CHAPTER-SEVEN

Steering

System
Introduction
 Both the steering and suspension systems work closely
together and even share some of the same parts.
 The steering system controls your car's left and right
motions (improve Handling Characteristics)
 the suspension controls the up and down motions of your
vehicle. improve Riding Characteristics)
 In the past fifty years, car steering systems haven't
changed much. But in the next decade, we'll see advances
in car steering that will result in more efficient cars and a
more comfortable ride.
Introduction
 The steered wheels are usually the front wheels due to
stability reasons.
 Rear wheel steering will have better maneuverability at low
speeds, but an unstable situation will arise at high speeds.
 Forklifts are a typical example of a rear wheel steered
vehicle.
Introduction
 4-wheel steering is also available in some production
cars.
 It increases maneuverability by offering a very tight
turning circle at the cost of additional complexity and
weight.
Main tasks of the steering
 The main tasks of steering system are
 To turn the steered wheels in the desire direction.
 To allow different steering angles of the steered
wheels during cornering.
 To amplify the torque generated manually by an
adequate amount.
 Requirements for steering systems
 Maximum damping of impact from surface irregularities, but no
loss of contact with the road surface.
 Direct steering response to even minor steering movements,
due to a very rigid system.
 The steering systems layout must satisfy the Ackermann
conditions: when the wheels are turned, the elongations of the
axes of rotation of the front left and right wheels must intersect
with an elongation of the rear axle (correct steering principle).
 When the steering wheel is released, the wheels must return to
the centre position and remain stable in that position. (proper
wheel alignments: camber caster, and toe)
Types of steering
 There are 3 types of steering
 Fifth wheel steering
 Articulated body steering :
 Differential (Skid) steering:
 King-pin steering (double-pivot steering)
 Fifth wheel steering
 pivot at the center so the axle
 commonly used on towed
vehicles, such as semi-trailers
pulled by tractor-trucks.
 It permits large steered angles
and facilitates maneuvering.
 Types of steering
 Articulated body steering:
 Vehicle body is hinged at the mid-section about a vertical axis.
 The wheels are fixed on the body, The front half can be rotated
with respect to the rear half by hydraulic cylinders.
 Used in wheeled off-the-road vehicles (e.g. loaders with large
diameter tires).
Types of steering
 Differential (Skid) steering:
 This system introduces of a velocity differential across the
two sides of the vehicle.
 Differential steering is mostly used in track laying
vehicles and on some special purpose (combat) vehicles
Types of steering
 King-pin (Ackerman) steering
 Pivoting only the wheels and their stub axles around the
kingpins.
 The front axle itself remains fixed.
 With this arrangement, the axle is held
at a right angle to the vehicle frame and
cannot pivot.
Types of steering
 Kingpin (Ackerman) Steering (double-pivot steering)
 The wheels change from the straight-ahead position
independently on separate pivot pins or knuckle pivots at the
ends of the axle.
 Ackerman principle
 Condition for True Rolling
 True rolling occurs only when the direction motion is
perpendicular to the wheel axis
 A force acting parallel to the wheel axis will produce
purely a scrub action

When the direction of rotation is

neither parallel nor
perpendicular to the axis of
rotation, the movement will be
the compound of true rolling and
lateral distortion
Ackerman principle
 Condition for True Rolling on a circular path
 The projected axes of several wheels all moving in different
curved paths must intersect at a single point (instantaneous
center)
 If these projected axes do not intersect at a single point, a
degree of tyre-scrub must result

Fifth wheel steering

Ackerman Linkage Geometry
 Parallel set track-rod-arms
 The original Ackerman linkage.
 Both steered wheels then swiveled at equal angles
 The intersecting projection lines did not meet at one point
 the track rod dimensions yi, xi and yo,xo remain equal for all
angles of turn
Ackerman Linkage Geometry
 Inclined track-rod arms (modified Ackerman Linkage)
 This is trapezium linkage configuration
 Which makes the inner wheel swivel about its king-pin slightly
more than the outer wheel this enables to have a common
instantaneous center
 The track-rod dimensions for inner wheel yi is always smaller than
the outer wheel yo. But there is very little variation b/n xi and xo
Front Wheel Alignment
 For the road wheels to roll freely and with the min of
effort, opposite wheels must be approximately parallel
to each other when the vehicle is in motion along a
straight path
 Front Wheel Alignment
 Rear wheel drive
 The front wheel will diverge due to the tire resist the
forward motion of the suspension system
 To correct this tendency the wheels are initially giving
toe-in so that under driving condition the wheels will
turn parallel
Front Wheel Alignment
 Front wheel drive
 The front wheel will converge due to the of the stub-
axles assembly pulling forward the suspension cross
member and body
 To correct the converging tendency when in motion the
wheel track is adjusted with a toe-out when the vehicle
at rest
Steering Linkage Arrangement
 To make a turn some sort of mechanical linkages has to be
incorporated b/n the front steered road wheels and the driver’s
steering wheel.
 This mechanism must operate effectively under all normal
conditions without interfering
 with the propelling road-wheel traction or
 with the suspension movement which copes with road surface
irregularities and roll during cornering.
 The layout of any steering arrangement used depends largely on
the type of suspension system used for front wheel
 A rigid-axle-beam front suspension
 Independent front suspension
Steering Linkage Arrangement
 Axle-Beam suspension steering system

