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What you need to know about Motorcycle Traction?

11th January 2021
"Tract it properly!"

The traction control system usually stops the motorcycle from sliding. By regulating the energy provided to the rear wheel, it does this. Thus, it simply controls the rear wheel's rotational speed. This decreases the chances of drifting significantly.

Motorcycles have two categories of traction control. Reactive is the first category, while predictive is the second category. The name of the categories shows their activity itself. Various components of the mechanism wait before the rotation of the wheel happens in the reactive form of motorcycle traction control and then make corrections.

The ECU and different sensors read the information in real-time and make adjustments before the wheel turns in the predictive form of motorcycle traction control. The machine constantly judges the chance. It also works efficiently to keep the motorcycle from drifting.

Motorcycle-Traction

Importance of Traction:

It is also possible to describe traction or tractive force as the overall tractive force that occurs on the surface and is parallel to the motion direction. In simple terms, it is the force that is responsible for your bike's movement on the lane. If there was no traction, so at one specific moment, the bike would end up doing wheelspins without going anywhere.

Tyres' Position in Traction:

Motorcycle-Traction-1

As you know, with any vehicle on the lane, tyres play the most important role in rolling. Tyres that have a decent road surface patch provide good traction due to the greater contact area. In comparison, tires come with definite patterns known as treads on the outer diameter. These treads help get rid of the water and sand that appears to go into the middle of the tyre. Deep treaded tires lock the loose substance in the event of mud or snow, instead of letting it roll out with the tyre.

Need For Traction Control:

We know that tires are the means of communication between the asphalt and the bike, which makes it easier for the machine to roll down the road. Bikes come with a comparatively angled surface tyre, the basic explanation of why bikes are able to corner when cars are not, opposed to cars that have a wide surface area of touch required on the tyres. Therefore, in order to have appropriate traction at curves, bike tyres are produced in such away. So, as we recall, bikes have a smaller, really very smaller contact area usable for road tyres. The rear wheel ends up spinning in the case of superbikes that have tremendous power transmission in the event of aggressive accelerations.

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What is Motorcycle Suspension? How does Motorcycle Handling Impact Suspension Squat?

11th November 2020
"A motorcycle suspension configuration comprises primarily two front telescopic tubes and a twin or single shock absorber swing arm mounted at the rear."

A motorcycle suspension configuration comprises primarily two front telescopic tubes and a twin or single shock absorber swing arm mounted at the rear. Nowadays, owing to its improved performance and sporty looking characteristics, a mono-shock or single shock absorber on the rear is favored in most motorcycles. The motorcycle suspension system mainly has two goals: to control stability and maintain balance during braking and, secondly, to provide support during bumps and uneven surfaces to the rider and pillion.

1. Front Suspension:

Conventional Telescopic Forks:

The most prevalent type of front suspension is telescopic forks. The setup is very basic and takes the form of long hydraulic tubes fitted internally with a coil. In a T-clamp, the top of these forks is attached to the motorcycle's frame whereas the other end is fitted to the axle of the front wheel. In the event of road flaws, the lower part of fork bodies slip up and down the fork tubes and thus absorb the vibrations. In order to ensure the texture of operation, the interior is filled with oil and is sealed inside with an oil seal.

 

Upside Down Forks (USD):

Inverted or upside-down forks are nothing like inverted-set traditional telescopic forks. In these, although the tubes are at the bottom, the slider bodies are at the top section. These are mostly used in high-end motorcycles now for a few days, as they lower the overall unsprung weight of the motorcycle alongside growing torsional rigidity, resulting in better handling.

 

Important Terminologies:

Preload Adjustment:

This relates to the system used for changing the original suspension angle for the weight of the motorcycle and the rider acting on it.

Fork Damping:

Because of the impact of reducing, minimizing, or stopping the oscillations, it is an influence between forks.

Brake Dive:

The additional pressure on the front wheel forces the front end of the bike to go lower as the brakes are applied, resulting in fork contraction. This drop-in fork length is known as the Brake Plunge.

 

2. Rear Suspension:

Previously, the rear suspension was not used in motorcycles and only front forks ensured the consistency of the ride. However, manufactures have been implementing rear suspension with the advent of technologies and are still in use today. The key elements of the rear suspension system are the swingarm and coil springs.

