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The suspension systems in automobile are required to provide optimum ride comfort and vehicle handling. As these two performance parameters are in contradiction with each other in automobiles fitted with regular passive suspension systems, various studies are being conducted to identify an alternative system that can optimise both the parameters. One such alternative is presented in the form of Magnetorheological (MR) damper, a most viable semiactive device. A MR damper comprises of MR fluid that consists of carbonyl iron powder and silicone oil added with additive. The characteristic of this damper has been established experimentally, which in turn is used to identify the parameters of spencer model for MR damper. Using spencer model of MR damper, at 5 different currents, viz.,0A, 0.25A, 0.5A, 0.75A, 1A, the half-car models of vehicle suspension system of a car and a multi axle truck are simulated for analysing the ride comfort and vehicle handling. The ride comfort and vehicle handling performance of each specific vehicle model with passive suspension system are compared with corresponding skyhook, ground hook and hybrid control semi-active suspension systems. The simulation and analysis are carried out using MATLAB/Simulink. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The two main issues to be addressed in the design of automotive suspension systems are ride comfort and vehicle handling. The option systems are being studied because passive systems provide contrariety on these two parameters. One such choice is the magnetorheological (MR) damper, a highly feasible semi-active system that can address both of these issues while overcoming inconsistency. In this analysis, the suspension system of a tractor with MR damper is analysed for ride comfort and handling at 5 different currents, namely 0A, 0.25A, 0.5A, 0.75A, and 1A, using a 2DOF tractor, and the comparisons are made with the same suspension fitted with standard passive damper. A MR-damper is made of MR fluid, which is made up of carbonyl iron powder and silicon oil, along with a triton x-100 and grease additive. Furthermore, the characteristics of this damper are determined by experiments, which are then used to determine the parameters of the Spencer model for MR damper. The tractor suspension system is simulated by implementing a semi-active suspension system using the Spencer model of MR damper at 5 different currents for testing the resulting displacement and acceleration in the tractor body. The ride comfort and vehicle handling efficiency of each model with a passive suspension system was compared to semi-active suspension systems based on skyhook controller. MATLAB/Simulink is used to carry out the simulation and analysis. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]