Skidpad
Encyclopedia
A skidpad or skidpan is a large, circular area of flat pavement
used for various tests of a car
's handling. The most common skidpad use is testing lateral acceleration
, measured in g
.
The test is carried out on a circular track with a calculated radius
. A car
driving on said track is slowly accelerated until the outermost tires on the car
begin to slip. Going any faster would cause the car
to drive outside the 300 ft radius. At this point, the speed of the car
is recorded, and given the centripetal acceleration formula, v²/r, a car
's handling in terms of lateral gs can be derived.
Pavement (material)
Road surface or pavement is the durable surface material laid down on an area intended to sustain vehicular or foot traffic, such as a road or walkway. In the past cobblestones and granite setts were extensively used, but these surfaces have mostly been replaced by asphalt or concrete. Such...
used for various tests of a car
Čar
Čar is a village in the municipality of Bujanovac, Serbia. According to the 2002 census, the town has a population of 296 people.-References:...
's handling. The most common skidpad use is testing lateral acceleration
Acceleration
In physics, acceleration is the rate of change of velocity with time. In one dimension, acceleration is the rate at which something speeds up or slows down. However, since velocity is a vector, acceleration describes the rate of change of both the magnitude and the direction of velocity. ...
, measured in g
G-force
The g-force associated with an object is its acceleration relative to free-fall. This acceleration experienced by an object is due to the vector sum of non-gravitational forces acting on an object free to move. The accelerations that are not produced by gravity are termed proper accelerations, and...
.
The test is carried out on a circular track with a calculated radius
Radius
In classical geometry, a radius of a circle or sphere is any line segment from its center to its perimeter. By extension, the radius of a circle or sphere is the length of any such segment, which is half the diameter. If the object does not have an obvious center, the term may refer to its...
. A car
Čar
Čar is a village in the municipality of Bujanovac, Serbia. According to the 2002 census, the town has a population of 296 people.-References:...
driving on said track is slowly accelerated until the outermost tires on the car
Čar
Čar is a village in the municipality of Bujanovac, Serbia. According to the 2002 census, the town has a population of 296 people.-References:...
begin to slip. Going any faster would cause the car
Čar
Čar is a village in the municipality of Bujanovac, Serbia. According to the 2002 census, the town has a population of 296 people.-References:...
to drive outside the 300 ft radius. At this point, the speed of the car
Čar
Čar is a village in the municipality of Bujanovac, Serbia. According to the 2002 census, the town has a population of 296 people.-References:...
is recorded, and given the centripetal acceleration formula, v²/r, a car
Čar
Čar is a village in the municipality of Bujanovac, Serbia. According to the 2002 census, the town has a population of 296 people.-References:...
's handling in terms of lateral gs can be derived.