Objective Evaluation of Ride Quality of Road Vehicles

Quality of Ride is one of the Important performance parameters of automotive vehicles, especially in the passanger vehicles. In this paper, the guidelines of ISO:2631-1997 and BS: 68441-1987 are applied on vehicles to assess the ride quality of vehicles objectively.

Vibration inputs in terms of acceleration are acquired at 3 locations in 12 axes. These are then processed using the frequency weighting functions. The analysis gives a single number called “Overall Ride Value” which is proportional to passenger discomfort in vehicle. The axes which are principal sources of discomfort and the frequency range, which is most responsible for discomfort, are identified. The present work also includes experiments conducted to see the effect of variation in load, road surface, and vehicle speed on ride quality.

The data obtained by this procedure can be used for assessment and comparison of ride quality characteristics of vehicles in detail. It also can be used for determination of vibration components responsible for discomfort in the process of ride quality optimisation.