SUPRA-2016

SUSPENSION PROGRESS
REPORT
Submitted By:Sagar Sahu
Chintala

Varun
2nd Year

Mechanical
MENTOR RISHABH GUPTA (3rd
YEAR)

The suspension system

Suspension is the system of tires, tire air, springs, shock absorbers and linkages that connects a
vehicle to its wheels and allows relative motion between the two. The job of a car suspension is
to maximize the friction between the tires and the road surface, to provide steering stability with
good handling and to ensure the comfort of the passengers. Since project supra is a F-1 racing
car, so we need to design a suspension system that fulfill both the purposes of ride (a car's
ability to smooth out a bumpy road) and handling (a cars ability to safely accelerate, brake and
corner).
1.Working principle
The forces generated due to imperfection of road (track), during cornering of vehicle (lateral
forces) and during longitudinal acceleration or deceleration causes vertical acceleration of the
tire and try to lift the tire vertically upwards i.e. the traction of tire with ground loses. So, the main
function is to encounter these forces and make optimal contact of tire with ground to ensure
proper handling of our car at higher speed cornering.
2. Suspension Type:According to design our car, maintaining the design and not compromising with the
handling capacity of car, we have decided to use pushrod damper suspension system for front
and pull road damper suspension system in rear of the car.

 Iterations to decide the proper hard points of suspension and steering

system

For deciding the coordinates of different components following iterations were

done on Lotus Shark Suspension software
Iterations for deciding roll center of vehicle
1. Itr 1.1
Hard points : Results obtained:-

2. Itr 1.2: Hard points:-

Results Obtained:-

3. Itr 1.3: Hard Points

Results Obtained

And many of such iterations were made and we have decided to keep roll center for
front geometry to be at 0.5 inch above ground for front and 1.5 inch above ground
for rear geometry.

 Iterations for deciding camber angle: For front suspension:1. Itr 2.1: Hard points:

Results Obtained

2. Itr 2.2: Hard Points:-

Results Obtained:-

 For Rear Suspension

3. Itr 2.3: Hard Points: Results obtained:4. Itr 2.4 :-

Hard points:-

Results Obtained:-

DIFFERENT SUSPENSION PARAMETERS:1. Mass of vehicle with driver = 350 kg

2. Mass of front portion of vehicle = 129.5 kg
3. Mass of rear portion of vehicle = 220.5 kg

4.
5.
6.
7.
8.

Front track = 52 inch

Rear track = 50 inch
Wheel base = 71 inch
Height of Cg (front) from ground = 320mm
Height of Cg (rear) from ground = 300mm
Assuming braking acceleration to be 1.5g and lateral
acceleration to be 2g, the following load transfers
obtained: Longitudinal load transfer = Mass * acceleration *
Cg height / (wheelbase)
Longitudinal load transfer = 350*
1.5*9.81*320/1803.4
= 915 N (approx)
Lateral load transfer front = Mass* acceleration*Cg
height/( Front Track)
Lateral load transfer front = 129.5 * 2
*9.81*320/660.4
= 1230 N (approx)
Lateral load transfer rear = Mass* acceleration*Cg
height/(Rear Track)
Lateral load transfer rear = 220.5*2*9.81*300/635
= 2050 N (approx)
Front spring calculations

Considering roll gradient of 1.5deg/g (as desired for hard

springs for racing car, reference- W.D.
miliken, race car vehicle dynamics)
Maximum roll =1.5*1.8=2.7
wheel rate = 64.75*9.81/(660.4sin2.7) = 20.4 N/mm

 Spring rate = wheel rate / (MR*MR)

= 20.4/(0.6*0.6)
= 56.6 N/mm
Frequency = (k/m)1/2/2*3.14
= 2.82 Hz
Maximum spring compression = 46.56mm
Rear Spring Calculations
Considering the same roll gradient of 1.5deg/g,
Wheel travel in static conditions = 635Sin2.7 = 29.90mm

Wheel rate = 113.4*9.81/29.90 = 37.2 N/mm

Spring rate = 37.2/ (0.7*0.7) = 75.93 N/mm
Frequency = 1/2pi*(m/k)1/2 = 2.92Hz
Maximum spring compression = 50.1 mm