Steering system

Components of a Steering system

Requirement of steering system

1. It must keep the wheel at all times in to rolling motion without rubbing on the road.
2. This system should associate to control the speed.
3. It must light and stable.
4. It should also absorb the road shocks.
5. It must easily be operated with less maintenance.
6. It should have self-centering action to some extent.
Functions of Steering System
1. It helps in swinging the wheels to the left or right.
2. It helps in turning the vehicle at the will of the driver.
3. It provides directional stability.
4. It is used to minimize the tyre wear and tear.
5. It helps in achieving self-centering efforts.
6. It absorbs major part of the road shocks.
Always have our vehicles alignment checked when

Our vehicle has hit something (e.g. a kerb or major road hazard).

We notice that our tyres are wearing abnormally or unevenly.

We experience steering or handling problems, such as:

o

Our vehicle pulls or drifts to one side.

Our steering wheel does not return easily after a turn.

Our steering wheel remains at an angle when driving in a straight line.

When we buy a new set of tyres and want them to last as long as possible.

When we replace suspension or steering components.

Why is wheel alignment important?

Wheel alignment can affect the amount of wear and tear that tyres endure. The normal alignment on most
vehicles is designed to minimise wear and tear and maximise driver and passenger comfort. Correct four wheel
alignment will reduce wear on our tyres, help increase their life and performance, and improve fuel economy. It
will also improve handling and driving safety by reducing steering and stability problems.
Why does wheel misalignment happen?
Misalignment can occur when hitting a kerb or driving through a pothole, as well as in more severe
circumstances like accidents, which can knock our vehicles suspension out of alignment. Misalignment can
also happen as suspension components wear or when they are replaced. When wheel alignment is incorrect,
rapid tyre wear can occur especially on the edge of the tyres, and vehicle handling can also be adversely
affected. It almost certainly means that we will have to replace our tyres earlier than expected. It takes only a
small misalignment to create problems. The purpose of correct wheel alignment is to provide optimum vehicle
Handling and to maximize the life of the tyres.
The main reasons for having correct wheel alignment are

It can save our money, as tyre replacements are required less frequently.

Our tyres will last longer.

Our vehicle handling will be optimised.

Our vehicle will drive smoother with less tyre rolling resistance.

Wheel Alignment - Wheel alignment refers to the positioning of the front wheels and steering mechanism that
gives the vehicle directional stability, promotes ease of steering and reduces tire wear to a minimum.
A wheel is said to have directional stability or control if it can:
- run straight down a road,
- enter and leave a turn easily, and
- resist road shocks.
The front wheel alignment depends upon the following factors
1. Factors pertaining to wheel: - a. Balance of wheels b. Inflation of tyre and c. Brake adjustments.
2. Steering Linkages.
3. Suspension System
4. Steering Geometry a. caster b. camber c. king pin inclination d. toe-in and toe-out etc.,
Inaccurate wheel alignment can cause

difficult steering

poor steering stability

poor reciprocation on hairpin comer

shorten the tyre life span, etc.

Six items for wheel alignment

Suspension Height - The distance between the vehicle body, frame or any suspension point to the ground. This
is taken into consideration for the position of the centre of gravity. The lesser the ride height, the centre of
gravity lowers due to lowering of the entire weight of the vehicle. This also results in better aerodynamics since
lesser cross-sectional area between the road and the vehicle increases the velocity of air passing below the
vehicle. If the ride height is high, this results in a high centre of gravity which leads to possibility of the car
rolling over in corners.

Caster - Caster is the angle between an imaginary line drawn through the upper and lower steering pivots and a
line perpendicular to the road surface (viewed from side of vehicle). If the top of the line tilts rearward, the
vehicle is said to have Positive caster. If the top of the line tilts forward, the vehicle is said to have
Negative. Incline backward is called positive caster, incline frontward is called negative caster. Normally
caster falls between 10 to 30 for ordinary vehicles.
The main advantage of positive castor is straight line following. The Kingpin intersects the road before the
contact patch and hence pulls the latter after it. The force required to pull the tyre after it increases as the castor
angle increases.

