Loads Prediction On Suspensions' Systems During The Conceptual Phase Through Simulink Modelling

In the concept phase of car design, the Chassis Mechanical and Mechatronic System Group often avoids using advanced simulation software like ADAMS due to the lack of detailed information on bushings' stiffness, suspension kinematics, and compliance. At this stage, the number of available and fixed vehicle parameters is limited, necessitating the estimation of certain variables. This project aims to develop a model to simulate bump events, estimating the loads on the suspension system and the damper module fork during the concept phase. The simulation outputs will be utilized by the Validation Group for the structural optimization of suspension components. Specifically, the resulting force vectors will serve as inputs for FEM simulations to evaluate the assembly's ability to withstand the heaviest loads. Consequently, this tool is crucial for preventing bottlenecks in the dimensioning of the wheel carrier and the damper fork. The tool must be intuitive, computational efficient, and user should be asked to make as few modifications as possible. Another objective is to keep tracking of simulation’s results, to make them always easy-accessible.