SUSPENSION & STEERING

DESIGN AND ANALYSIS

What is a suspension system?
It is a system of mechanical linkages, springs,
dampers that is used to connect the wheels to
the chassis.
Why do we need a suspension?
- In normal cars, to
isolate the passengers
from the uneven road
surface and give a
smooth ride
- in a high performance
car, passenger comfort
is sacrificed for better
handling and road
holding.
- Know & optimize tyre
position at all states :
static as well as
transient
 Suspension helps to
Maintain correct vehicle height
Reduce the effect of shock forces.
Maintain correct wheel alignment
Support vehicle weight
Keep the tires in contact with the road
Control the vehicle direction control
Loads and forces
It has to carry the car and its weight
It has to keep the wheel in perpendicular
direction for maximum grip
It has to take the forces for acceleration and
braking the car
Torque created by the driveline
To take the forces involved when cornering
the car
Simplified Suspension Diagram
A suspension system may be
represented by the following diagram:

Where:
R is the overall suspension rate
(Ride Rate)
Rs is the spring rate
Rt is the tire rate (tire stiffness)

This is the basic formula used for

ride calculations, which will be
covered later on in the
presentation
 The suspension problem

Sixteenth-century wagons and carriages tried to

solve the problem of "feeling every bump in the
road"
by slinging the carriage body from leather
straps attached to four posts of a chassis that
looked like an upturned table.
Because the carriage body was suspended
from the chassis, the system came to be
known as a "suspension" -- a term still used
today to describe the entire class of solutions.
The slung-body suspension was not a true
springing system, but it did enable the body
and the wheels of the carriage to move
independently.
Evolution of Suspension
The earliest form of suspension was made by using
wood as a springing medium in slow moving
artillery vehicles.
Later on steel was used to make coil and leaf
springs.
Most old vehicles used leaf springs, with solid axles
at the rear (dependent suspension system)
As motorized vehicles began using more powerful
engines and achieved greater speeds, new
suspension systems were developed.
Some other unconventional suspension types were
also developed through the ages, these include
rubber springs and air springs.
Suspension Types

Suspension in generally classified into three

types :-
Independent;
dependent and ;
semi-independent suspensions.
Independent
presents no mechanical linkage between the two hubs of
the same axle;
a force acting on a single wheel does not affect the other;
steering linkages, anti-roll bars or auxiliary frames are not
taken into account in this description.
For ex. McPherson Struts used in front suspension of most
passenger cars.

Dependent or rigid axles

provide for a rigid linkage between the two wheels of the
same axle;
each motion of a wheel caused by road irregularities affects
the coupled wheel as well.
For ex. Solid axle used in the rear suspension of trucks.

Semi-rigid
have intermediate characteristics between the other two
categories
wheel hubs cannot be considered independent because
they are not linked with an articulated structure;
indeed this structures mechanical characteristics ensure
that flexibility cannot be neglected.
For ex. Twist axles.
 Independent Suspensions
Engine power needs to be handled by the car. Ever-improving
acceleration, high peak and cornering speeds and then
deceleration, all these together result in requirement of a safer
chassis behaviour. And independent suspensions are very
helpful!
Their main advantages are:
little space requirement;
a kinematic and/or elastokinematic toe-in change, tending
towards understeering is possible;
easier steerability with existing drive;
low weight;
no mutual wheel influence.
Types of Suspension
Di Dion Tube
Solid Axle
Trailing Arm
Semi Independent Torsion beam
suspension
Twist beam rear suspension

Double Wishbone
Macpherson Strut
Solid Axle
The classic driven rigid rear axle, or so-
called live axle, is supported and located
by two leaf springs, in which case it is
called a Hotchkiss axle. This is a
dependent suspension system, as the
vertical movement of one wheel influences
the other.
Further advantages, including those for
driven axles, are:
they are simple and economical to
manufacture;
there are no changes to track width,
toe-in and camber on full bump/rebound
travel, thus giving low tyre wear and
sure-footed road holding.
there is no change to wheel camber
when the body rolls during cornering
therefore there is constant lateral force
transmission of tyres.
 Rigid axles have a whole series of disadvantages
that are a consideration in passenger cars, but which
can be accepted in commercial vehicles:

Mutual wheel influence

The space requirement above the beam corresponding

to the spring bump travel.
Weight if the differential is located in the axle casing
it produces a tendency for wheel hop to occur on bumpy
roads.
 Mutual
influence in
wheels

Solid axle on a pick up

Di Dion Tube
Probably the oldest suspension setup, with the
wheels being kept vertical under all conditions
A de Dion suspension uses universal joints at both
the wheel hubs and differential, and uses a solid
tubular beam to hold the opposite wheels in parallel.
Trailing Arm

One of the most simple &

economical designs of
independent front
suspension
Used by Volkswagen &
Porsche during World
War II
It offers the advantage that the car body floor
pan can be flat and the fuel tank and/or spare
wheel can be positioned between the
suspension control arms.

