The Air Flow About an Exposed Racing Wheel

A radio telemetry system has been designed and developed at Durham University that enables surface pressure data to be transmitted from a rotating racing wheel to a host PC, where data post-processing is carried out. A multi-element wheel rim has been designed to allow the telemetry system to be located inside a pneumatic tire. Surface pressure distributions around the centerline of the wheel show good agreement with previous research.

A flow field investigation has also been conducted, downstream of the wheel, for both stationary and rotating wheel cases. The results presented highlight some of the key features of the flow field and give confidence in the telemetry system.