 Consists of
 Steering wheel
 Steering box
 Drop (pitman)-arm
 Drag-link arm
 Stub-axle
 Track-rod-arm
 Track-rod
Steering Linkage Arrangement
Axle-Beam suspension steering system

Front View
Steering Linkage Arrangement
 Axle-Beam suspension steering system
 Steering box
 Provides a gear reduction so that with only a small effort, a much
larger force can be applied to the steering linkage
 The degree of stub axle movement will be reduced for a give angular
movement of the steering wheel
 Drop-arm (Pitman-arm)
 Its sawing action imparts a circular-arc movement to the drag-link
 Drag-link
 Tubular rod converts the circular movement of the drop-arm into a
linear push or pull motion of the drag-link arm
 An alternative transverse drag-link lay out may preferred for cross
country vehicles
Steering Linkage Arrangement
 Axle-Beam suspension steering system
 Axle-Beam suspension steering system

Transverse located drag-link

 Steering Linkage Arrangement
 Axle-Beam suspension steering system
 Drag-link arm
 Provide the leverage to convert the linear drag-link movement to an angular
movement about the stub-axle king-pin
 Stub-axle
 Each steered road-wheel is mounted on a short axle-shaft commonly known as a
stub-axle
 Track-rod arm
 Bolted approximately right angles to the wheel axis in the horizontal plane
 Provides the leverage to rotate the stub-axle about the king-pin the rotary
movement being transferred to the other stub-axle by means of the track-rod
 Track-rod
 To enable the two stub-axles to pivot together, transfer the motion from one stub-
axle to the other
Steering Linkage Arrangement
 Independent-suspension steering system
 With rigid beam suspension the relative movement can take
place only in the horizontal plane. Therefore the effective track-
rod length is not influenced by any vertical suspension
deflection
 Independent suspension steering has to cope with each stub-
axle moving up or down independent of the other so that the
distance b/n track-rod arm ball-joint centers is continually
varying
 A single track-rod joined the two stub-axles together, the
slightest bump or rebound would tend to pull both stub-axle
arms at once
 Steering Linkage Arrangement
 Independent-suspension steering system
 The difficulty of the changing distance between track-rod-
arm ball-joint centers can be overcome by using
 a 3 piece track-rod (relay-rod and idler )
 Form a rack-shaft
Split track-rod with relay-rod
idler steering linkage lay out
Used for large private cars
 Steering Linkage Arrangement
 Independent-suspension steering system

Rack and pinion steering linkage

arrangement

In either case, this part has

freedom to move in the horizontal
plane bur restrained from moving
in the vertical plane

Used for small and medium private cars

Steering Gear
 The steering gear has the task of converting the rotating
movement of the steering wheel into a pivoting movement of
the wheels.
 Requirements if it is to function efficiently:
 No play when traveling straight ahead,
 High efficiency,
 High rigidity,
 Scope for adjustment.
 Types of steering gear
 Recirculation-ball-and-nut steering
 Rack-and-pinion steering
 Steering Gear
 Rack-and-pinion steering assembly
 Let R- steering-wheel radius
 r- pinion pitch-circle radius
 p- linear or circular pitch
 t- number of pinion teeth
xi 2R R
 E- input steering Movement ratio ( MR)   
xo 2r r
 W- output rack load
 Now consider the pinion to make one revolution
 The input steering –wheel movement xi=2πR
xi 2R
 The output rack movement xo=2πr=tp MR  
xo tp
Example
 A rack-and-pinion steering has a pinion of 16 mm pitch-
circle diameter. What effort must be applied on the 320
mm diameter steering-wheel to overcome a resistance
of 500 N experienced transversely on the rack
 Given
 2r=16 mm
 2R=320 mm
 W=500N
 Required
 E=?
solution
 Movement ratio
xi 160 mm
Movement ratio ( MR)    20 : 1
xo 8 mm

