Multibody Dynamics Modeling and System Identification of a Quarter-Car Test Rig with McPherson Strut Suspension

This paper addresses modeling and system identification of a McPherson strut quarter-car suspension. Constrained equations of motion in the Lagrange multiplier form are used to characterize the dynamic behavior of both a linear and a non-linear McPherson strut quarter-car suspension model. A Hilber-Hughes-Taylor integrator is used to simulate the suspension's response to a displacement input. The simulated response of both models is compared to the experimental response recorded from a quarter-car test rig equipped with a McPherson strut suspension, for system identification purposes. The performance of both models is discussed in the context of the basic linearity of the experimental suspension.