Automobile active tilt based on active suspension with H∞ robust control

Automobile roll control aims to reduce or achieve a zero roll angle. However, the ability of this roll control to improve the handling stability of vehicles when turning is limited. This study proposes a direct tilt control methodology for automobiles based on active suspension. This tilt control leans the vehicle’s body toward the turning direction and therefore allows the roll moment generated by gravity to reduce or even offset the roll moment generated by the centrifugal force. This phenomenon will greatly improve the roll stability of the vehicle, as well as the ride comfort. A six-degrees-of-freedom vehicle dynamics model is established, and the desired tilt angle is determined through dynamic analysis. In addition, an H∞ robust controller that coordinates different performance demands to achieve the control objectives is designed. The occupant’s perceived lateral acceleration and the lateral load transfer ratio are used to evaluate and explain the main advantages of the proposed active tilt control. To account the difference between the proposed and traditional roll controls, a simulation analysis is performed to compare the proposed tilt H∞ robust control, a traditional H∞ robust control for zero roll angle, and a passive suspension system. The analysis of the time and frequency domains shows that the proposed controller greatly improves the handling stability and anti-rollover ability of vehicles during steering and maintains acceptable ride comfort.