Chap-7: Suspension Systems Motor Vehicle Engineering MEng 5165

By: Shewangizaw W

7. Introduction to Suspension Systems

Broadly speaking, suspension system consists of a spring and a damper. The energy of road shock causes the spring to oscillate. These oscillations are restricted to a reasonable level by the damper, which is more commonly called a shock absorber. Location of the suspension system is between the wheel axles and the vehicle body or frame. 7.1. Its main purpose is:1. To prevent the road shocks from being transmitted to the vehicle components and occupants 2. Support the weight of the vehicle 3. Maintain traction between the tires and the road 4. Hold the wheels in alignment

The two basic types of suspension systems are: 1. Rigid axel/ dependent suspension systems 2. Independent suspension systems 7.2 Rigid axel/ dependent suspension systems
Wheel is mounted at each end of a solid or undivided axle or axle housing. Has the advantages of strength and low cost, but it provides less efficiency and comfort than independent suspension. Most passengers cars use rigid axle suspension only at the rear. Rigid-axle front suspension systems are usually found only on heavy duty vehicles and trucks.

Cont
Since the axle connects with wheels, any condition that affects one wheel affects the other. Incase one wheel is raised by a bump in the road, the axle will be tilted. Thus the motion of the raised wheel is passed to the other wheel. Since the frame of the car is attached to the axle, the car body is also tilted.

A rigid axle suspension has the following characteristics:

The number of parts composing the suspension is small and the construction is simple. Therefore, maintenance is simple. It is durable enough for heavy-duty use. When turning there is little tilting of the body. There is little change in the alignment due to the up and down movements of the wheels. Therefore, there is less tyre wear. Since the unsparing weight is great, riding comfort is poor. Since the movements of the left and right wheels mutually influence one another, vibration and oscillation occur rather easily.

There are various types of rigid axle suspension. Below will be discussed rigid axle suspension used at present day: I. Parallel leaf spring type: is used for the front suspension of trucks and buses, etc, and for the rear suspension in commercial vehicles. Characteristics of parallel leaf spring type suspension: Since the leaf spring also acts as a linkage for positioning the axle. Therefore the construction of the suspension is simple but comparatively strong. Since the positioning of the axle is carried out by the leaf springs it has very high spring constant. Therefore, it is not very good with respect to riding comfort. Riding comfort suffers due to inter-leaf friction in the leaf springs. Acceleration and braking torque tend to causes wind-up and vibration and wind-up in turn causes rear- end squat and nose-diving.

Parallel leaf spring

II.

Leading arm and trailing arm types with lateral rods:

It is used for the front and rear suspension of the land cruiser. Characteristics of Leading arm and trailing arm types with lateral rods suspension: In this type, the positioning of the axle, where there were a leaf spring instead replaced by leading arms or trailing arms and a lateral control rod. This type is superior to leaf springs in the following points: Since the spring constant can be made smaller riding comfort is good. Since the trailing arm's rigidity is high, it is difficult for wind-up to occur. III. Trailing arm type with twist beam The construction of this type is simple and it is compact, so it is used for the rear suspension of front engine front wheel drive (FF) cars.

IV. Link type suspension

This type is used for the rear suspension. It provides the best riding comfort of all the rigid axle suspension.
Characteristics of Link type suspension: Since axle positioning is accomplished by a linkage, soft springs can be used and riding comfort is good. Due to the geometrical layout of the linkages, nose diving during braking and rear-end squat during acceleration are prevented. Also the up-and-down movement of the front end of the differential during bounding and rebounding can be minimized by making the upper control arms shorter than the lower control arms.

Cont
This in turn means that the floor over the nose of the differential can be lowered, allowing more passenger compartment space. Use of coil springs minimizes friction in the suspension, so minute shocks from the road surface can be absorbed and riding comfort can be improved. Generally, when this suspension system is used in the rear, the linkage is located forward of the axle, and as a result, the capacity of the trunk can be larger on passenger cars.

7.3 Independent Suspension systems

It provide a separate mounting for each wheel. There is no connection between the wheels. The linear motion of one wheel is not transmitted to the other, and there is no tilting of an axle. Most independent front suspension systems use coil springs. Methods of mounting the springs
i. To locate each spring between a lower control arm and the frame ii. To locate each spring between an upper control arm and spring tower above the frame. iii. Still another method positions the springs around long shock absorbers. Those units, usually referred to as McPherson struts, connect the lower control arm to the chassis or under body. Some suspension systems use no springs at all instead, they use torsion bars.

Characteristics of Independent Suspension systems :

The unstrung weight can be kept low and the road holding characteristics of the wheels are good, so riding comfort and handling stability is good. The springs only support the body; they do not help to position the wheels. This means that softer springs can be used. Since there is no axle connecting the left and right wheels the floor and the engine mounting position can be lowered. This means that the vehicle's centre of gravity will be lower, and the passenger compartment and luggage room can be made larger. The construction is rather complex. Tread and alignment change with the up-and-down motions of the wheels.

