Composite leaf springs constructed of glass fiber reinforced polymeric material have been recognized as a viable replacement for steel leaf springs since their introduction on the 1981 General Motors Corvette. This acceptance of composite leaf springs has given rise to applications in high volume production passenger cars and vans. The increased reliability and utility of composite leaf springs is clearly demonstrated in these applications. This paper will discuss the design, laboratory testing, field testing, and development over the past three years that has led to the commercialization of the Liteflex trailer spring. This will include the design process for high and low deflection composite leaf springs and the stress analysis for common springs used in various axle spacings worldwide. An explanation of laboratory tests will be given and the rationalization for these tests compared to current steel spring test standards. An attempt will be made to correlate laboratory, test track, servohydraulic simulator, and field tests of Liteflex trailer springs. This testing will demonstrate the soft failure mode of the composite leaf spring and the advantage this brings to fleet owners. The other advantages of weight reduction and increased durability will be discussed.


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    Title :

    Development and testing of composite truck trailer springs


    Additional title:

    Entwicklung und Pruefung von Federn aus Verbundwerkstoffen fuer LKW-Anhaenger


    Contributors:

    Published in:

    SAE-Papers ; Mar ; 1-6


    Publication date :

    1989


    Size :

    6 Seiten, 1 Bild, 2 Quellen


    Type of media :

    Conference paper


    Type of material :

    Print


    Language :

    English




    Development and Testing of Composite Truck Trailer Springs

    Richard, David S. / Mutzner, John E. | SAE Technical Papers | 1989


    Development and testing of composite truck trailer springs

    Mutzner,J.E. / Richard,D.S. / General Motors,US | Automotive engineering | 1989


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