Camber - The angle between the center line of the wheel viewed from the front and the vertical axis used for
steering.

The center line of the wheel inclines outward is called positive camber.

Overlapping center line of the wheel and the vertical axis is called zero camber.

The center line of the wheel inclines inward is called negative camber.

camber is normally be,tween - 1.50 to + 1.50.

Camber in general increases tyre wear on the inside or outside edge depending on whether it is negative or
positive camber respectively. Also for best acceleration and braking, zero camber is most desired as in this we
have maximum contact patch. Maximum contact patch means maximum power from engine being translated
into actual motion.
The main purpose of camber is to provide adequate cornering force. Due to the presence of camber angle, the
tyre transmits the force through the vertical component instead of just shear force while going round corners.
During cornering, for outside tyre, the contact patch decreases as the inside edge of the wheel lifts up. This
causes loss in grip. This can be corrected by negative camber and is the primary reason for its use in suspension.
For inside wheel, negative camber is desired as this will keep the tyre in contact with the road as the body rolls.
Positive camber is used mainly where less steering effort is desired. It is also seen in heavy commercial vehicles
where on application on the load as part of the sprung mass, the suspension linkages changes in angle and the
wheel assumes a zero camber or negative camber depending on design.
Steering-axis Inclination SAI or King Pin Inclination KPI - The angle between vertical axis and King Pin
center line or steering axle center line viewed from the front usually falls between 60 to 90.

S.A.I. is not adjustable.

S.A.I. is a diagnostic angle.

Assists steering returnability.

Included Angle - The sum of KPI and camber is called Included Angle. The cross point is under the
ground(positive steering offset). It makes steering easier and tires more durable.
Incorrect included angle indicates steering column or spindle are twisted.
The included angles of left and right wheels should be equal, or it means the parts are distorted.
Different contact position of included angle vertex and the ground will affect its tendency to roll inward or
outward.

Toe in and Toe out - Viewed from the top, if the distance between front part of the two wheels is smaller than
the rear part of the two wheels is called Toe in.
The unit for toe in can be represented by distance or degree, and distance (mm) is more commonly used. When
the distance between front part of the two wheels is bigger than the rear part of the two wheels is called Toe out.
The main effects of toe are
1) Straight line stability
2) Corner entry handling
3) Tyre wear
As far as minimum tyre wear and power losses are concerned, tyres should point straight ahead. Too much toein causes wear on the outboard edges and too much toe-out on the inboard edges. Excessive toe can also cause
scrub.
So the main reason behind toe is directional stability. Toe-in causes less tendency to turn thereby ensuring
straight line stability. When any disturbance is encountered by the wheel it pulls back and assumes a lesser toe
angle and becomes straighter. Even in this the direction of motion of the vehicle is not hampered.
Toe-out on the other hand encourages the initiation of a turn which is very helpful for race cars as they are faster
in response while entering a turn. Slight disturbances causes the outer wheel to assume a relatively larger slip
angle and the vehicle takes a right turn towards the inside wheel which is itself turned outwards due to toe-out.

Turning Radius - When making a turn, the steering angle of left and right front wheels are different, and to
reach the preferable turning radius.
The angle difference between inner and outer wheels is also called Toe out on Turns or Turning Angle.
The angle difference between inner and outer wheels is around 20 to 40.

Other factors to influence wheel alignment

Scrub - As a wheel travels up and down with relation to the chassis, the track width of the car changes. This
change is known as Scrub. It is important not to get Scrub and Scrub Radius confused. As the name implies
Scrub Radius is the radial movement of the wheel and Scrub is simply a linear movement. Scrub occurs because
as the wheel moves up and down it does so about roll centre at a radius. Hence the movement is not purely
linear but circular. For this it also moves from side to side as it goes up and down changing the track.
Steering Offset or Scrub Radius - The distance of the cross point of King pin or Steering axis center line with
ground to the cross point of wheel center line with ground is called steering offset. If the cross point of steering
axis center line with ground is at the inside of cross point of wheel center line with ground then steering offset is
positive. If the cross point is at outside then steering offset is negative. If they cross on same spot on ground
then steering offset is zero.

