Konghui Guo

A novel direct yaw moment controller for in-wheel motor electric vehicles

A novel direct yaw moment controller is developed in this paper. A hierarchical control architecture is adopted in the controller design. In the upper controller, a driver model and a vehicle model are used to obtain the drivers intention and the vehicle states, respectively. The upper controller determines the desired yaw moment by means of sliding mode control. The lower controller distributes differential longitudinal forces according to the desired yaw moment. A nonlinear tyre model, ‘UniTire’, is utilised to develop the novel distribution strategy and the control boundary.

UniTire: unified tire model for vehicle dynamic simulation

UniTire is a unified non-linear and non-steady tire model for vehicle dynamic simulation and control under complex wheel motion inputs, involving large lateral slip, longitudinal slip, turn-slip, and camber. The model is now installed in an ADSL driving simulator at Jilin University for studying vehicle dynamics and their control systems. In this paper, first, a brief history of UniTire development is introduced; then the application scope of UniTire and available interfaces to MBS software are presented; thirdly, a more detailed description of UniTire is given; fourthly, a tool aiming at parameterization of UniTire is also demonstrated; and finally, some comments on TMPT are made.

The UniTire model: a nonlinear and non-steady-state tyre model for vehicle dynamics simulation

The UniTire model is a nonlinear and non-steady-state tyre model for vehicle dynamics simulation and control under complex wheel motion inputs involving large lateral slip, longitudinal slip, turn slip and camber. The model is now installed in the driving simulator in the Automobile Dynamic Simulation Laboratory at Jilin University for studying vehicle dynamics and their control systems. Firstly, the nonlinear semiphysical steady-state tyre model, which complies with analytical boundary conditions up to the third order of the simplified physical model, is presented. Special attention has been paid to the expression for the dynamic friction coefficient between the tyre and the road surface and to the modification of the direction of the resultant force under combined-slip conditions. Based on the analytical non-steady-state tyre model, the effective slip ratios and quasi-steady-state concept are introduced to represent the non-steady-state nonlinear dynamic tyre properties in transient and large-slip-ratio cases. Non-steady-state tyre models of first-order approximation and of high-order approximation are developed on the basis of contact stress propagation processes. The UniTire model has been verified by different pure and combined test data and its simulation covered various complex wheel motion inputs, such as large lateral slip, longitudinal slip, turn slip and camber.

A new pneumatic suspension system with independent stiffness and ride height tuning capabilities

This paper introduces a new pneumatic spring for vehicle suspension systems, allowing independent tuning of stiffness and ride height according to different vehicle operating conditions and driver preferences. The proposed pneumatic spring comprises a double-acting pneumatic cylinder, two accumulators and a tuning subsystem. This paper presents a detailed description of the pneumatic spring and its working principle. The mathematical model is established based on principles of thermo and fluid dynamics. An experimental setup has been designed and fabricated for testing and evaluating the proposed pneumatic spring. The analytical and experimental results confirm the capability of the new pneumatic spring system for independent tuning of stiffness and ride height. The mathematical model is verified and the capabilities of the pneumatic spring are further proved. It is concluded that this new pneumatic spring provides a more flexible suspension design alternative for meeting various conflicting suspension requirements for ride comfort and performance.

A reduced-order nonlinear sliding mode observer for vehicle slip angle and tyre forces

In this paper, a reduced-order sliding mode observer (RO-SMO) is developed for vehicle state estimation. Several improvements are achieved in this paper. First, the reference model accuracy is improved by considering vehicle load transfers and using a precise nonlinear tyre model ‘UniTire’. Second, without the reference model accuracy degraded, the computing burden of the state observer is decreased by a reduced-order approach. Third, nonlinear system damping is integrated into the SMO to speed convergence and reduce chattering. The proposed RO-SMO is evaluated through simulation and experiments based on an in-wheel motor electric vehicle. The results show that the proposed observer accurately predicts the vehicle states.

A study on speed-dependent tyre-road friction and its effect on the force and the moment

The purpose of this paper is to investigate the effects of dynamic road friction on a tyre’s mechanical properties. Despite the fact that most existing analytical tyre models tend to ignore the speed-dependent effects on the tyre’s forces, many experiments have demonstrated that the force and moment of a tyre actually vary with the travelling speed especially when the force and moment are nearly saturated. For this reason, the speed-dependent effects of tyre–road friction need to be reviewed intensively in an attempt to enhance the accuracy and reliability of the existing tyre models. In this paper, a tyre rubber friction tester and a series of testing methods are first developed. An analytical tyre model based on dynamic friction is then established by incorporating the speed effects into the model. Finally, comparison between test data and simulation results of the analytical model and the semiphysical model are conducted and analysed prior to the conclusions.

