Inerter-incorporated Vehicle Suspension Platform for Designing and Prototyping

Dr Chen, Michael Zhiqiang   (Project Coordinator (PC))

Dr Chen Yong Hua   (Co-Investigator)

Professor Huang Lixi   (Co-Investigator)

6

2015-09-01

75600

Inerter-incorporated Vehicle Suspension Platform for Designing and Prototyping

Designing and Prototyping, Inerter-incorporated Vehicle Suspension

Others - Mechanical, Production and Industrial Engineering

Engineering (E)

InP/202/15

Innovation and Technology Fund Internship Programme

2015

Completed

The aim of this project is to build a new suspension design platform. A novel mechanical device (the inerter) will be used in a new design toolset that will then be used to create a series of vehicle suspension platform prototypes incorporating different inerter prototypes powered by different working mechanisms, including rack-and-pinion, hydraulic and mechatronic. The new design process will be implemented using network synthesis tools and optimal decentralised controller design methods, which would then allow multi-objective (ride comfort, road holding, handling, etc.) optimal designs for complete vehicle platforms, ones incorporating inerters, simultaneously for all the suspension struts. A small-scale testing facility will also be built to simulate, test and experimentally evaluate a complete vehicle suspension system (e.g. for a 4-wheel passenger car) designed with our toolset. This testing facility will also be used to validate the functionality and practicality of our suspension platform design tool. Upon successful project completion, this tool can then be applied to myriad vehicle suspension system designs, including those for automotive and railway vehicles, to enhance performance, comfort and safety, which will be of particular benefit to the local and regional vehicle engineering industries. We expect to file one or more patents.