Hensley Arrow: How does it REALLY work?
There have been several discussions on this hitch that have become somewhat 'controversial'. I am NOT trying to stir this controversy/bashing back up. Instead, I'd like to see a good, intelligent di...
Forum Discussion
Sorry I've been away from the thread for a while, darn work always gets in the way....
Ron, I like your example (back on page 8) about suspending a semi tractor to illustrate that the trailer will swing like a pendulum around its hitch point. I also understand that if you hung my Suburban vertical, my trailer would swing around it's VPP. [Interesting factoid about clocks being able to use shorter pendulua with 4-bar linkages.]
NOW.....if we turn these examples upside down (literally), and hold the semi trailer in the air, the tractor would still swing like a pendulum around the hitch point. BUT, if we hold my trailer in the air, would the HA let my Suburban swing like a pendulum?
Logic tells me NO, since the VPP is within the mass of the truck (not above it) it can't swing like a pendulum, it would have to rotate around the VPP, which it can't do because gravity is pulling the truck down, and the connection to the trailer is stopping the rotation.
I think this illustrates further how the HA contributes to stability by enabling the TV to resist forces imposed by the TT.
Ron, I like your example (back on page 8) about suspending a semi tractor to illustrate that the trailer will swing like a pendulum around its hitch point. I also understand that if you hung my Suburban vertical, my trailer would swing around it's VPP. [Interesting factoid about clocks being able to use shorter pendulua with 4-bar linkages.]
NOW.....if we turn these examples upside down (literally), and hold the semi trailer in the air, the tractor would still swing like a pendulum around the hitch point. BUT, if we hold my trailer in the air, would the HA let my Suburban swing like a pendulum?
Logic tells me NO, since the VPP is within the mass of the truck (not above it) it can't swing like a pendulum, it would have to rotate around the VPP, which it can't do because gravity is pulling the truck down, and the connection to the trailer is stopping the rotation.
I think this illustrates further how the HA contributes to stability by enabling the TV to resist forces imposed by the TT.