Setback - When the wheelbase of two sides of the vehicle are different, it is called setback. When right
wheelbase is smaller than left wheelbase, it is called positive setback. When right wheelbase is bigger than left
wheelbase, it is called negative setback.

If setback is present the turning radius will not be correct when the vehicle turns. With this condition, the tires
will wear very much in the same manner as if they were under inflated. Generally, setback is the result of

collision damage or manufacturing defect. It is preferable to have the front tires square with each other before
alignment is done.
Thrust Angle - When four wheels are correctly positioned, the vehicle can run straight steadily. Thrust angle is
the line that divides the total angle of the rear wheels. The rear tires are not just following the front tires, they
are actually establishing direction of the vehicle. In doing so, a direction of thrust is developed. The thrust angle
created by the rear wheels is used as a reference for aligning the front wheels. Ideally, the thrust angle should be
identical to the geometric center line of the vehicle. When rear wheels are incorrectly positioned or the setback
is too big, the vehicle might deviate. The moving direction depends on Vehicle Center line, Geometric Center
line and Thrust line.

Cornering force - While taking a turn the centrifugal force acts on the vehicle which produces a side thrust. To
sustain that force the plane of the wheel must make some angle with the direction of motion of the vehicle. This
is achieved by the distortion of the tyre which is flexible. The angle through which the wheel has to turn to
sustain the side force is called the slip angle and the force produced due to this (at right angles to the plane of
the wheel) which counters the side thrust, is known as cornering force.

Self - righting torque

On closely examining , it is seen that the cornering force produced does not act in line with the side thrust,
rather it acts at a distance 'x' (called pneumatic trail) from the line of the side thrust. Thus the situation becomes
equivalent to what has been shown in Fig. Self - righting torque. It is seen that because of torque (T = cornering
force x pneumatic trail), a tendency is always present to bring back the wheel in the direction of motion. Due to
this reason, this torque is called the self-righting torque. It increases with increase in slip angle to some
maximum value beyond which it starts decreasing.
Understeer and Oversteer

(i) When the slip angles of the front wheels are greater than those for the rear wheels, (which for instance, may
be due to lower inflation pressure at the front than at the rear wheels or when cross-ply tyres are used at the
front with radial-ply tyres at the rear), radius of the turn is increased. This means that the vehicle will turn less
sharply than it should for a given rotation of the steering wheel. In other words the vehicle will try to move
away from its normal direction of motion and therefore to keep it on the right path, we shall have to steer a little
more than is theoretically needed. This condition is called understeer and is shown more clearly in figure.
(ii) When the slip angles of the front wheels are less than those of the rear wheels, radius of the turn is
decreased. This means that the vehicle will turn more sharply than it should for a given rotation of the steering
wheel. In other words, the vehicle will try to move from its normal direction of motion and therefore to keep it
on the right path we shall have to steer a little less than is theoretically needed. This condition is called oversteer
and is depicted more clearly in figure.

Steering center - is that the steering wheel is centered when the vehicle is traveling down a straight and level
road. However most roads are crowned to allow for water drainage, this may cause the vehicle to drift to the
right so the steering wheel will appear to be off-center to the left on a straight road to compensate for this

The left caster should be more negative than the right, but not more than 1/2 degree within the specified
range.

The left camber should be more positive than the right camber. Check the specs to see what the allowable
differences.

Wheel offset - The offset of a wheel is the distance from its hub mounting surface to the centerline of the
wheel. The offset can be one of three types.
Zero Offset - The hub mounting surface is even with the centerline of the wheel.

