Uniform Suspension Response for Commercial Vehicles 2000-01-3448
Commercial suspension systems have used metal springs for many years. More recently, suspensions using air springs have demonstrated superior ride qualities. Metal springs provide adequate support for the fully loaded vehicle, but do not adequately vary the support for smaller loads. Air springs provide variable support of the load, but allow more roll as the vehicle corners. Fluid spring suspension components will be examined in this paper which eliminate the vehicle's tendency to roll and provide variable support for the sprung load.
The fluid spring operates as a biased spring. Static load variations and forces acting directly on the sprung load are passed through the fluid spring to the wheel support without causing it to extend or retract. The fluid spring extends or retracts quickly however, to track irregularities in the road and to maintain support equal to the weight of the sprung load at each moment. In this manner, it functions as a viable ‘sky-hook’ suspension.
