Title: Fuzzy sliding mode control of real vehicle semi-active suspensions: comparison with output feedback sliding mode control

Authors: H. Liu, K. Nonami, T. Hagiwara

Addresses: Graduate School of Science and Technology, Chiba University, 1-33, Yayoi-cho, Inage-ku, Chiba 263-8522, Japan. ' Department of Electronics and Mechanical Engineering, Chiba University, 1-33, Yayoi-cho, Inage-ku, Chiba 263-8522, Japan. ' Yamaha Motor Co., Ltd., 2500 Shingai, Iwata, Shizuoka 438-8501, Japan

Abstract: The design of a suspension system is very important for the ride-comfort and driving stability of automobiles. Many active and semi-active suspension systems have been studied and results reported. Since an active suspension requires a large amount of energy, semi-active suspension systems have recently received attention because of their lower energy consumption. This paper presents a new fuzzy sliding mode controller based on the theory of output feedback sliding mode control for a semi-active suspension system with variable dampers which have undesirable non-linear properties. In the experiment, the performance of the proposed fuzzy sliding mode control for the semi-active suspension has been examined by comparing it with passive control and also with the output feedback sliding mode control method. The experimental results illustrate the effectiveness of the controller.

Keywords: fuzzy sliding mode control; output feedback sliding mode control; real vehicle; semi-active suspension; vehicle suspension; fuzzy control; suspension design; ride comfort; driving stability; variable dampers; passive control.

DOI: 10.1504/IJVAS.2005.008229

International Journal of Vehicle Autonomous Systems, 2005 Vol.3 No.2/3/4, pp.114 - 133

Published online: 25 Nov 2005 *

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