Global Chassis Control for active safety of heavy vehicles
Résumé
This work is focused on the study of Global Chassis Control (GCC) problems relative to single unit commercial vehicles from distribution range. The main goal of the work is to find the control strategies for different actuators coordination of the vehicle (brakes, rear and front steering systems and suspensions) with the purpose of their cooperation to enhance the heavy vehicles safety and to get control over the vehicle dynamics. In order to achieve the fixed goal we begin by the brief but relevant study of the accident statistics, which justify the choice of three characteristic manoeuvres, causes of an important part of dangerous situations leading to accidents. These manoeuvres (a double lane change, a tight curve negotiating and a roundabout negotiating) are also representative of heavy vehicles actual manoeuvres in an urban context. The computer simulations of the driver-vehicle system subjected to the above-listed manoeuvres are performed using a non-linear 24 DOF single unit heavy vehicle model. In order to perform comparison between different GCC, a relatively simple PID-corrector based driver model is introduced, acting only on steering angle. The models were correlated with actual test data, ensuring that the driver control acts as a given driver. In order to evaluate vehicle performances, some criteria assigned to estimate the effectiveness, the lateral stability and the easiness of driving are established. Next, the vehicle dynamics controllers will be proposed and synthesized. Then, the vehicle behaviour will be tested and compared in different configurations: vehicle without any VDC-type controller and vehicle equipped by controllers coordinating the actions of different actuators installed on the vehicle. In that way, the effect of the progressive integration of actuators in the Global Chassis Control is studied. The results of this study will allow us to justify the use of one or another actuator and their combinations for vehicle dynamics control. Some remarks can be extracted about the choice of the controllers