Variations of this suspension type are used in

passenger cars at the rear
Semi Independent Torsion beam suspension
Twist beam rear suspension
 This is the most commonly used
suspension setup in cars, all recent sedans use
variations of this design at the rear.
Low manufacturing cost, easy maintenance
and suitable passenger comfort make this the
preferred type.

Rear suspension Suzuki

SX4

Rear suspension Honda City

Double Wishbones
It is an independent suspension design using two
wishbone-shaped arms (called a-arms in USA &
wishbones in UK) to locate the wheel. Each wishbone or
arm has two mounting points to the chassis and one joint
at the knuckle.
By using unequal length A-arms, we can influence the
angle movements of the compressing and rebounding
wheels, i.e. the change of camber etc.
The main advantages of the double wishbone suspension
are its kinematic possibilities. The double wishbone
suspension allows easy adjustment of camber, toe and
other properties.
It is generally used in high performance road cars and
Formula 1 cars.
Unequal length Non-
parallel wishbones
are the most
commonly used
because of their
versatility

Koenigsegg Agera
displaying double
wishbones at the
rear
Double Wishbone suspension on an F1
car
MacPherson Struts
- Named after Earle S. McPherson
- The McPherson strut is a further development of
double wishbone suspension. The main advantage of
the McPherson strut is that all the parts providing the
suspension and wheel control can be combined into
one assembly.
makes it easy to fit transverse engines;
long spring travel;
better design options on the front crumple zone.

- Most commonly used front suspension setup,

seen in most modern road cars.
 Disadvantages are as follows:
It is more difficult to insulate against
road noise an upper strut mount is
necessary, which should be as
decoupled as possible;
Greater clearance height
requirement.

MacPherson Strut
Macpherson
strut on a car
Construction of a strut
1. Self locking nut
2. Stop cup
3. Seal
4. Bearing flange
5. Ball bearing
6. Spring retainer
7. Coil spring
8. Stop pad
9. Protective sleeve
10. Shock Absorber
Difference
MacPherson Strut Double Wishbone

- Fewer components - More Components

- Simple component design - More complex design
- Camber curve not as flexible - Good control over steering
geometry
- Friction in strut - Good load carrying capability
- Components loaded in - Components loaded in
bending compression or tension
- Used widely on small, - - Used in virtually all racing car
inexpensive cars front suspension
- Also used in sports car, - Also used on many passenger
midsize sedans vehicle and light trucks
Types of Springs

Leaf Springs
Rubber Springs
Air Springs
Coil Springs
Springing Medium: Leaf Springs

Leaf springs are oldest springing medium

Leaf springs are still widely used in commercial
vehicles as they are cheap, easy to
manufacture and easy to replace.
The leaf is connected to the chassis at both
ends directly through its eyes or with the help of
shackles.
May be transverse as well as longitudinal
(a) & (b) For road (c) for off-road vehicles
vehicles to increase ground
clearance
Leaf Springs seen under a truck
Stiffness of a leaf spring
The stiffness of a leaf spring is proportional
to the cube of the depth multiplied by its
width.
K=d3 x w
In essence a leaf spring is a simply
supported beam, with the load at the centre.
A few leaf spring orientations were also tried
on race cars, as can be seen from the
image:
Transversely mounted leaf spring
on an early racecar; issues with
the design included high CoG and
damage protection
Rubber Springs
Although rubber seems to be a perfect springing
medium, and is light and easy to package, it
never became successful because of the large
motion ratios involved which needed heavily
reinforced suspension components.
Early
attempt at
a rubber
spring
Air Springs
Air enclosed in a cylinder fitted with a piston can
also be used as a suspension medium.
Under the static load, the air is compressed to a
predetermined pressure, and subsequent motion of
the piston either increases or decreases the
pressure and consequently increases or decreases
the force acting on the piston.
Air springs are fairly widely employed on vehicles
whose laden and unladen weights differ greatly, the
latest railway coaches also use air springs.
The disadvantages are high cost, complexity of
compressed air ancillary system, and therefore risk
of breakdown, more maintenance than other types
of springing, and freezing of moisture in the air in
cold weather, which can cause malfunction of
valves.
 Citroen patented its
Hydropneumatic suspension
which although provided a very
smooth ride, increased the
complexity of the suspension
very much.
Citroen BX with Hydropneumatic
suspension
Coil Springs
Coil springs are the most widely used springing
media, owing to the fact that they can fit into
compact spaces and can be used to produce
variable spring rates.
It is a fit and forget part in automobiles and offers
great reliability
Rising Rate
The spring rate deflects as the load is increased on
it.
This is usually achieved with the help of a helper
spring which comes into the picture after large
deflections.
The spring rate (pounds of
load per unit deflection) is
given by

