Suspension Synthesis for N:1 Roll Center Motion

Abstract

A dimensional synthesis procedure to achieve prescribed roll center height variation of a vehicle’s sprung mass with respect to wheel jounce-rebound is presented. This may be used to size the relative lengths of the control arms of a short-long arm suspension mechanism in order to (i) fix the roll center with respect to ground, or (ii) fix the roll center relative to the sprung mass, or (iii) have the roll center move at a prescribed rate relative to the sprung mass, during wheel jounce-rebound. These design selections have a significant impact on the ride-handling characteristics of a vehicle. Numerical examples are provided to demonstrate the synthesis procedure.