Title: Control of braking force distribution using electrorheological fluid valves

Authors: Seung-Bok Choi, Kum-Gil Sung

Addresses: Department of Mechanical Engineering, Smart Structures and Systems Laboratory, Inha University, Incheon, 402-751, Korea. ' Department of Mechanical Engineering, Smart Structures and Systems Laboratory, Inha University, Incheon, 402-751, Korea

Abstract: In this work, a controllable electrorheological (ER) valve system is devised and applied to vehicle ABS in order to control braking force distribution. A cylindrical ER valve is designed and its pressure controllability is experimentally confirmed. A hydraulic booster is then manufactured in order to amplify the field-dependent pressure drop obtained from the ER valve. Subsequently, the governing equation of the rear wheel model is derived and a sliding mode controller to achieve the desired slip rate is designed. The controller is then realised through the HILS method and controlled responses are presented. In addition, computer animation results for the braking performance under both unladen and laden cases are presented.

Keywords: electrorheological fluids; braking force distribution; electrorheological valves; vehicle braking systems; ABS; slip rate; sliding mode control; anti-lock braking systems; hydraulic booster; HILS; simulation; braking performance.

DOI: 10.1504/IJVD.2008.017072

International Journal of Vehicle Design, 2008 Vol.46 No.1, pp.111 - 127

Published online: 06 Feb 2008 *

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