S = Gd4/SD3N = W/X
(lb./in).
Coil springs may be directly connected to the wheels or
may be actuated with the help of push/pull rods via
bellcranks

Via
pushrod
Directly
connected
The Damper
The dampers, or shock absorbers as they are
sometimes called
required to cause a rapid die-away of any
vibrations forced either randomly or periodically
at the natural frequency of the suspension
system and thus introducing a state of
resonance.
To do this, they apply a force in a direction
opposite to that of the instantaneous motion of
the suspension.
 Shock absorbers (dampers) perform two
functions.
They absorb any larger-than-average
bumps in the road so that the upward
velocity of the wheel over the bump isn't
transmitted to the car chassis.
Secondly, they keep the suspension at as
full a travel as possible for the given road
conditions - they keep your wheels planted
on the road.
Types of dampers
Double Tube: An older design of hydraulic shock
absorber using two concentric tubes, one serving
as the working cylinder, the other as the reservoir.
Single Tube: The spaces immediately above and
below the piston are filled with oil, and the
damping action arises from the viscous losses
that occur in the orifices, as in the double-tube
type.
Single Tube
Double Tube
The damper consists of the working chamber A, the piston fixed to the
inner end of the piston rod , the bottom valve and the rod guide ; this
also takes the seal and, together with the piston, transmits any
bending moments that occur through lateral forces to the eye-type
joint of the damper.
The reservoir, also known as the equalization chamber, which is
around half filled with oil, is located between cylinder and outer tube.
The remaining volume is used for taking both the oil volume, which
expands when it, and the oil volume which is evacuated by the entry
of the piston rod.
Damper action video
Dampers contd.
Electromagnetic Shock absorbers
Energy in conventional shock absorbers
gets dissipated as heat and not used in any way.
Regenerative electromagnetic shock absorbers
provide means for recovering the energy
dissipated in shock absorbers.
Magnetorheological damper
is adamperfilled withmagnetorheological fluid, which
is controlled by amagnetic field, usually using an
electromagnet.
This allows the damping characteristics of the shock
absorber to be continuously controlled by varying the
power of theelectromagnet.
This type of shock absorber has several applications,
most notably insemi-activevehicle suspensions
Frequently used terms
Bump: Bump is upward displacement of a wheel relative to the car
body, sometimes applied more broadly to mean up or down
displacement. It is also known as compression or jounce.
Rebound: Rebound is the downward displacement of a wheel
relative to the car body, like when a wheel enters a pothole.
Bumps and rebounds are basically the imperfections/irregularities of
road surface
Travel: Distance between complete compression and rebound
(elongation) of spring.
Spring Rate: Deflection in the spring (length) with applied load
(force), measured in N/mm or lb/in.
More the spring rate, . More the capability to carry heavy loads
Tyre Rate: Every tyre is assumed to behave like a spring, albeit, with
a very high spring constant, also measured in N/mm or lb/in.
 Toe: It is the angle made by
the wheels with the longitudinal
axis of the vehicle.

