Motorcycle Rider Inputs During Typical Maneuvers

The purpose of this research is to document representative examples of control inputs and body positioning experienced riders use to control a motorcycle through maneuvers representative of those encountered during real-world operation. There is limited publicly available data that tracks the magnitude or direction of steering head rotation, steering torque input, etc. used by a rider to initiate and exit a turn as well as maintaining directional control during maneuvers ranging from slow parking lot turns to high speed lane changes. Using Exponent’s Test and Engineering Center (TEC) track and skid pad, a course was defined that included several maneuvers at various speeds and radii. A previous paper [1] investigated the influence of rider kinematics (weight shift) on motorcycle control. This paper focuses on rider control inputs to affect a motorcycle’s path and lean angle in a set of maneuvers including a constant radius turn, low speed U-turn, left turn from stop sign, steer reversal, slalom, and avoidance.