 

Swingarm:

A motorcycle swingarm can be considered to be a quadrilateral section of a motorcycle in which the shorter side is attached to the chassis of the motorcycle and the rear wheel axle around which the wheel spins is bolted on the other side. The swingarm is only available on one side on certain bikes and is considered a single-sided swingarm. Although it brings the convenience of separating the rear wheel without much effort, it raises the rear suspension's unsprung weight. That's why there is no traditional use of a single-sided swingarm. Two kinds of suspension are essentially used for a swingarm:

 

Twin shock absorbers:

It refers to two shock absorbers at the backside of a motorcycle, as the name implies. Firstly used in the 1970s and 80s off-road bikes, these offered an advantage of improved rear wheel movement because of which they were highly adopted.

 

Mono Shock Absorbers:

As time progressed, for several reasons, manufacturers decided to introduce mono-shock absorbers in their motorcycles. It was discovered after studies that mono shocks provided a lot better performance than traditional twin shock absorbers. A single shock absorber is attached to the motorcycle's frame from the swingarm in this configuration. It is not directly attached to the swingarm, but instead uses a connection that helps to provide the rear with an increasing degree of damping. In comparison, mono shocks more easily extract torque from the swingarm, have improved handling and reliability, and are simpler to modify than twin shock absorbers when only one unit is used.

How does Motorcycle Handling Impact Suspension Squat?

If a motorcycle were to squat down in the rear while you started to drive from a corner, you would attempt to steer into the turn and the bike would drift to the outside, taking the weight off the front, which would not steer as well as before. At the conclusion of the session, when you got into the pits, you can ask the crew chief for a solution.

In a correctly built motorcycle, the force that opposes squat comes specifically from the drive chain, which is not parallel to the central plane of the swingarm but at an angle to it. And an anti-squat force defines the tangent of that angle. When you learn that there is an adjustable swingarm pivot height for a certain sports bike, the feature is targeted at this problem.

You change the angle between the chain when it is close and the swingarm itself by changing the height of the pivot and therefore the drop angle of the swingarm, thus altering this anti-squat effect. You will propel out of the corner without squatting and pressing until the force is able to fully balance the weight change induced by acceleration.


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Liquid Cooled Engines Vs. Air Cooled Engines? What's the difference?

30th December 2020
"Here is a closer look at how they work and keep the motor of your bike going at optimum temperatures."

By burning fuel (and air), an internal combustion two-wheeler engine transforms chemical energy into mechanical energy, which in turn sends power to the rear wheel. However, the engine continues to produce a lot of heat during this process, which has to be cooled in order for the motor to run smoothly. For this, various engines use various kinds of cooling systems to cool themselves. The two types that are most common are air-cooled and liquid-cooled. 

In addition, if you would like to know a little more about the engine's function and its supplementary parts, take a look at the link below.

Carbureted vs Fuel Injected Engine | REVIEWS

Air-cooled Engine

air-cooled

On commuters or budget-friendly bikes, or in some cases, large V-twin motorcycles such as the Harley-Davidsons, air-cooled engines are most widely used. These engines are equipped with outer fins that increase the motor's surface area, thus increasing the airflow around it. In essence, these fins create channels around the engine and use moving air as a common coolant which helps subside heat produced from the cylinder. The concept's simplicity ensures it's simpler to create and manage, and far less likely to fail. That said, on small-capacity motorcycles that generate less heat than high-performance bikes, air-cooling is the most powerful.

Advantages of Air-cooled Engine

The following benefits are given by air-cooled engines:

1. Its air-cooled engine architecture is simple.

2. Owing to the lack of water jackets, radiators, rotating pumps, and the weight of the cooling water, it is lighter in weight than water-cooled engines.

3. Manufacturing is cheaper. 

4. It requires less maintenance and treatment. 

5. This cooling system is especially beneficial when extreme climates are present. 

Arctic climates, or when water is scarce, as in deserts. 

6. No chance of frost injury, such as cracking of cylinder jackets or tubing of radiator water.

 

Liquid-Cooled Engine 

liquid-cooled

Performance motorcycles are expected to run much hotter than low-displacement motorcycles that rev higher or use higher compression ratios to extract additional power. These engines also require a dedicated liquid-cooling system that stops the motor from overheating. The idea is very familiar to cars and uses coolant, which retains excess heat through small passages across the engine. The hot coolant is then pumped through the radiator, which cools down the solution along with an outside fan and moving air. The cooled liquid is then pumped back around the turbine, taking the heat down to the optimal levels of activity.

