This handbook discusses tyre-road contact forces generated by heavy vehicles: their influence on road surface and bridge response and damage; as well as ways of regulating and improving vehicles so as to minimize road damage.
The main incentive for understanding vehicle-road interaction is the possibility of reducing the road damage caused by heavy vehicles and the very high associated costs. This may be achieved by highway authorities, through improved design and construction of roads; by government agencies, through regulations intended to encourage the use of more 'road-friendly' vehicles; or by vehicle engineers, through design of improved vehicle configurations and suspensions, which minimize road damage.
The book provides a unified mechanistic approach to the entire subject, covering the main topics of: vehicle dynamics; dynamic tyre forces; weigh-in-motion; pavement and bridge response; damage mechanisms of paving materials; vehicle- guideway interaction; suspension design to minimise road damage; and assessing road-damaging potential of vehicles for regulatory purposes. It includes 25 literature reviews, covering topics from asphalt deformation to weigh-in-motion, and citing over 500 references. It discusses both the fundamental mechanics of the mechanical and civil engineering systems, as well as practical and implementation issues; and therefore provides both a first introduction to the subject and a comprehensive reference source.
