Abstract

A finite element‐based method is demonstrated to predict tire rolling resistance and temperature distributions. Particular attention is given to the material properties and constitutive modeling as these have a significant effect on the predictions. A coupled thermomechanical method is described where both the stiffness and the loss properties are updated as a function of strain, temperature, and frequency. Results for rolling resistance and steady state temperature distribution are compared with experiments for passenger and radial medium truck tires. An extension of the method for transient temperature predictions is also demonstrated.