An Application of a Dual Mode Dynamic Damper to Control Steering Wheel Shimmy and Shake Problems

Shake and shimmy problems of steering wheel give a great deal of harshness to drivers, and can even cause handling problems in driving.

In this paper, several steering wheel vibration problems were studied, and detailed analysis was carried out to see the characteristics of the source and response systems. A dual mode steering wheel dynamic damper was developed to control the shake and shimmy problems simultaneously. By using experimental and analytical methods its design parameters were tuned to damp out both vibration problems.

Experimental results after applying this damper showed a comprehensively good attenuations of both vibration levels of steering wheel. This also showed a possibility of control two different vibration problems using only one dynamic damper without increasing weight and cost.