Positive - The hub mounting surface is toward the front or wheel side of the wheel. Positive offset wheels are
generally found on front wheel drive cars and newer rear drive cars.
Negative - The hub mounting surface is toward the back or brake side of the wheels centerline. "Deep dish"
wheels are typically a negative offset.
Wheelbase - Wheelbase is the distance between the centre of the front axle and the centre of the rear axle.
Track - Track Width is the distance between the centre line of each of the two tyre contact patches on the same
axle. It is not the distance between the wheel mounting flanges. On most vehicles, the track width will differ
between the front and rear axles since they perform different functions.
Spring Rate - Force per unit displacement for a suspension spring alone. For coil springs this is measured
axially along the centre line. For torsion bar springs it is measured at the attachment arm. For leaf springs,
measured at the axle seat. The spring rate may be linear (force increases proportionally with displacement) or
nonlinear (increasing or decreasing rate with increasing displacement).
Wheel Centre Rate - Vertical force per unit vertical displacement at the location along the spindle
corresponding to the wheel centre line, measured relative to the chassis. This rate is generally lower than the
corresponding spring rate due to the installation ratio. In other words, the wheel spindle vertical travel is usually
larger than the corresponding displacement of the spring. Wheel centre rate is equivalent to the axle vertical rate
for (left-right symmetric) solid axle suspensions. For leaf spring axles the wheel centre rate may be nearly equal
to the spring rate. For trailing arm installations where the spring is located further from the pivot than the tire
centre the wheel centre rate will be higher than the spring rate.
Tire Rate - Vertical force per unit vertical displacement of the tire at its operating load. This can be a large part
of the total suspension spring on cars with stiff springing, designed for banked tracks or high aero down force.
Ride Rate - Vertical force per unit vertical displacement of the tire ground contact reference point relative to the
chassis. This is equal to the wheel centre rate modified by the tire vertical rate. For an infinitely stiff tire, the
ride rate and wheel centre rates would be equal. For a real tire (with finite vertical stiffness) the ride rate is
always less than the wheel centre rate.
Roll Rate - Moment (torque) resisting body roll per degree of body roll. The term can be applied to either an
individual axle or to a complete car. This resistance to body roll is provided by the ride rates, axle track width,
and anti-roll bar.
Steering gear box
Worm and Sector Steering Gear This type of steering gear looks a lot like our bolt and nut, but the sector of
this type looks like a gear instead of a nut. The teeth of the sector are machined in an arc, or curve, so that they
actually look like a section of a gear. As the steering wheel and worm turn, the worm pivots the sector and
pitman arm shaft. The sector pivots through an arc of 70 because it is stopped at each extreme when it touches
the steering gear housing.

The worm is assembled between bearings, and some means is provided to adjust the bearings to control worm
end play. The pitman arm shaft is fitted into the steering gear housing on bearings (generally the bushing type,
but roller type bearings are sometimes used). A lash adjustment screw is also provided so that the sector can be
moved closer to, or farther away from, the worm gear to control the backlash between the sector and worm
threads or teeth. Since the worm sector is smaller than the worm-wheel, it is cheaper and easier to install and
also occupies less space.
Worm and worm wheel One of the common mechanism used for steering wheel in automotive is the worm
and wheel steering gear. In this mechanism movement of the steering wheel turns the worm, which in turn
drives and worm wheel. Attached to the wheel spindle rigidly is drop arm, so that a rotation of the steering
wheel corresponds to a linear motion of the drop arm end, which is connected to the link rod.

Cam and roller - The cam and roller steering boxes are very efficient. The cam is carried by the steering shaft
connected with rollers. The drop arm spindle carries the vee shaped roller. This spindle is carried by ball
bearings in the casing. The meshing member contains the spiral grooves. The centre position of the pin supports
the roller. By moving the steering wheel and steering shaft, the cam is rotated. Due to this rotation, the roller is
constrained to follow the helix of the groove. When the cam rotates, the roller is followed the cam and made the
rocker shaft to rotate.

Cam and the Peg - The steering gear has a tapered peg in the rocker arm engaged with a special cam provided
on the inner column. The peg is moved along the groove for rotating the rocker shaft by rotating the cam. An
adjusting screw on the side cover is connected for governing the backlash and end float of the rocker shaft. The
rocker arm is rotated with high efficiency cam and peg gear rotates by a peg in the bearings.

