b
tan a

A2

2. Substituting into the equation of constraint (5), the co-ordinates of the ball-joint centre A
derived from relations (1)(3) yields the transmission law in the following form:
q
Q1 2 Q21 Q23 Q22
A3
j1 2arctan
Q3 Q2
where
Q1 2a2 cb a3 sb
A0 A

Q2 2 a1 ca 0 a2 sa 0
sb a3 sa 0
cb
A0 A
Q3 a21 a22 a23 AB 2 A0 A2

A4

and
a1 OO1 x B sa 0
O1 A0
a2 ca 0
sb
O1 A0 yB
a3 ca 0
cb
O1 A0 zB :

A5

P.A. Simionescu et al. / Mechanism and Machine Theory 35 (2000) 927943

941

The sign in front of the square root must be chosen in accordance with the actual
conguration of the mechanism (leading or trailing steering linkage). Numerical solution of
the equation of constraint does not give rise to this problem of choosing between two
possible congurations, since in the optimised mechanism the theoretical output angle j2Th
will be a very good initial estimate for the actual angle being sought.
3. The condition of static equilibrium of the tie-rod in Fig. 3 is written as:
FA
FS

cos FA
cos FB

where FA

M1
A0 A

A6

which permits determination of the inputoutput ratio Fs/M1. Since it is also equal to
dj1 =dS, an equivalent expression can be deduced by dierentiating the equation of
constraint (5) resulting in:
dj1
x A x B dx A yA yB dyA zA z dzA
:

dS
xA xB

A7

4. In Fig. A1, the admissible position of the hydraulic trunion axis has been dened in polar
co-ordinates relative to the yOz system plane of the main reference frame Oxyz. The polar
radius rT is considered to remain in the domain rmin RrT Rrmax while lT must be within
lmin RlT Rlmax , limits given by the external edges of the casing and by the dierential input
shaft position, and also by the type of linkage leading or trailing link. The Cartesian coordinates x T and yT appearing in the text, must be replaced in accordance with the known
relations that hold between the polar and Cartesian co-ordinates.
5. The condition that the centre A of the steering knuckle arm ball-joint must be within the
permissive cylindrical envelope in Fig. A2, delimited by the wheel rim and the wheel hub, is
analytically expressed as:

Fig. A1. Polar co-ordinate positioning of the hydraulic trunion relative to the front axle.

942

P.A. Simionescu et al. / Mechanism and Machine Theory 35 (2000) 927943

Fig. A2. Schematic for calculating the permissible situation of the steering knuckle arm ball-joint.

x A0 Rb

q

2
2
and d1 =2R yA0 zA0 Rd2 =2

A8

the latter expression being the condition that the distance between the point A and the wheel
axis lies within the allowable range [d1/2d2/2]. Both inequalities are easier to check
employing the co-ordinates of the ball-joint centre xA0 , yA0 and zA0 relative to a co-ordinate
system obtained from O10 x10 y10 z10 attached to the wheel. This is obtained from the kingpin coordinate system by applying a translation O1 O10 along the z1-axis followed by a rotation g
about the y-axis. Numerical values of O1 O10 , g and b are directly available from the
blueprints (the angle g can be considered approximately equal to the sum of the wheel
camber angle and the kingpin inclination angle). The described co-ordinate system
transformation can be expressed in matrix form as follows:
3 2
3
2 0 3 2
A0 A
cos j01
xA
cos g
0 sin g
5
4 A0 A
sin j01 5
4 yA0 5 4 0
1 0
A9
0
0
zA
O1 A0 O1 O1
sin g 0 cos g

References
[1] D.D. Ardayo, D. Qiao, Mechanism and Machine Theory 22 (1987) 315.
[2] R.R. Dvali, N.I. Aleksishvili, J. of Mechanisms 6 (1971) 167.

P.A. Simionescu et al. / Mechanism and Machine Theory 35 (2000) 927943

943

[3] M.L. Felzien, D.L. Cronin, Mechanism and Machine Theory 20 (1985) 17.
[4] P.A. Simionescu, I. Tempea, M.R. Smith, in: Proceedings of the Seventh International Symposium
SYROM'97, Bucharest, vol. 4, 1997, p. 155.
[5] I. Visa, P. Alexandru, in: Proceedings of the Fifth World Congress on the Theory of Machines and
Mechanisms, vol. 1, 1979, p. 9.
[6] W.A. Wolfe, J. of Engineering for Industry 11 (1959) 14.
[7] C.E. Zarak, M.A. Townsend, J. of Mechanisms, Transmissions and Automation in Design 105 (1983) 220.
[8] P. Lukin, G. Gasparyants, V. Rodionov, Automobile Chassis Design and Calculation, Mir, Moscow, 1989.
[9] J. Reimpell, H. Stoll, The Automotive Chassis: Engineering Principles, Arnold, London, 1996.
[10] R.I. Alizade, A.V. Mohan Rao, G.N. Sandor, J. of Engineering for Industry 97 (1973) 785.
[11] K.V. Gupta, J. of Engineering for Industry 95 (1972) 339.
[12] C.H. Suh, A.W. Mecklenburg, Mechanism and Machine Theory 8 (1973) 479.
[13] C.H. Suh, C.W. Radclie, Kinematics and Mechanisms Design, Wiley, New York, 1978.
[14] R. Ivanov, S. Liubenov, Proceedings of the Institution of Mechanical Engineers 209 (D) (1995) 111.
[15] P.A. Taylor, R. Birtwistle, Proceedings of the Institution of Mechanical Engineers 181 (A2) (1967) 133.
[16] Carraro SpA, Axle Catalogue, Via Olmo 37, Campodarsego, Italy, 1992.