You might have noticed that after making a turn, when you release the steering wheel it will automatically return to the central position.The mysterious part is when miraculously the steering wheel returns to center after turn. Why does that happen? Let’s find out.You will be amazed to find out that this steering wheel returnability is not achieved by any complicated mechanism using springs or valves, instead.
source/image(PrtSc): Learn Engineering
Engineers have achieved the return motion of the steering wheel solely by giving the front wheels an angle, called a caster angle.Let’s discover the interesting physics behind how providing an angle to the front wheels makes the wheels, and the steering wheel, come back to their original positions.
The Main reason is the Caster angle.The caster angle is popularly described as the angular displacement of the steering axis from the vertical axis of wheels. This further implies how far is the steering axis to the vertical axis when viewed from a vehicle’s side. When you turn the steering wheel to direct the front wheels, the wheels pivot about an axis that is far away from being vertical.
Advertisement
For a fact, the pivot line would lean backward at the wheel’s top with reference to its bottom. In turn, the car would lift a little, but the steering wheel input would help it stay on the ground. When you let go of the steering wheel, the weight of the car pulls the steering back to its original position.//Siddharth Baliyan/quora
