Akademik Veri Yönetim Sistemi
5. INTERNATIONAL ÜSKÜDAR SCIENTIFIC RESEARCH CONGRESS, İstanbul, Türkiye, 22 Kasım 2025, ss.1466-1471, (Tam Metin Bildiri)
Rubber bushings are among the most critical elastic components in modern vehicle suspension systems. Their primary functions are to damp shocks and impacts from the road, filter vibrations, and ensure superior ride comfort by reducing Noise, Vibration, and Harshness levels. Furthermore, they help maintain suspension geometry, directly impacting vehicle safety, road handling, and the lifespan of general mechanical components. Due to this critical role, the accurate characterization of the bushings' stiffness values in the three main loading directions—radial, torsional, and cardanic —is of vital importance. This study details the hyperelastic and viscoelastic behavior of rubber bushings under three different loading modes. For the scope of this study, a rubber compound with a standard 59,45 Shore A hardness was used, and three different interference ratio variations in the bushing geometry (1,95 mm, 2,05 mm, and 2,15 mm) were tested. The stiffness values were determined using calibrated MTS and Zwick universal testing machines, in compliance with industrial standards. These tests comprehensively revealed the non-linear and hysteretic behavior of rubber materials under load. The test results indicated that the bushing produced from the 59,45 Shore A hardness rubber compound with a 2,05 mm interference application exhibited the best results in terms of performance criteria. For this optimal bushing, the radial stiffness value was measured as 45,33 kN/mm, the torsional stiffness value as 10,2 Nm/°, the torsional torque value as 285,88 Nm, the conical stiffness value as 9,38 Nm/°, and the conical torque value as 252,06 Nm. These findings serve as an important reference for the optimized design of rubber bushings for heavy-duty vehicle suspension systems.