An Estimation of the Unsteady Aerodynamic Loads on a Road Vehicle in Windy Conditions

Road vehicles operate almost entirely in the unsteady conditions created by the natural wind and the wakes of other vehicles. This is a time dependent and turbulent environment, which differs noticeably from the conditions simulated in the wind tunnel. Using a quasi-steady analysis the aerodynamic characteristics, as determined from wind tunnel tests, are used to derive the unsteady aerodynamic loads experienced by a typical road vehicle subjected to a random wind input. For this paper the wind energy spectrum is of the von Karman type and isotropic turbulence is assumed. The effects of vehicle speed, wind speed and wind direction on lift and side force spectra are presented.