Back in October, I wandered into - some would say started - a low-grade
flame war on vehicle stability. Specifically, I argued that a simple
measurement of vehicle height and track would be a good way of estimating
if a car/van/SUV would be likely roll over during an autocross.
Last week NHTSA released their take on the problem. See:
Why Choose Static Stability Factor (SSF)?
http://www.nhtsa.dot.gov/cars/rules/rulings/Rollover/Chapt05.html
Rollover Resistance Ratings Information
http://www.nhtsa.dot.gov/hot/rollover/Index.html#chart
There is lots of really good info here, and much of it makes intuitive
sense without getting too deep into the math and physics. The biggest
lessons I picked were:
- Static Stability Factor (SSF), or the ratio of track and CG height,
is a pretty darn good predictor of rollover likelihood.
- A simple measure of vehicle height and track is probably not good
enough to be of much use because of uncertainty of the CG height.
Apparently there has been a lot of work done over the last few years
on quick tests using accelerometers measure CG location.
/Bill
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