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Research Report 352 Using road profile variance to identify sites that promote poor truck ride quality

Published: | Category: Activity management , Research programme , Research & reports | Audience: General

The relationships between measured truck response data and road profile variance values derived from raw road profiles for short, long and medium wavelengths were examined. Profile variance is a measure of the difference between the actual road profile and its moving average over selected moving average lengths.

The effects of geometry and roughness were also investigated, particularly the effects of geometry, curvature and crossfall on the calculation of the profile variance data. Relationships derived from this study were used to generate a methodology for interpreting profile variance data in New Zealand conditions and to establish threshold levels for wavelength content, so that potential sites for truck ride improvement works can be selected and prioritised.

Keywords: crossfall, geometry, gradient curvature, pitch, ride quality, road profile variance, roll, roughness, yaw

Publication details

  • Author:
  • Published: August 2008
  • Reference: 352
  • ISBN/ISSN: ISBN 0-478-33407-4 ISSN 1177-0600