This document discusses vehicle characteristics that are important for highway design. It defines four main categories of vehicles - passenger cars, buses, trucks, and recreational vehicles. Vehicle characteristics include static characteristics like size and weight, and dynamic characteristics related to forces that cause vehicle motion. A design vehicle is selected based on these characteristics to represent the largest vehicle expected on a roadway. The document provides guidelines for selecting different design vehicles for different roadway contexts. It also discusses the various forces that act on a moving vehicle, including air resistance, grade resistance, rolling resistance, and curve resistance, and how these forces affect vehicle power requirements and braking distance.
This document discusses vehicle characteristics that are important for highway design. It defines four main categories of vehicles - passenger cars, buses, trucks, and recreational vehicles. Vehicle characteristics include static characteristics like size and weight, and dynamic characteristics related to forces that cause vehicle motion. A design vehicle is selected based on these characteristics to represent the largest vehicle expected on a roadway. The document provides guidelines for selecting different design vehicles for different roadway contexts. It also discusses the various forces that act on a moving vehicle, including air resistance, grade resistance, rolling resistance, and curve resistance, and how these forces affect vehicle power requirements and braking distance.
This document discusses vehicle characteristics that are important for highway design. It defines four main categories of vehicles - passenger cars, buses, trucks, and recreational vehicles. Vehicle characteristics include static characteristics like size and weight, and dynamic characteristics related to forces that cause vehicle motion. A design vehicle is selected based on these characteristics to represent the largest vehicle expected on a roadway. The document provides guidelines for selecting different design vehicles for different roadway contexts. It also discusses the various forces that act on a moving vehicle, including air resistance, grade resistance, rolling resistance, and curve resistance, and how these forces affect vehicle power requirements and braking distance.
This document discusses vehicle characteristics that are important for highway design. It defines four main categories of vehicles - passenger cars, buses, trucks, and recreational vehicles. Vehicle characteristics include static characteristics like size and weight, and dynamic characteristics related to forces that cause vehicle motion. A design vehicle is selected based on these characteristics to represent the largest vehicle expected on a roadway. The document provides guidelines for selecting different design vehicles for different roadway contexts. It also discusses the various forces that act on a moving vehicle, including air resistance, grade resistance, rolling resistance, and curve resistance, and how these forces affect vehicle power requirements and braking distance.
Vehicles: In general, motor vehicles are classified by AASHTO into four main categories: Passenger cars: all passenger cars, minivans, vans, and pickup trucks. Buses: intercity motor coaches, transit buses, school buses, and articulated buses. Trucks: single-unit trucks, tractor-trailer, and tractor-semi-trailer combination vehicles Recreational vehicles: motor homes, cars with various types of trailers (boat, campers, motorcycles, etc.).
Vehicle Characteristics: Criteria for the geometric design of highways are partly based on the static and dynamic characteristics of vehicles. Static characteristics include the weight and size of the vehicle, while Dynamic characteristics involve the forces that cause the motion of the vehicle. Since nearly all highways carry both passenger-automobile and truck traffic, it is essential that design criteria take into account the characteristics of different types of vehicles.
Design Vehicle: is that vehicle which has a proper static and dynamic characteristics that lead to a safe and smooth operation of a moving, passing, stopping, and turning used for designing highways and traffic control systems.
1.Static Characteristics: The size of the design vehicle for a highway is an important factor in the determination of design standards for several physical components of the highway. These include lane width, shoulder width, length and width of parking bays, and lengths of vertical curves. The axle weights of the vehicles expected on the highway are important when pavement depths and maximum grades are being determined. For many years, each state prescribed by law the size and weight limits for trucks using its highways, and in some cases local authorities also imposed more severe restrictions on some roads. Table below shows some features of static characteristics for which limits were prescribed. A range of maximum allowable values is given for each feature.
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Range of State Limits on Vehicle Lengths by Type and Maximum Weight of
Vehicle
Type Allowable Lengths (ft)
Bus 35– 60 Single truck 35– 60 Trailer, semi/full 35– 48 Semitrailer 55–85 Truck trailer 55–85 Tractor semitrailer trailer 55–85 Truck trailer, trailer , trailer 65–80 Tractor semitrailer, trailer, trailer 60 –105 Type Allowable Weights (lb) Single-axle 18,000–24,000 Tandem-axle 32,000 – 40,000 State maximum gross vehicle weight 73,280 –164,000 Interstate maximum gross vehicle weight 73,280 –164,000
AASHTO also has suggested the following guidelines for selecting a design vehicle: For a parking lot or series of parking lots, a passenger car may be used For intersections on residential streets and park roads, a single-unit truck could be considered For the design of intersections of state highways and city streets that serve bus traffic but with relatively few large trucks, a city transit bus may be used. For the design of intersections of highways with low-volume county and township/ local roads with Average Annual Daily Traffic 400 or less, a large school bus with a capacity of 84 passengers or a conventional bus with a capacity of 65 passengers may be used. The selection of the bus type depends on the expected frequency of each of the buses on the facility. For intersections of freeway ramp terminals and arterial highways, and for intersections of state highways and industrial streets with high traffic volumes, or with large truck access to local streets, the WB-20 (WB-65 or 67) may be used.
