Modal and Dynamic Analysis of a Vehicle with Kinetic Dynamic Suspension System

Abstract

A novel kinetic dynamic suspension (KDS) system is presented for the cooperative control of the roll and warp motion modes of off-road vehicles. The proposed KDS system consists of two hydraulic cylinders acting on the antiroll bars. Hence, the antiroll bars are not completely replaced by the hydraulic system, but both systems are installed. In this paper, the vibration analysis in terms of natural frequencies of different motion modes in frequency domain for an off-road vehicle equipped with different configurable suspension systems is studied by using the modal analysis method. The dynamic responses of the vehicle with different configurable suspension systems are investigated under different road excitations and maneuvers. The results of the modal and dynamic analysis prove that the KDS system can reduce the roll and articulation motions of the off-road vehicle without adding extra bounce stiffness and deteriorating the ride comfort. Furthermore, the roll stiffness is increased and the warp stiffness is decreased by the KDS system, which could significantly enhance handing performance and off-road capability.