Design, Analysis, Simulation and Validation of Automobile Suspension System Using Drive-Shaft as a Suspension Link

With increasing demands for higher performance along with lower vehicle emissions, lightweight vehicle system construction is key to meet such demands. Suspension and transmission assemblies being the key areas for weight-reduction, we have designed a revolutionary new type of suspension system which combines the suspension links with the powertrain assembly and thus completely eliminates one suspension member. Less weight means lower fuel-consumption with improved passenger-comfort and road-holding due to reduction in unsprung mass. Elimination of a suspension link reduces the overall cost of material, machining & fabrication making our design cost-effective than existing setups. This article deals with the design and implementation of of our concept. A working prototype is also constructed and tested which completely validates our design. Our design has major benefits of ultralight-weight construction with reduced space requirement and component-count and improved serviceability.