Kinematics and Compliance Analysis of a 3.5 Tonne Load Capacity Independent Front Suspension for LCV

This paper deals with the development of a 3.5 tonne carrying double wishbone front suspension for a low floor LCV. It is a novelty in this class of vehicles. It has a track width of 1810 mm and it has a recirculating ball steering system. The steering mechanism has been arranged so that the steering angle could reach to 48° that is a very effective angle in that vehicle range. This results as a lower turning radius which indicates a better handling for the vehicle.

The steering and the front suspension system here have been optimized in terms of comfort and handling by using DOE (design of experiments) based on sequential programming technique. In order to achieve better suspension and steering system geometry, this technique has been applied. The results have been compared with the benchmark vehicle.