Analysis of the Transmissibility of the Rear Suspension of a Mini-Baja Vehicle

This work presents a dynamical analysis of the transmissibility of an off-road vehicle rear suspension, which was developed in CEFET-RJ for the Mini-Baja / SAE-Brazil competition. A finite element model was developed to identify the critical points of the structure. Afterwards, electric strain gages were bonded at the most critical points to measure the dynamic strains due to an impact load. Accelerometers were bonded before and after rear suspension system to measure the main transmissibility characteristics of the suspension. The data obtained through an A/D converter with instrumentation software was used to evaluate the transmissibility of the rear suspension and other important dynamic characteristics. Finally, a simple two-degree of freedom model was developed to study the behavior of the rear suspension and the influence of the main parameters in the transmissibility of accelerations and loads to the structure. An estimate for an optimal suspension adjustment was obtained with this simple model. The results obtained with this methodology indicates that it can be used as an effective tool for the design and improvement for Mini-Baja vehicle, as the designer can work with more realistic loads.