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Examples of Different Types of Trucks
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Minimum Turning Path for Single-Unit Truck Design Vehicle
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2.Dynamic Characteristics Several forces act on a vehicle while it is in motion: air resistance, grade resistance, rolling resistance, and curve resistance. Air Resistance A vehicle in motion has to overcome the resistance of the air in front of it as well as the force due to the frictional action of the air around it. The force required to overcome these is known as the air resistance and is related to the cross-sectional area of the vehicle in a direction perpendicular to the direction of motion and to the square of the speed of the vehicle
(2.15 ∗ 𝑝 ∗ 𝐶𝐷 ∗ 𝐴𝑢2 ) 𝑅𝑎 = 0.5 𝑔 Ra = air resistance force (lb) p = density of air (0.0766 lb/ft3) at sea level; less at higher elevations CD = aerodynamic drag coefficient (current average value for passenger cars is 0.4; A = frontal cross-sectional area (ft2) u = vehicle speed (mi/h) g = acceleration of gravity (32.2 ft /sec2)
Grade Resistance When a vehicle moves up a grade, a component of the weight of the vehicle acts downward, along the plane of the highway. This creates a force acting in a direction opposite that of the motion. This force is the grade resistance.
grade resistance = (weight * grade in decimal)
Rolling Resistance There are forces within the vehicle itself that offer resistance to motion. These forces are due mainly to frictional effect on moving parts of the vehicle, but they also include the frictional slip between the pavement surface and the tires. The sum effect of these forces on motion is known as rolling resistance. The rolling resistance depends on the speed of the vehicle and the type of pavement. Rolling forces are relatively lower on smooth pavements than on rough pavements. The rolling resistance force for passenger cars on a smooth pavement can be determined from the relation 𝑅𝑟 = (𝐶𝑟𝑠 + 2.15 ∗ 𝐶𝑟𝑣 ∗ 𝑢2 )𝑊
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R = rolling resistance force (lb)
Crs = constant (typically 0.012 for passenger cars) Crv = constant (typically 0.65*10-6 sec2/ft2 for passenger cars) u = vehicle speed (mi/h) W = gross vehicle weight (lb)
Curve Resistance When a passenger car is maneuvered to take a curve, external forces act on the front wheels of the vehicle. These forces have components that have a retarding effect on the forward motion of the vehicle. The sum effect of these components constitutes the curve resistance. (2.15 ∗ 𝑢2 𝑊) 𝑅𝑐 = 0.5 𝑔𝑟 Rc = curve resistance (lb( u = vehicle speed (mi/h) W= gross vehicle weight (lb) g = acceleration of gravity (32.2 ft/sec2) r = radius of curvature (ft2)
Power Requirements Power is the rate at which work is done. It is usually expressed in horsepower , where 1 horsepower is 550 lb-ft /sec. The performance capability of a vehicle is measured in terms of the horsepower the engine can produce to overcome air, grade, curve, and friction resistance forces and put the vehicle in motion. Figure below shows how these forces act on the moving vehicle. The power delivered by the engine is: 1.47𝑅𝑢 𝑃= 550 P = horsepower delivered (hp) R = sum of resistance to motion (lb) u = speed of vehicle (mi/h)
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Forces Acting on a Moving Vehicle
Example 1: Determine the horsepower produced by a passenger car traveling at
a speed of 65 mil/h on a straight road of 5% grade with a smooth pavement. Assume the weight of the car is 4000 lb and the cross-sectional area of the car is 40 ft2. Solution: The force produced by the car should be at least equal to the sum of the acting resistance forces. R = (air resistance Ra) + (rolling resistance Rr) + (Grade resistance) Note: There is no curve resistance since the road is straight. (2.15 ∗ 𝑝 ∗ 𝐶𝐷 ∗ 𝐴𝑢2 ) 𝑅𝑎 = 0.5 𝑔
(2.15 ∗ 0.0766 ∗ 0.4 ∗ 40 ∗ 652 )
= 0.5 = 172.9 𝑙𝑏 32.2
𝑅𝑟 = (𝐶𝑟𝑠 + 2.15 ∗ 𝐶𝑟𝑣 ∗ 𝑢2 )𝑊
= (0.012 + 2.15 ∗ 0.65 ∗ 10−6 ∗ 652 ) ∗ 4000
= (0.018) ∗ 4000 = 72 𝑙𝑏
Grade resistance = 4000 * (5/100) = 200 lb
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Total Resistance = 172.9 + 72 + 200 = 444.9 lb
Determine horsepower produced 1.47𝑅𝑢 𝑃= 550
1.47 ∗ 444.9 ∗ 65 𝑃= 550
𝑃 = 77.3 ℎ𝑝
Breaking Distance The action of the forces on the moving vehicle and the effect of perception- reaction time are used to determine important parameters related to the dynamic characteristics of the vehicles.
Example 2: A student trying to test the braking ability of her car determined that she needed 18.5 ft more to stop her car when driving downhill on a road segment of 5% grade than when driving downhill at the same speed along another segment of 3% grade. Determine the speed at which the student conducted her test and the braking distance on the 5% grade if the student is traveling at the test speed in the uphill direction.
Solution: Let X = downhill braking distance on 5% grade. (X - 18.5) ft = downhill braking distance on 3% grade.