There are different types of independent suspensions which are in use for front end rear axles. Few of them are discussed below. 7.3.1 Front wheel independent suspension
1. McPherson strut type
This is the most widely used independent suspension system for the front suspension of small and medium sized cars. This type is also used as the rear suspension of FF cars. A strut containing shock absorber and the spring carries also the stub axle on which the wheel is mounted. This system is simpler than double wishbone type and is also lighter, keeping the unsparing weight lower. Further, the camber also does not change when the wheel moves up and down. This type of suspension gives the maximum room in the engine compartment and is, therefore, commonly used on front wheel drive cars.

MacPherson strut type suspension

Characteristics of MacPherson strut type Suspension systems : The construction of the suspension is relatively simple. Since there are a small number of parts, it is light, so unstrung weight can be reduced. Since the space taken up by the suspension is small, the usable face in the engine compartment can be increased. Since the distance between suspension support points is large, there is little disturbance of the front wheel alignment due to installation error or part manufacturing error. Therefore except for toe in alignment adjustments are ordinarily unnecessary.

2. Double wishbone type This type considers the upper and the lower wishbone arms pivoted to the frame members. The coil spring is placed in between the lower wishbone and the underside of cross-member. The vehicle weight is transmitted from the body and cross-member to the coil spring through which it goes to the lower wishbone member. A shock absorber is placed inside the coil spring and is attached to the cross member and the lower wishbone member. The wishbone arms are like the chicken wishbone or letter V in shape, because of which the system is so called.

Cont Because of this V-shape, the wishbones not only position the wheels and transmit the vehicle load to the springs, but these also resist acceleration braking and cornering (side) forces. The upper arms are shorter in length than the lower ones. his helps to keep the wheel track constant, there by avoiding the tyre scrub, thus minimizing tyre wear. However, a small change in the camber angle does occur with such an arrangement. The wishbone type is the most popular independent suspension system.

wishbone type

Characteristics of Double wishbone type Suspension systems:

The length, positions and angles of the arms governs the path of the wheels when the car corners or goes over bumps. This path in turn affects steering, road holding, and tyre wear. If the upper and lower arms were made parallel and of equal length, the wheels would not lean as they move up and down over bumps. This would cause the tread (the distance b/n the left and right wheels) to vary resulting in poor cornering and excessive tyre wear. Therefore, in most modern suspension systems the arms are made neither parallel nor of equal length. This causes the wheels to lean inward slightly as they go over bumps, so that the tread does not change; and it improves cornering because the outside wheel, which carries the greater load and therefore exerts the greater cornering power of the two, remain more or less at right angles to the road surface, thus improving road holding.

7.3.2 Rear wheel independent suspension Though the rear wheels are not to be steered, yet there is a considerable difficulty in the rear wheel springing if the power has to be transmitted to the rear wheels. But even the rear wheel independent springing is coming into importance because of its distinct advantages over the rigid axle type. There are different types of this suspension. Few they are discussed below.

1. Transversely mounted control arm types

Designs of this type use control arms that are mounted near the centre of the frame or under body, and extend outward toward the wheels. Coil springs are mounted between the control arms and a cross member. The outer end of each control arm is attached to a spindle, which is mounted on the lower end of a shock-absorber strut. Positioned in this manner, the control arms handle side thrust loads. Front and back movement of the assembly is controlled by tie rods, which also aid the struts in resisting the torque produced while braking.

Transversely mounted control arm types

2. Trailing arm type In this the trailing arms are pivoted at right angles to the longitudinal axis of the car and carry the rear wheels at their ends. Universal joints are provided to the drive shaft coming from the differential to keep the wheel track and the camber constant with the up and down movement of wheels. The coil springs with shock absorbers are mounted concentrically within them. The trailing links hold the wheels firmly and also sustain accelerating and braking forces.

7.3.3 Advantages and disadvantages of independent front suspension Advantages 1. It allows a bigger deflection of front wheels without producing any reaction on the steering. The front suspension springs are designed softer than the rear springs to reduce body diving. 2. Offers greater distance for resisting rolling action and imparts better cornering characteristics and reduced tyre wear. 3. The front-axle is in the form of a small stub axle; hence the unstrung weight is greatly reduced. This characteristic improves the road holding tendency of the tyres. 4. The system imparts minimum vibrations to the passengers. Disadvantages 1. Better shock absorbers are required for better ride. 2. More expensive than the conventional system. 3. Tyre wear increases due to wear in links and wishbone arms. 4. Electronic equipment is required to check steering angles.

7.3.4 Advantages and disadvantages of rear independent suspension

Advantages 1. Lesser unstrung weight improves the ride and reduces tyre wear. 2. Increased passenger space. 3. Better weight distribution. 4. The rear wheels remain stable due to transmission of torque. Disadvantages 1. Increased cost. 2. Complicated design requiring greater maintenance. 3. Steering action is not proper in some designs. 4. The wear of the components causes misalignment of the steering geometry.