Im looking into building a control system for my suspension on my car.
My aim is to achieve a system that can be controlled from within the car, allowing the coilover suspension to have the damping rate adjustable via a touchscreen in the dash.
A secondary and more complicated aim is to have an active mode, whereby the damping rate is controlled by the movement of the car.
Mechanically its a very simple setup. The damping rate is controlled via a little dial on top of each shock absorber. I intend to use a geared stepper or servo to do the physical work. This only requires a very small ammount of force. It simply closes or opens a valve inside the shock allowing oil to flow more freely or restricting flow to stiffen the damping. There are 15 settings each a couple of degrees apart. so there isnt need for a great range of movement either.
Firstly i want to be able to switch between hard and soft settings at the push of a button.
The Second function.
I plan to use an accelerometer and gyro to ascertain the angle of the car and stiffen the suspension accordingly to minimise body roll and pitching under cornering, acceleration and heavy braking. This will also help maintain the contact patch with the road.
I'm new to arduino and coding, Im just getting to grips with some simple stuff controling servos and input devices.
I have plenty of experience with radio control electronics, lots of quadcopter experience and thats what gave me the idea.
I'm a machinist/fitter for an engineering firm by trade, so the mechanics of the system are no problem.
So if you bothered to read all that thanks! These systems do exist commercially but price and compatibility are an issue. Also i want a system that suits my needs.
So if anybody has any info, suitable tutorials, similar projects or anything else you think might help me to my goal id be most grateful.
I would look into programming stepper motors, would be good for adjusting things like this and could start with a dial to adjust things, then if that works will be ways to use a touch screen to input the position.
The tein system probably works on a similar idea.
On the "active" side of things, as a car fan myself I think this might be a lot of work for something that is not going to be able to react fast enough and could be prone to moving damping around when you really don't want it to and end up with a trip into gravel.
I think nearly all active systems in production cars use magnetic dampers to adjust like that, which is much much faster than moving the knob.
Sounds a really cool project and will love to see it in action
Ive seen the tein setup in action and it is a fine bit of kit. Albeit a little clunky.
I was thinking of getting things working with pots to test the mechanical side of things. then move on to some more complicated controls.
You got me thinking about the speed issue. Granted an actuator of any kind is never going to have the response time of an electromagnet. Changing the viscosity of a fluid is a really clever idea. However, have a look at some 3d quadcopter flying or even helecopter. The response of the motor speed and pitch on these machines is astonishing and exactly what i want to use to my advantage. The rpm of the rotors increases or decreases to lift or drop the sagging axis, so the system im after already exists and its fast enough to react to keep a machine flying.
My only issue with steppers is to get the speed up i will need high rpm steppers which are going to be current hungry. High speed high torque servos aready exist and the motor drivers are built in to the unit, meaning any failiures can be replaced in a matter of minutes. I knowi could gear up a torquier( is that a word? is now) stepper but that work has already been done for me and gearing up is adding load and making the system work harder.
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