Advantages of Liquid-Cooled Engine 

The following benefits are given by Liquid-Cooled Engine: 

1. A motorcycle with liquid-cooled engines is cleaner than an air-cooled one and more resistant to breakdown.

2. More power/torque is provided by a liquid-cooled engine than by an air-cooled one.

3. A liquid-cooled motor, as cooled by liquids, retains a higher temperature control.

4. It is easy to control liquid-cooled ones (better riding experience).

5. Liquid-cooled engines are quieter and somewhat less harsh than air-cooled engines.

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DOHC Vs. SOHC Engine - What's the difference?

6th January 2021
"Although the DOHC has more top-end power, the SOHC has stronger low-end torque and the two retain the same number of valves."

You may have heard manufacturers using acronyms such as SOHC and DOHC when looking at a motorcycle's specification board. It's called a SOHC (Single Overhead Camshaft) engine if the engine has a singular camshaft, and it's called a DOHC (Double Overhead Camshaft) engine if the engine has double camshafts. Each engine, either air-cooled or liquid-cooled, includes camshafts that are specifically designed to open the inlet and exhaust valves. The camshafts were mounted below the engine block in earlier versions and were recognized as OHVS or Overhead Valve Engines. In OHV, with the aid of pushrods and rockers, the valves on the engine were controlled and were also called pushrod engines. There are also fewer moving elements in OHCS compared to OHVS.

sohc-vs-dohc

SOHC Engine:

As we already know, SOHC engines only have a single camshaft and both the inlet and exhaust valves are powered by the singular camshaft. SOHC engines generate less power than DOHC engines in comparison. But the benefit of providing a configuration for the SOHC engine is that it is faster and easier to build, as well as lighter than DOHC engines. Also, since this design requires fewer components, maintenance costs are usually lower than the DOHC engines.

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DOHC Engine:

Two camshafts are available in DOHC engines, one that controls the inlet valves and the other that operates the exhaust valves. As they have more direct control over valve lift and timing, DOHC engines are known to be more flexible in design and are usually the go-to for multi-valve engines. Engineers can position the intake and exhaust valves as far apart as required in such multi-valve systems, as each set of valves is operated by its own cam. In a SOHC configuration, this choice is minimal.

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Which should you choose? DOHC Engine or SOHC Engine

Based on different variables, such as fuel efficiency, valve function, and general operation, we will evaluate them. 

Valve Timing  

In DOHC, valve timing can be conveniently optimized. The synchronization of the valves is important for the engine's output and efficiency. To maximize the operation of valves, the majority of modern car engines are fitted with variable valve timing technology. Since SOHC has a single camshaft for both the inlet and exhaust valves, the valve timing is much less controlled, whereas the timings can be more optimized in DOHC since there are different inlet and exhaust valve shafts.

Fuel efficiency

You have a double-set of valves in each DOHC head. Improved valve management leads to the better use of fuel and this, in essence, increases performance. However, when it comes to fuel economy, other considerations play a part, such as the age of the vehicle, the driver's expertise, and gear transmission.

The SOHC was simply referred to as the OHCC until the DOHC's introduction (overhead camshaft). In the SOHC, with the valves above, the camshaft is positioned above the cylinder head. The shim situated between the stem of the valve and the lobe of the cam controls the valves' opening and closure.

There are always two or three valves per cylinder in traditional SOHC engines. You have two camshafts in the DOHC that equate to two cams per head of a cylinder. You will have four valves per cylinder in this situation. The downside to having two camshafts and more valves is that it provides the vehicle with more weight.

Spark plugs

In DOHC vs. SOHC, another aspect is that the spark plugs can be located in the middle of the combustion chamber. Fuel quality by increased combustion is the result. In SOHC, both the intake and exhaust are powered by the camshaft and must therefore be mounted in the center of the combustion chamber.

This means that the spark plugs are not strategically placed, and their output is hampered by this.

Performance

Due to the DOHC engine's increased weight, a SOHC engine with 16 valves generates greater torque than a DOHC with the same number of valves. But at faster speeds, the DOHC can produce more horsepower. Although the DOHC has more top-end power, the SOHC has stronger low-end torque and the two retain the same number of valves.

The DOHC motor favors technical development in valve timing. Studies suggest that the number of valves does not greatly affect output at low rpm, but an engine with more valves performs better with a transition to the next gear.

The excess weight is the hindrance to making more valves. You ought to adjust the springs of the valves to make them stiffer. This, in essence, produces more friction from the valve, meaning that the energy is used to overcome the extra pressure. At low rpm, smaller valves induce lower intake velocity since a large valve ensures that the valves experience less strain.

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