Caster: It is the inclination of the

steering axis from vertical in the
longitudinal plane.
Camber: Camber is angling of
the wheel from the vertical, in
front or rear view.
 Formula Hybrid car
with extreme
negative camber
The Milliken MX1 with large
negative camber
Unsprung weight: Is the weight which is not
carried by springs. For example- tires, wheel,
and brake assembly

Sprung weight: Is the weight supported by

spring.
For example.- vehicle body, transmission,
frame and motor.
 Roll Center : Body roll is rotation about the body
longitudinal axis, arising from cornering activity and road
roughness.
Suspension roll is formally defined as rotation of the vehicle
sprung mass about a foreaft axis with respect to a
transverse line joining a pair of wheel centres.
The point of intersection of the roll axis with the vertical
plane through the wheel centres is called the roll centre.
Every suspension has a roll
centre, defined as the point
in tranverse vertical plane
through the wheel centres at
which lateral forces may be
applied to the sprung mass
without producing
suspension roll.
Finding roll centre of an independent
suspension
Finding roll centre
Roll Axis : All suspensions possess a roll axis. It is
the instantaneous axis about which the total
vehicle rolls with respect to the ground.
Once the front and rear centres are located, the
vehicle roll axis is defined by the line joining the
two centres.
 Static wheel load: These are the
result of the gravitational acceleration,
acting on the mass of the vehicle. Any
change in the mass distribution
longitudinally or laterally will affect the
individual static wheel loads.
Longitudinal load transfer
(Dive/Squat): The loads on the front
and rear tracks change when steady
braking or accelerating forces are
applied at the tire/ground contact.
Lateral Load Transfer (Roll): In a
steady turn the lateral tire forces acting
at the ground and the lateral inertia
force produce a rolling moment which is
reacted by changes in vertical wheel
loads. This results in a change of loads
on the inner and outer wheels.
Car diving under
braking

Car rolling in a
turn
Spring Rate: force per unit displacement for a suspension
spring alone.
Wheel Center Rate: vertical force per unit vertical
displacement at the location along the spindle
corresponding to the wheel centerline, measured relative
to the chassis.
Tire Rate: vertical force per unit vertical displacement of
the tire at its operating load.
Ride Rate: vertical force per unit vertical displacement of
the tire ground contact reference point relative to the
chassis. This is equal to the wheel center rate modified by
the tire vertical rate.
Roll Rate: moment (torque) resisting body roll per degree
of body roll.
Ride
The ride comfort experienced by the vehicle occupants
depends on their fitting position also in relation to the
controls such as steering wheels and pedals as well as on
the acceleration and mechanical vibration acting upon them.
The softer the springing, i.e. the lower the springing rate of
the body (front or rear), the lower the natural frequency for a
specified body mass and, accordingly, the greater the ride
comfort. Unfortunately, at the same time the roll increases on
bends (it must be reduced by anti-roll bars, as does the
tendency to pitch when the brakes are applied or when
starting out.
Ride Calculations
Start with the desired ride frequency (usually around 3Hz
for FSAE vehicles)

Where: fn = Body bounce frequency

(cycles/sec)
KR = Ride rate (N/m)
M = Sprung corner mass (Kg = N*sec2/m
Calculate KR from the formula Kt = Tire stiffness
Ks = Spring stiffness

Substitute the values of ride rate and tire stiffness and

calculate the required spring stiffness.
KS = KSPR (IR)2
Commonly seen ride
frequencies
Suspension Geometry
Is basically how the sprung mass is connected to
the unsprung mass.
Instantaneous center of a suspension: refers to a
projected imaginary point that is effectively the
pivot point of the linkage at an instant.
As the linkage is moved, the center moves, so
proper geometric design not only establishes all
the instant centers in their desired positions at ride
height, but also controls how fast and in what
direction they move with suspension travel.
Objectives of a good suspension system
Independence of all four wheels
To obtain maximum grip from the
tire
Sufficient vertical movement to
absorb road harshness
Sufficient stiffness of the
suspension links
Minimum weight
Suitable control over suspension
parameters like camber, toe, caster
Why wishbones?

Provide greater control over suspension

parameters
Reduce weight
Dynamic behavior can be predicted easily
Can be used with push/pull rod to obtain a
suitable rising/falling rate
Types of Wishbones
Equal and parallel
There is no camber change with bump or droop as the
links form a parallelogram
Large change in track width in bump/droop
Camber change equal to body roll in roll
As the links are parallel they are assumed to intersect at
infinite distance and the roll center is assumed to stay on
the ground in all conditions

The change in track width can be reduced by increasing

the length of the links, but the change of camber in roll
cannot be eliminated.
SHORT LONG
 Unequal and parallel
- Upper link is made shorter than the upper
link
- Camber curve depends on the relative
lengths of the upper and lower links
- The shorter the upper link becomes,
steeper is the camber curve
- The links are parallel to each other only at
ride height, as they have unequal lengths
they cannot remain parallel to each other in
vertical movement
Change in the
location of
instantaneous center
with wheel movement
relative to the
chassis.

