Design of a fuzzy preview active suspension system for automobiles

The paper proposes a new active vehicle suspension with wheelbase preview information for a half-car model. A sensor placed on the front suspension collects and feeds forward the preview information as an input to the rear suspension system. Then a fuzzy controller is used to process the obtained preview information and the feedback signal of vehicle state. The objective of application of the fuzzy controller is to improve the suspension robustness against sensor noise. Numerical simulations show that the fuzzy controller provides higher robust performance than a conventional PID controller in the presence of sensor noise. Moreover, the preview information significantly decreases the rear wheel unsprung mass acceleration so that the riding comfort can be improved.