Re-

circulating Ball -

It consists of a worm at

the

end

rod,

of

transfer

steering

half

nut

and

tube

containing the balls.

The balls are fed back to the nut connected by half nut with the

transfer tube. A worm

and nut are placed at the end of the steering shaft. Steel balls

are loaded between the

sets of groove of worm and nut for recirculation. The nut has teeth on its circumference. These teeth are to be
meshed with a toothed wheel. When the driver turns the steering wheel, the two steel ball races will roll in the
grooves and make the nut to travel along the length of the worm. The motion from the nut is transmitted to the
wheel sector.

Advantages
Can be used on rigid axles.
Ability to transfer high forces.
A large wheel input angle possible the steering gear shaft has a rotation range up to 45, which can be
further increased by the steering ratio.
It is therefore possible to use long steering arms.
This results in only low load to the pitman and intermediate arms in the event of tie rod diagonal forces
occurring.
It is also possible to design tie rods of any length desired, and to have steering kinematics that allow an

increase in the overall steering ratio with increasing steering angles. The operating forces necessary to park the
vehicle are reduced in such cases.
Rack and pinion - A pinion, mounted on the end of the steering shaft, engages with a rack which has ball joints
at each ends to allow for the rise and fall of the wheels. Tie-rods connect the ball joints to the stub-axles. Rotary
movement of the steering wheel causes sideways movement of the rack which is directly conveyed to the
wheels.

Advantages
simple construction;
economical and uncomplicated to manufacture;
easy to operate due to good degree of efficiency;
contact between steering rack and pinion is free of play and even internal damping is maintained;
tie rods can be joined directly to the steering rack;
minimal steering elasticity compliance (Fig. 3.99);
compact;
the idler arm (including bearing) and the intermediate rod are no longer needed;
easy to limit steering rack travel and therefore the steering angle.
Disadvantages
greater sensitivity to impacts;
greater stress in the case of tie rod angular forces;
disturbance of the steering wheel is easier to feel (particularly in front-wheel drivers);
tie rod length sometimes too short where it is connected at the ends of the rack;
size of the steering angle dependent on steering rack travel;
this sometimes requires short steering arms resulting in higher forces in the entire steering system;
decrease in steering ratio over the steer angle associated with heavy steering during parking if the vehicle does
not have power-assisted steering;
cannot be used on rigid axles.
Steering ratio - It is the ratio of the angle turned by the steering wheel to the corresponding turning angles of
the stub axle. The steering ratios generally used with the present day steering gears vary from about 12 : 1 for
cars to about 35 : 1for heavy vehicles.

An average overall ratio usually gives about one and a half complete turns of the steering wheel each side of
mid position to apply a full lock of 45 degree each way on the front wheels.
Reversibility - A steering gear is said to be reversible if by turning of stub axles, it is possible to turn the
steering wheel. This can be made irreversible by making the pitch angle of the screw used very less.
Irreversibility has both its advantage and disadvantage.
Advantage- The road shocks are not transmitted to the steering wheel and for that reason the driver does not
have to experience the 'kicks' at the steering wheel. .
Disadvantage - Due to large amount of friction present in the irreversible system, the forward efficiency is also
very low and consequently steering operation becomes quite heavy.
Previously irreversibility was considered desirable and it was endeavourer to achieve this. But present day
designs are almost all semi-reversible.
Special steering columns - Special steering columns have been employed in many cars which provide safety
and ease of operation to the driver. Various types which shall be discussed here are:
1. Energy absorbing steering column
2. Tilt wheel steering column
3. Tilt and telescopic steering column
4. Steering column with anti-theft lock.
Energy absorbing steering column - Energy absorbing or collapsible steering column provides safety by
collapsing during impact in a front-end crash. Two types of collapsible steering columns manufactured by
Saginaw Steering Gear Division of the General Motors. Mesh type column was introduced on all 1967 model
G.M. cars, while the ball type column was introduced in 1969. This column incorporates ball bearings fitted
between two overlapping tubes. These tubes groove-in under impact resulting in efficient energy absorption.
Tilt wheel steering column - This type of steering allows the driver to tilt the steering wheel for ease during
entry or exit. Even while driving, the driver can adjust it at convenient angle. This can be done easily by
releasing a lever on the side of the steering column and moving the wheel into the desired position, where it
locks itself in place.
Tilt and telescopic steering column - This type of steering has all the features of the tilt wheel steering
explained above in addition to the convenience of telescopic steering which adds to driver's comfort. The
telescopic motion is under the steering wheel. Both telescopic and tilting adjustments can be made with no loss
of steering control.
Steering column with anti-theft lock - This type of arrangement provides additional safety against theft. By
simply turning the ignition to the lock position and removing the key, the ignition and steering wheel and on
some models, the gear shift lever of the transmission, are locked simultaneously. In Maruti800 car the steering

