A vehicle includes a suspension system having a first damper, a second damper, and a controller. The dampers include housings and pistons sealingly interfaced with an inner diameter of the housing, dividing the damper into a first and second chamber. The suspension system includes proportional variable relief valves which control pressure of fluid entering or exiting one of the first and second chamber of one of the first and second damper. The controller controls the valves to control extension or compression of the first damper and extension or compression of the second damper based on a degree of roll of the vehicle during a turn of the vehicle or a degree of pitch of the vehicle during acceleration or deceleration of the vehicle. The first and second damper control a roll and pitch of the vehicle. The valves control a damping rate of one of the first and second damper.

A vehicle includes a suspension system having a first damper, a second damper, valves and a controller. Each of the first damper and the second damper include a housing and a piston sealingly interfaced with an inner diameter of the housing, dividing the damper into a first and second chamber. Each valve controls flow rate of fluid entering or exiting at least one of the first and second chamber of at least one of the first damper and the second damper. The controller controls the valves to control extension or compression of at least one of the first damper and the second damper based on at least one of a degree of roll of the vehicle during a turn of the vehicle and a degree of pitch of the vehicle during acceleration of the vehicle or a degree of pitch of the vehicle during deceleration of the vehicle.

A vehicle stabilizer system, including: a stabilizer device and a switching mechanism to switch a roll suppressing function by a stabilizer bar between an effective state in which the roll suppressing function is rendered effective and an ineffective state in which the roll suppressing function is rendered ineffective; and a controller configured to determine whether a lateral acceleration of a vehicle body is greater than a threshold lateral acceleration and control the switching mechanism to render the roll suppressing function effective when the lateral acceleration is greater than the threshold lateral acceleration and ineffective when the lateral acceleration is not greater than the threshold lateral acceleration, wherein the controller employs, as a determination lateral acceleration for determining whether the lateral acceleration is greater than the threshold lateral acceleration, a smaller one of an actual lateral acceleration and an estimated lateral acceleration estimated based on a turning degree of the vehicle.

A damping control apparatus includes a control device for controlling actuators that generate forces acting between a vehicle body and wheels. The control device stores a single wheel model of a vehicle including a skyhook device having a damper, a spring and an inerter. The control device calculates a product of an acceleration detected by an acceleration sensor and an equivalent mass of the inerter, a product of a once integrated value of the acceleration and a damping coefficient of the damper, a product of a twice integrated value of the acceleration and, a spring constant of the spring as target damping forces to be applied to a sprung mass, and controls the actuators based on target generative forces based on the target damping forces.

To obtain a controller capable of controlling a regular circular turning characteristic of a vehicle during turning. A controller according to the present invention is a controller that is mounted to a vehicle including a shock absorber of a damping force adjustment type provided between a vehicle body and a wheel and outputs a command signal corresponding to a damping force of the shock absorber to an actuator that adjusts the damping force of the shock absorber. The controller is configured to output the command signal to the actuator to adjust the damping force of the shock absorber and control a regular circular turning characteristic of the vehicle when the vehicle is brought into a stable turning state where the vehicle turns in a state where a degree of a change in a physical quantity associated with a travel posture is smaller than that in a reference state.

A method for determining a tyre normal force range (F.sub.z,min, F.sub.z,max) of a tyre force (F.sub.z) acting on a vehicle (100), the method comprising; obtaining (S1) suspension data (310) associated with a suspension system of the vehicle (100); obtaining (S2) inertial measurement unit, IMU, data (320) associated with the vehicle (100); estimating (S3), by a suspension-based estimator (330) a first tyre normal force range (F.sub.z1,min, F.sub.z1,max) based on the suspension data (310); estimating (S4), by an inertial force-based estimator (340), a second tyre normal force range (F.sub.z2,min, F.sub.z2,max)based on the IMU data (320); and determining (S5) the tyre normal force range (F.sub.z,min, F.sub.z,max) based on the first tyre normal force range (F.sub.z1,min, F.sub.z2max) and on the second tyre normal force range (F.sub.z2,min, F.sub.z2,max).

A method dynamically stabilizes a vehicle having a suspension system including pneumatic air springs, with one air spring being associated with each wheel, each air spring being independently adjustable in height; an air spring valve associated with each air spring; and a reservoir containing a source of air. The method obtains data relating to at least lateral acceleration, yaw rate, roll rate, velocity and the steering wheel angle deviation of the vehicle. Thresholds are established, and the data is compared to the thresholds. If thresholds are exceeded, at least one air spring valve is automatically opened to increase air pressure in the associated air spring by receiving air from the reservoir, or to decrease air pressure in the associated air spring by returning air to the reservoir, so as to adjust a height of the associated air spring to help transfer the weight of the vehicle.

There is provided a damper control device and a suspension apparatus that are capable of effectively preventing a posture change such as pitching or rolling of the body of a vehicle. To achieve the above object, a damper control device of the present invention is designed to control a damping force of a damper in accordance with a rate of change in acceleration or a rate of change in angular acceleration. If there is a time delay in the rising of the acceleration acting on the vehicle body with respect to the driving operation being performed by the driver of the vehicle, the rate of change in the acceleration has a phase lead relative to the acceleration, and accordingly, the rate of change has only a short time delay with respect to the driving operation.

A vehicle stabilizer system, including: a stabilizer device and a switching mechanism to switch a roll suppressing function by a stabilizer bar between an effective state in which the roll suppressing function is rendered effective and an ineffective state in which the roll suppressing function is rendered ineffective; and a controller configured to determine whether a lateral acceleration of a vehicle body is greater than a threshold lateral acceleration and control the switching mechanism to render the roll suppressing function effective when the lateral acceleration is greater than the threshold lateral acceleration and ineffective when the lateral acceleration is not greater than the threshold lateral acceleration, wherein the controller employs, as a determination lateral acceleration for determining whether the lateral acceleration is greater than the threshold lateral acceleration, a smaller one of an actual lateral acceleration and an estimated lateral acceleration estimated based on a turning degree of the vehicle.

A vehicle includes a suspension system having a first damper, a second damper, valves and a controller. Each of the first damper and the second damper include a housing and a piston sealingly interfaced with an inner diameter of the housing, dividing the damper into a first and second chamber. Each valve controls flow rate of fluid entering or exiting at least one of the first and second chamber of at least one of the first damper and the second damper. The controller controls the valves to control extension or compression of at least one of the first damper and the second damper based on at least one of a degree of roll of the vehicle during a turn of the vehicle and a degree of pitch of the vehicle during acceleration of the vehicle or a degree of pitch of the vehicle during deceleration of the vehicle.