Accounting for tire effect in longitudinal vehicle control

The problem of modelling and controlling the longitudinal motion of front wheel propelled vehicles is considered. Chassis dynamics are modelled applying the relevant fundamental laws taking into account the aerodynamic effects and the road slop variation. The longitudinal slip, resulting from tire deformation, is captured through Kiencke's model. The global model turns out to be highly nonlinear. Nevertheless, it proves to be utilizable in vehicle control design. The aim is to guarantee a satisfactory speed regulation in acceleration/deceleration modes despite the changes in aerodynamics efforts and road slop. The controller is designed using the Lyapunov technique.