lock is provided. When the ignition key is removed, and the steering wheel is turned to one extreme, the
steering gets locked. When the ignition key is inserted in its slot and turned, the lock is off.
Power Steering - Larger amount of torque is required to be applied by the driver for steering of medium and
heavy vehicles. The power steering system provides automatic hydraulic assistance to the turning effort applied
to the manual steering system. The power system is designed to become operative when the effort at wheel
exceeds a predetermined value, say 10 N. 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.
Electronic steering
Necessity of Electronic Steering Control System
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
6.
7.

Lesser Steering effort

Reduced driver fatigue
Efficient absorption of shocks
Better directional stability
Higher maneuverability'
High performance
Enhanced safety

In an electronic power steering system, steering sensor consisting of in fact two sensors, viz. a 'torque sensor'
that converts the steering torque input and its direction into voltage signals, and a 'rotation sensor' that converts
the rotation speed and direction into voltage signals, is located on the input shaft of the steering gear box.
Inputs from the steering sensor and the vehicle speed sensor are fed to a microprocessor control unit where
these are compared with a preprogrammed force assist map. The control unit then sends out the appropriate
command signal to the current controller which supplies the appropriate current to the electric motor. The motor
pushes the rack to the right or left depending on in which direction the current flows. Increasing the current to
the motor increases the amount of power assist.
There is a provision to protect the electric motor from being overloaded and also from the voltages surges from
a faulty alternator or charging problem.
The electronic steering control unit is capable of self-diagnosing faults by monitoring the systems inputs and
outputs and the driving current of the electric motor. In case of a problem, the control unit turns off the entire
system by actuating a fail-safe relay in the power unit, the system reverts back to manual steering and warning
light on the dashboard alerts the driver.

An electronic power steering has the following advantages over the hydraulic power steering, due to which it is
being increasingly used in modem cars:
1. No problem of leakage of fluid.
2. Energy being consumed only while steering.
3. Steering assistance available even when the engine is not running.
4. While steering manually lesser force is required compared to a hydraulic system since there is no fluid
to be forced through valves.
Four wheel Steering - An alternative power steering schemes utilizes a special, electric motor to provide the
boost required instead of the hydraulic boost. Electric boost power steering has several advantages over
traditional hydraulic power steering. Electronic control of electric boost system is straight forward and can be
accomplished without any energy conversion from electrical power to mechanical actuation. Moreover,
electronic control offers very sophisticated adaptive control in which the system can adapt to the driving
environment.
In the 4 Wheel Steering equipped vehicles, the front wheels are directly linked mechanically to be steering
wheel, as in traditional vehicles. The rear wheels are steered under control of a microcontroller via an actuator.
In this illustration, the front wheels are steered to a steering angle f by the drivers steering wheel input A sensor
(s) measures the steering angle and another. sensor (u) gives the vehicle speed. The microcontroller (c)
determines the desired rear steering angle f, under program control as a function of speed an front steering
angle.
In this strategy, the rear wheels turn in the opposite direction to the front wheels for a very short period (on the
order of one second) and then turn in the same direction as the front wheels. This strategy has a beneficial effect
on maneuvers such as lane changes on the highway.

Notice that the 4Ws strategy yield a lane change in a

shorter distance and avoids the overshoot common in a standard-steering vehicle.