Front Suspension Systems

Front suspension supports the wheels in the front with the help of a solid axle. The front suspension stabilizes the vehicle to the road and helps to absorb the bumps of the road. There are two types of front suspension used in the Truck Library.

Front Solid Axle Suspension

Front solid axle suspension has a suspension system for a vehicle frame consisting of a solid front axle, to the ends of which the steerable front wheels are mounted. Front suspension include parts like steering subsystems, springs, dampers, stabilizer bar, knuckles, tire rods, wheels, wheel hub and bumpers. The front solid axle suspension built through the Assembly Wizard is displayed in the MotionView window.
Figure 1.


The main body parts included in the front solid axle suspension is explained in the following:
Wheel
Wheel is a circular disc joined to a hub that is mounted on a shaft about which it may revolve and bear a load.
Wheel Hub
The wheel hub assembly holds the wheel parts together. The assembly contains the wheel bearings, which allows the wheels to turn steadily.
Axle
An axle is a fixed bar on which a wheel or a pair of wheels revolve.
Knuckle
It is one of the suspension components which allows the tire to turn with ease. It is type of ball joint located at the end of each tierod.
Figure 2.


Leaf Springs
Leaf springs are used in front solid axle suspension and are mounted to the frame at two points. The ends of the leaf spring can either tie to the top of the rods, or to the top of the solid axle. The axle receives its vertical support from a leaf spring (leaf springs were often used for support in more than one direction).
Figure 3.


Front Solid Axle Suspension with Trailing Arm
Front solid axle suspension with trailing arm has a suspension system for a vehicle frame having an elongated, supported body (trailing arms), and a steering axle positioned below the supported body to support a portion of vehicle weight. The front solid axle suspension with trailing arm built through the Assembly Wizard is displayed in the MotionView window.
Figure 4.


The main body parts included in the front solid axle suspension with trailing arm is explained in the following:
Chassis
Chassis is a steel frame which is rectangular in shape is supported on springs and is eventually attached to an axle, which holds the body of an automotive vehicle. In the following image the highlighted parts in the truck represents the chassis.
Figure 5.


Trailing Arm
Trailing Arm is a suspension element consisting of a longitudinal member with first, second and third arms, each rigidly connected and it pivots from the body at its forward end and has a wheel hub attached to its trailing end.
Figure 6.


Lateral Arm
Trailing arms designs are poor at maintaining axle position laterally, which makes the use of a lateral link to hold axle position necessary.
Figure 7.


Air Springs
Air spring used in the front solid axle suspension has the following benefits:
  • It helps to maintain a constant vehicle height by adjusting the deflection rate automatically for changing vehicle loads.
  • It has lower deflection rate when compared to traditional leaf springs exerting the same force giving the system greater capacity for absorbing shocks for a given displacement between the axle and the frame.
Figure 8.