Abstract
The active control of suspension geometry has historically been a challenging perspective for chassis teams of world-wide auto makers. Manufacturers and suppliers have offered different solutions, but few succeeded in combining a remarkable improvement on handling performance, low energy consumption, simplicity and low cost.
The new and revolutionary approach of AGCS re-invents the possibilities of rear suspension active toe control. This system makes use of the complexity of a rear multi-link suspension, and a clever design lay-out as to minimise the use of energy. Additionally and thanks to an efficient control logic strategy the vehicle handling performance and stability is substantially improved.
The system is most successful in controlling vehicle transient situations, mainly originated by aggressive lane change manoeuvres at mid-high speeds.
This paper presents the most relevant actions of the development process of the AGCS performed by Hyundai Motor Company with the support of Applus+ IDIADA. The use of different evaluation methods and accurate measurement equipment was crucial for the optimisation of the system.
The methods presented combine subjective evaluations in different road conditions (ice, wet and dry asphalt), suspension kinematic and elastokinematic characterisation and objective road measurements using dynamic wheel position measurement equipment.
Finally, a comprehensive summary of the handling test results are explained, which outline the efficiency of the system, and its influence on the active safety level of Hyundai Sonata.
Keywords - Active toe control, Handling performance, Stability, Road objective evaluation methods, Kinematics and Compliance testing, Dynamic wheel position measurement