Performance analysis of limited bandwidth active suspension with preview based on a discrete time model

  • Authors:

  • Zhang Xin;Zhang Jianwu

  • Affiliations:

  • School of Mechanical Engineering, Shanghai Jiaotong University, Shanghai, P. R. China;School of Mechanical Engineering, Shanghai Jiaotong University, Shanghai, P. R. China

  • Venue:
  • WSEAS TRANSACTIONS on SYSTEMS
  • Year:
  • 2010

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Abstract

A car suspension system is the mechanism that physically separates the car body from the wheels of the car. Active suspensions differ from the conventional passive suspensions in their ability to inject energy into the system, which can improve the trade-off between the ride comfort and road handling. A discrete optimal control algorithm is proposed in this paper for a limited bandwidth active suspension, in which both look-ahead and wheelbase preview information are utilized. The preview optimal algorithm is implemented in Matlab/Simulink software environment based on a half-vehicle model. The effect of preview time on system performance is investigated. In order to reduce the energy consumption, the effect of various bandwidth of actuator is particularly examined. Simulation results show that the preview time can influence overall system performance remarkably, and 0.2 s look-ahead preview time is preferable. Theoretical deviation of the optimal control gain is given to explain the fact that only look-ahead preview benefits the front wheel's motion while wheelbase preview benefits the rear wheel's motion much more. The pitch motion performance deterioration compared with passive case brought by preview can be eliminated to some extent. With preview information, suspension working space requirement can be restrained to a prominent low degree. 6 Hz system is the most suitable one to achieve the trade-off between performance potential and energy consumption in the range 3-15 Hz for limited bandwidth active suspension.