 When there is no friction, MR

xi W
MR  
xo E
W 500 N
Input effort  E    25 N
MR 20 N
Steering Gear
 Rack-and-pinion steering assembly
 Is designed to have the following properties
 To give reduction to reduce steering wheel effort
 To reduce the directness of the steering response
 To enable the front wheels turn through an angle of 70 o
b/n steering locks
 The gearing should tend to be semi-irreversible
(dampening out any light wheel wobbles), but allowing
direct road-wheel reactions to be transmitted back to the
steering-wheel
Steering Gear
Rack-and-pinion steering assembly
Rack-and-pinion steering assembly

Principle of operation
 The transfer of motion
from the pinion to the
rack is achieved by the
pinion teeth along the
circular pitch of the
pinion should equal the
linear pitch of the rack
 Steering Gear
Rack-and-pinion steering assembly

 Construction
 the ball-race bearings straddle
& support the pinion gear
 The rack slides in its tubular
housing b/n two bearings
 The half-bearing yoke is made
to push the rack teeth in to
mesh with the pinion teeth-it
thus controls the amount of
backlash b/n the rack and
pinion teeth
 Steering Gear
 Recirculating ball rack and sector steering gear
box
 This steering gear box is basically a manual screw-
nut-type steering device, which reduce the screwing
friction which would be generated b/n the engaging
threads
Power-Steering
 The purpose of power steering is
 to reduce driver's effort at the steering wheel.
 To improve driving comfort, most modern automobiles
have wide low pressure tires which increase the tire to
road contact area. As a result of this, more steering
efforts is required.
Power-assisted Steering
 Steering effort can be decreased by increasing the gear ratio of
steering gear. However, this will cause a larger rotary motion of
the steering wheel when the vehicle is turning, making sharp
turns impossible.
 The power system is designed to become operative when the
effort at wheel exceeds a predetermined value, say 10N.
 The system is always so designed that in the event of the failure
of the power system, the driver is able to steer the vehicle
manually although with increased effort
 Application:
 Such a system is used in medium and heavy vehicles whose
unladen weight is more than 1500 kgs.
 Power-assisted Steering
 Types of power steering systems:-
 Three types of steering systems are in common use.

 Integral system:
 This is the most commonly used system. In this system the control
valve and the power piston are internal parts of the steering gear.
 Integral power rack and pinion system:
 In this system control valve and power piston are contained in the
same housing but they are connected externally by tubing.
 Non Integral System:-
 In this system externally mounted components that are attached to
the steering linkage are used. The control valve and the power
piston are connected by hoses or tubing.
Power-assisted Steering
 In all power steering systems hydraulic pressure is
provided by a pump mounted near the front of the engine.
 It is driven by a v-belt from the camshaft pulley.
 The pump is connected to the control valve by means of
two hoses.
 One hose delivers the hydraulic fluid
to the control valve. The second hose
returns the fluid to the reservoir
 Power-assisted Steering
 Components of power steering system
 The power steering system includes
 a control valve assembly and
 a power cylinder.
 In addition, the system has
 fluid reservoir,
 hydraulic pump, and
 control hoses.
 A filter
 fluid cooler.
 Power-assisted Steering
 Pump
 The hydraulic power for the steering is provided by a
rotary-vane pump
 This pump is driven by the car's engine via a belt and
pulley. It contains a set of retractable vanes that spin
inside an oval chamber.

The amount of flow provided by the pump

depends on the car's engine speed.

The pump must be designed to provide

adequate flow when the engine is idling.
Power-assisted Steering
 Control valve
 When there is no demand for power assistance and the
valve remains in its neutral position, it must allow the fluid
being delivered by the pump to be re-circulated via the
valve to the reservoir.

There are two basic types of

control valves,
Linear and
Rotary spools
 Steer-by-wire
 means the replacement of hydraulic and mechanical
systems in motor vehicles with electronic controls and
systems.
 a steer-by-wire system that can change the steering ratio
while you drive.
 The system can also intervene in an instant to provide a
correction if the rear end starts to break away
 The
CHAPTER-SEVEN

End