Also notice reduced

camber change in
roll.
Unequal and non parallel

With the help of non parallel links the location

of the instantaneous center can be altered.
By raising and lowering the upper and lower
pivots, suitable camber curves can be
obtained
Unequal and non parallel links offer a
compromise between the suspension
parameters
Change in location of
the instantaneous
center with bump/droop
and roll

A very high roll center

may lead to jacking,
i.e. a car turning on only
3 wheels!
Possible wishbone
orientations
(sans push/pull rods)
Anti Dive and Anti Squat Geometry
The side view swing arm (svsa) controls motions and forces
in the fore and aft direction.
Typical suspension parameters are anti-dive, anti-lift, anti-
squat, and wheel path.
The "anti" effect in suspensions is a term that actually
describes the longitudinal to vertical force coupling between
the sprung and unsprung masses. It results purely from the
angle or slope of the side view swing arm.
The anti suspension does not affect the load transfer in any
way.
Anti-dive geometry in front suspensions reduces the bump
deflection under forward braking

Anti-squat in rear suspensions reduces the bump travel

during forward acceleration on rear-wheel-drive cars only
Ride Excitation sources
Road Roughness

Tire/wheel assembly

Driveline Excitation

Engine and transmission

Road Roughness
Road roughness encompasses everything
from potholes, to gradual road unevenness.
Road elevation profiles fit in the category of
broad-band random signals and hence can
be decomposed by the Fourier transform
process.
The road elevation profiles are measured by
close interval level surveys or by high speed
profilometers.
Tire wheel assembly
The tire assembly is usually left compliant to
absorb road bumps as a part of ride isolation
The only causes of excitation due to this
assembly may be due to imperfections in
manufacturing of tires, wheels, hubs, brakes
and other parts.
Mass imbalance
Dimensional variations
Stiffness variations
These non uniformities combine in the tire/wheel
assembly causing it to experience variations as it rolls
 Imbalance is derived from an unequal distribution of
mass around the axis of rotation.
F = (mr) 2
where F is the imbalance force
mr is the imbalance magnitude
is rotational speed
Dynamic imbalance is of special importance on the
steered wheels because the wheels may experience
steering vibration.
Types of radial non uniformities
Eccentricity
Ovality
Triangularity
Square-ness
Driveline Excitation
For the purpose of discussion, the driveline
consists of the driveshaft, gear reductions
and the differential.
The rear axle gearing and other assembly
are also capable of producing excitation, but
this considered to be too high to be counted
as ride.
The most frequent excitation arises from the
driveshaft
Causes of Driveshaft imbalance

Asymmetry of rotating parts

Off center support
Bent shaft
Running clearances may cause the shaft to
off-center
Elasticity of the shaft
Secondary Couples

Use of universal joints causes the

generation of secondary couples
The magnitude and direction of the
secondary couple can be obtained
by simple vector summation of the
input and output torques.
The secondary couple reacts forces
at the support points of the driveline
transmission.
Engine and transmission
The engine is the primary source of power
in a vehicle and the fact that it rotates and
delivers torques means that it can cause
excitation.
Pistons deliver power in a cyclic process,
hence the power delivery is not even, even
though the flywheel acts as an inertial
damper
Because of this the vehicle can vibrate in 6
directions, as shown in the next slide.
Steady State Cornering
- Vehicle cornering and handling
- Handling
: the loosely used term
: measure of the complete vehicle-driver
combination
- Vehicle driver system as a control system :
closed or open loop system?
- For characterizing only the vehicle, we use
open loop system ; which refers to directional
response
 What is steady state cornering?
steady-state conditions are where the
vehicle is following a constant-radius path
at a constant speed with a constant
steering wheel angle, on a flat and level
surface.
Neutral Steer
If the speed is increased slightly for the same
radius path and, after settling into steady state, the
same steering is measured, then the vehicle is said to
have neutral steer.
Understeer and Oversteer
 Understeer
If more steering is needed at the higher speed to
maintain the same radius of curvature, then the vehicle is
said to have understeer.

Oversteer
If less steering is needed at the higher speed, then the
vehicle is said to have oversteer.

In short, an oversteering car corners at a more nosed-in

attitude but at a lesser steering angle by comparison to
"comparable" NS and US vehicles.
 Mini Baja vs Formula SAE
Mini Baja : It is an All terrain vehicle
Formula SAE : well, its a formula car!

What will be difference in suspension designs

between a Baja car and an FSAE car?