Performance Improvement of a Vehicle Using Modern Suspension Design and Control Technologies



Performance Improvement of a Vehicle Using Modern Suspension Design and Control Technologies

Introduction

Technology has a strong impact and influence on every single fields and disciplines. Therefore, evolution and development in technology only refers to the introduction of more inventions and techniques. The automobile industry is the biggest example. The automobile companies invent and market more and more new and updated car models using the current technological techniques. However, the fundamental priority for these automobile manufacturers remains the same. This simply refers to the fact that the top most preference for the manufacturers while planning and designing a model for an automobile is the security, safety and convenience of the drivers and passengers using the automobile.

Discussion

The term “Ride quality” can simply be defined as the degree of safety an automobile offers to its occupants from the various uneven elements of the surface of the road or a terrain. Therefore, a vehicle with an appreciable ride quality can be regarded as a comfortable vehicle to ride in. Consequently, vehicle that disturbs its occupants with the minor or major road irregularities will be regarded as a low ride quality automobile. The fundamental factors for ensuring a high ride quality includes noise and whole body vibrations. Therefore, a vehicle monitoring the two factors will ultimately ensure high ride quality.

In addition, normally the ride quality associated with automobile's response to the bumps on the road is a factor associated with the low frequency rebound and bounce movements of the incorporated suspension system. Hence, whenever a vehicle with an undamepd suspension system will face a bump on the road or terrain, than there will occur oscillations in the form of a series, which will cycle in accordance with the system's natural frequency.

There are a number techniques adapted by the modern-day manufactures to monitor and analyze the ride quality thereby using dynamic and vibration response of the automobile. These include,

Use of a Numerical Model

Many researches suggest that while designing an automobile, a numerical model can be utilized for the sake of simulating the ride vibration. In the most generic form, the model will represent a two-axle vehicle that has the freedom in pitch and bounce while riding alongside single wheel path profile. The model through this technique was used to simulate the responses of a ride responses of the conventional passenger cars, heavy commercial automobiles including trucks and tractors, SUVs (Sports Utility Vehicles), off-road recreational vehicles and also a motorcycle. The evaluation criterion of the ride quality proposed by this model is the tolerance of the humans to the effects of whole-body vibration. The model is also applicable and compatible with the many updated software and programming tools for the road profile analysis (Perm & Ayeton, 2003).

The outcomes of the analysis will help the manufactures in indicating and monitoring of the vibrations that contributes towards a good ride quality. In addition, this models will give the necessary information regarding the frequency and ...