Predictive Suspension Load Control for Rough Road Impacts
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Solution Overview
Problem
Existing vehicle suspension systems face performance degradation and premature component failures due to high load values, which traditional reactive algorithms fail to prevent effectively, leading to user dissatisfaction and potential damage.
Innovation Solution
A pre-emptive suspension loads management system that uses controllers to receive driving surface signals and determine attribute parameters to control suspension forces, adjusting actuators before reaching potentially damaging road conditions, thereby maintaining forces within acceptable limits and optimizing vehicle attributes.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Ease of operation
If reactive algorithms are used to achieve desired suspension configuration, then system attributes can be optimized, but suspension loads may exceed desired limits leading to premature component failures
Solution Approach 1:
The control system performs preliminary action by receiving driving surface signals and determining attribute parameters in advance, before the vehicle encounters the problematic road section. This allows the suspension to be pre-configured to prevent excessive loads, rather than reacting after loads have already exceeded limits. The system predicts upcoming road conditions and adjusts suspension forces proactively, ensuring loads remain within desired limits and preventing premature component failures.
2Speed
If normal operation configuration is used to minimize response time, then dynamic response is improved, but suspension loads exceed desired values causing performance degradation
Solution Approach 1:
The system dynamically adjusts suspension configuration based on predicted road conditions. Instead of using a fixed normal operation configuration, the control system modifies attribute parameters in real-time based on driving surface signals. This allows the suspension to maintain optimal response time while adapting force levels to prevent excessive loads, resolving the contradiction between speed and reliability through dynamic adaptation.
3Reliability
If reactive algorithms adjust suspension to meet load targets, then load limits can be achieved, but system attributes are compromised
Solution Approach 1:
By determining attribute parameters in advance based on driving surface signals, the system achieves load control without compromising system attributes. The preliminary configuration allows the suspension to maintain desired attributes while staying within load limits, unlike reactive algorithms that must compromise attributes to meet load targets after the fact.
Data Source
AI summary
Aspects relate to systems and methods for pre-emptively managing suspension loads. A control system (100, 200) is configured to receive a driving surface signal (165) indicative of a property of a driving surface ahead of the vehicle (600). The control system is further configured to determine, in dependence on the received driving surface signal and on a current vehicle operational state, an attribute parameter. The attribute parameter, when provided to an actuator (318a, 318b . . . 318z) of the suspension system, causes the actuator to act to control a suspension force acting on the suspension system due to a movement of the vehicle along the driving surface to be below a predetermined suspension force value. The control system is further configured to output an actuator control signal (155) to the actuator of the suspension system to control the actuator in dependence on the determined attribute parameter.