A THEORETICAL OBSERVATION ON EMPIRICAL EXPRESSION OF TIRE SHEAR FORCES

SUMMARY Theoretically a unified tire model with non-isotropy of friction is presented as a foundation for studying the key features of a reasonable expression of tire shear force and alignment torque under combined slip conditions. The effects of longitudinal force and pressure distributionon tire cornering stiffness are analyzed. A unified semi-empirical tire model with high accuracy and convenience in vehicle dynamics simulation is proposed. Some experimental validations are shown.

Effect of tire camber on vehicle dynamic simulation for extreme cornering

Vehicle behaviors under extreme cornering are complex events that might result in rollover accidents. Simulations have been extensively used in the auto industry to protect vehicles from such accidents. Predictive capability of simulation relies on how accurate the math-based model represents the vehicle and its operating condition. Camber effects of tire are studied in this paper to promote the accuracy of simulation. First, a tire model with simplified camber effect is introduced, and the comparison between the model results and test data is shown. Then, a more precise model that includes camber effects on cornering stiffness are friction coefficient is presented. The comparison between these model results and test data is also given. In addition, the camber effects on tire overturning moment and loaded radius are studied. Finally, vehicle fishhook simulation with different tire models is conducted to further investigate the effect of tire camber on vehicle dynamics.

Modelling of Tire Overturning Moment and Loaded Radius

For evaluation of vehicle handling, subjective assessment is currently almost the only criterion. For the purpose of reducing cycle time and avoiding error of subjective assessment, the close-loop objective evaluation system through computer simulations has become an inevitable choice [Gwanghun, G.I.M. and Yongchul, C.H.O.I., 2001, Role of tire modeling on the design process of a tire and vehicle system. ITEC ASIA 2001, Busan, Korea, September 18–20; Guo, K., Ding, H., Zhang, J., Lu, J. and Wang, R., 2003, Development of longitudinal and lateral driver model for autonomous vehicle control. International Journal of Vehicle Design, 36(1), 50–65]. For this reason, the more accurate models of vehicle, tire and driver are necessary. Since structure and operating conditions of tires are very complicated, many researchers have paid more attention to the modeling of tire properties and varieties of tire model have been done to describe the tire behaviour of longitudinal, lateral forces and aligning moment [Pacejka, H.B., 2002, Tyre and Vehicle Dynamics. Butterworth-Heinemann, an imprint of Elsevier Science, ISBN 0-7506-5141-5]. However, there are few studies for the tire overturning moment (TOM), especially under large slip angle and camber angle. For the simulation of vehicle rollover, the expression accuracy of TOM is rather important. In addition, the difference of the loaded radius of left and right tires yields tire roll angle and that also affects vehicle roll behavior. In this paper, the modeling of TOM and loaded radius are presented first, and then the modeling results are compared with tire test data.

Development of a generalised equivalent estimation approach for multi-axle vehicle handling dynamics

Abstract This paper devotes analytical effort in developing the 2M equivalent approach to analyse both the effect of vehicle body roll and n-axle handling on vehicle dynamics. The 1M equivalent vehicle 2DOF equation including an equivalent roll effect was derived from the conventional two-axle 3DOF vehicle model. And the 1M equivalent dynamics concepts were calculated to evaluate the steady-state steering, frequency characteristics, and root locus of the two-axle vehicle with only the effect of body roll. This 1M equivalent approach is extended to a three-axle 3DOF model to derive similar 1M equivalent mathematical identities including an equivalent roll effect. The 1M equivalent wheelbases and stability factor with the effect of the third axle or body roll, and 2M equivalent wheelbase and stability factor including both the effect of body roll and the third-axle handling were derived to evaluate the steady-state steering, frequency characteristics, and root locus of the three-axle vehicle. By using the recursive method, the generalised 1M equivalent wheelbase and stability factor with the effect of n-axle handling and 2M equivalent generalised wheelbase and stability factor including both the effect of body roll and n-axle handling were derived to evaluate the steady-state steering, frequency characteristics, and root locus of the n-axle vehicle. The 2M equivalent approach and developed generalised mathematical handling concepts were validated to be useful and could serve as an important tool for estimating both the effect of vehicle body roll and n-axle handling on multi-axle vehicle dynamics.