Review of the state of the art in experimental studies and mathematical modeling of tire performance on ice

• Factors contributing to the friction mechanism at the tire–ice contact.
• Indoor and outdoor experimental studies of pneumatic tires on ice.
• Tire–ice models that predict the tire performance on ice.
• Conclusions-need for tire ice models, need to develop improved test facilities.
• Review aids to development of better tire designs and improved safety systems.

The evolution of vehicle safety systems, from the earliest brakes to today’s accident avoidance systems, has led vehicles to have very high passenger safety. Driving on ice, though, still happens to be one of the driving conditions of low safety. A multitude of factors were identified by various studies to contribute to the complex frictional mechanism at the tire–ice interface. It is the goal of this article to synthesize and to present in a coherent and structured manner the major findings from experimental and modeling studies on the behavior of tires on ice from the last half century. The principal topics of this article are, factors contributing to the friction mechanism at the tire–ice contact; experimental studies of pneumatic tires on ice and indoor and outdoor test facilities for testing tires on ice; and tire–ice models that predict the tractive and braking performance on ice. Finally, after a thorough study of the published work, the key issues of both experimental and modeling studies of tire–ice behavior were identified. The conclusions will serve future investigations as a concise knowledge source to develop improved test facilities and tire–ice models, aiding to the development of better tire designs, and improved vehicle safety systems.