A differential is a gear train with three drive shafts that has the property that the rotational speed of one shaft is the average of the speeds of the others. A common use of differentials is in motor vehicles, to allow the wheels at each end of a drive axle to rotate at different speeds while cornering. Other uses include clocks and analogue computers. Differentials can also provide a gear ratio between the input and output shafts. For example, many differentials in motor vehicles provide a gearing reduction by having fewer teeth on the pinion than the ring gear.
Steering is the control of the direction of motion or the components that enable its control. Steering is achieved through various arrangements, among them ailerons for airplanes, rudders for boats, cylic tilting of rotors for helicopters, and many more.
A parking pawl is a device fitted to a motor vehicle's automatic transmission that locks up the transmission when the transmission shift lever selector is placed in the Park position. "Park" is the first position of the lever in all cars sold in the United States since 1965 through SAE J915, and in most other vehicles worldwide.
Independent suspension is any automobile suspension system that allows each wheel on the same axle to move vertically independently of the others. This is contrasted with a beam axle or deDion axle system in which the wheels are linked. "Independent" refers to the motion or path of movement of the wheels or suspension. It is common for the left and right sides of the suspension to be connected with anti-roll bars or other such mechanisms. The anti-roll bar ties the left and right suspension spring rates together but does not tie their motion together.
A caster is an undriven wheel that is designed to be attached to the bottom of a larger object to enable that object to be moved.
The caster angle or castor angle is the angular displacement of the steering axis from the vertical axis of a steered wheel in a car, motorcycle, bicycle, other vehicle or a vessel, as seen from the side of the vehicle. The steering axis in a car with dual ball joint suspension is an imaginary line that runs through the center of the upper ball joint to the center of the lower ball joint, or through the center of the kingpin for vehicles having a kingpin.
A swing axle is a simple type of independent suspension designed and patented by Edmund Rumpler in 1903 for the rear axle of rear wheel drive vehicles. This was a revolutionary invention in automotive suspension, allowing driven (powered) wheels to follow uneven road surfaces independently, thus enabling the vehicle's wheels to maintain better road contact and holding; plus each wheel's reduced unsprung weight means their movements have less impact on the vehicle as a whole. The first automotive application was the Rumpler Tropfenwagen, another early example was the 1923 Tatra 11 later followed by the Mercedes 130H/150H/170H, the Standard Superior, the pre-facelift Volkswagen Beetle and most of its derivatives, the Chevrolet Corvair, and the roll-over prone M151 jeep amongst others.
A trunnion is a cylindrical protrusion used as a mounting or pivoting point. First associated with cannons, they are an important military development.
A tilting three-wheeler, tilting trike, leaning trike, or even just tilter, is a three-wheeled vehicle and usually a narrow-track vehicle whose body and or wheels tilt in the direction of a turn. Such vehicles can corner without rolling over despite having a narrow axle track because they can balance some or all of the roll moment caused by centripetal acceleration with an opposite roll moment caused by gravity, as bicycles and motorcycles do. This also reduces the lateral acceleration experienced by the rider, which some find more comfortable than the alternative. The narrow profile can result in reduced aerodynamic drag and increased fuel efficiency. These types of vehicles have also been described as "man-wide vehicles" (MWV).
A pintle is a pin or bolt, usually inserted into a gudgeon, which is used as part of a pivot or hinge. Other applications include pintle and lunette ring for towing, and pintle pins securing casters in furniture.
The nanocar is a molecule designed in 2005 at Rice University by a group headed by Professor James Tour. Despite the name, the original nanocar does not contain a molecular motor, hence, it is not really a car. Rather, it was designed to answer the question of how fullerenes move about on metal surfaces; specifically, whether they roll or slide.
In an automobile, ball joints are spherical bearings that connect the control arms to the steering knuckles, and are used on virtually every automobile made. They bionically resemble the ball-and-socket joints found in most tetrapod animals.
A centreless wheel or hubless wheel is a wheel that lacks a centre or hub, instead being supported and driven at the rim.
The fifth-wheel coupling provides the link between a semi-trailer and the towing truck, tractor unit, leading trailer or dolly. The coupling consists of a kingpin, a 2-or-3+1⁄2-inch-diameter vertical steel pin protruding from the bottom of the front of the semi-trailer, and a horseshoe-shaped coupling device called a fifth wheel on the rear of the towing vehicle. As the connected truck turns, the downward-facing surface of the semi-trailer rotates against the upward-facing surface of the fixed fifth wheel, which does not rotate. To reduce friction, grease is applied to the surface of the fifth wheel. The configuration is sometimes called a turn-table in Australia and New Zealand, especially if it is a rotating ball-race-bearing type. The advantage of this type of coupling is towing stability.
Omni wheels or poly wheels, similar to Mecanum wheels, are wheels with small discs around the circumference which are perpendicular to the turning direction. The effect is that the wheel can be driven with full force, but will also slide laterally with great ease. These wheels are often employed in holonomic drive systems.
In an automobile's suspension system, the scrub radius is the distance in front view between the king pin axis and the center of the contact patch of the wheel, where both would theoretically touch the road. It can be positive, negative or zero.
Škoda 15T is a 100% low-floor multiple-unit tram developed by VUKV a.s. and built by Škoda Transportation in Plzeň for the Prague tram network. It was a successor to the Škoda 14 T, featuring articulated bogies and more power to correct for problems found during the operation of the 14 T. The 15T has articulated bogies at either end of the train, and Jacobs bogies between the segments. The tram has two double-doors in each segment to allow fast boarding of passengers, and one extra side door leading to the driver's cabin.
A zero-turn riding lawn mower is a standard riding lawn mower with a turning radius that is effectively zero when the two drive wheels rotate in opposite direction, like a tank turning in place.
A Kiwi drive is a holonomic drive system of three omni-directional wheels, 120 degrees from each other, that enables movement in any direction using only three motors. This is in contrast with non-holonomic systems such as traditionally wheeled or tracked vehicles which cannot move sideways without turning first.
This glossary of automotive terms is a list of definitions of terms and concepts related to automobiles, including their parts, operation, and manufacture, as well as automotive engineering, auto repair, and the automotive industry in general. For more specific terminology regarding the design and classification of various automobile styles, see Glossary of automotive design; for terms related to transportation by road, see Glossary of road transport terms; for competitive auto racing, see Glossary of motorsport terms.
