Design and simulate suspension, steering, weight transfer, and overall vehicle dynamics.
Process
Simulated and designed A-arms, mounting plates, and uprights
Designed a program for the suspension to handle: Camber, Kingpin, Caster, Spring rates, Roll rates, Lateral Load Transfer, Longitudinal Load Transfer, Vertical Center of Gravity, Roll Centers, Toe, Suspension Travel, Scrub radius, A-arm lengths, Track Width, Wheelbase, Ackerman steering geometry, Steering Angle, Car Roll Angle, and Steering Ratios
Results
Completed a suspension model and system to be integrated with the chassis
Compensated for the lack of suspension nodes on the chassis with mounting plates
First to introduce the academics of vehicle design at Mercer University
Improvement Opportunities
Design suspension first for optimized chassis design
Redesign uprights for manufacturing
Remove plates from the suspension design
Upgrade tire compound for better friction
What I Learned
Deeply exploring the academics of a foreign concept before design
Managing large amounts of interconnected design parameters
Innovation to overcome errors (ex. benefits of mounting plates)