Case Study: Passenger Comfort and Road Surface Noise Analysis

Evaluation of tire fitment options by direct measurement of the tire’s internal cavity noise, in 20 minutes per tire.

Road noise that penetrates a vehicle cabin contributes to driver fatigue and can be the factor that loses the sale or repeat business. All vehicle manufacturers therefore go to considerable lengths to reduce road noise.

Tire manufacturers play their part by optimizing their tire designs to reduce tread pattern excitation and achieve low transmission from tire to vehicle body structure. The road surface is, however, a continuously changing partner in the generation of vibration and hence noise. Without knowing the surface upon which the vehicle will drive, it is next to impossible to design for minimum transmission.

Many years ago, a senior engineer revealed that he had solved the problem of car road noise by fitting a louder radio to his car. For many years powertrain noise was the ‘louder radio’ effectively masking road noise. The advances in powertrain and effective mounting technologies have been gradually turning the volume of this ‘radio’ down to the point that road noise is the dominant component of cabin noise. Tire manufacturers, initially at the request of luxury vehicle brands, have been reducing tire noise at source. …

Source: TTi