Real-time vehicle dynamics parameter estimation

Vehicle dynamics parameters such as understeer coefficient are very important factors to determine the stability and dynamic handling behavior of a vehicle. These parameters vary during the lifetime of a vehicle according to different loading, tire pressure/wear or vehicle-to-vehicle variations of suspension characteristics, etc. The parameter deviations from nominal values may cause performance degradation of chassis/vehicle control systems, which is often designed based on the nominal values. Therefore, if the vehicle dynamics parameters can be estimated and monitored in real-time, the performance of chassis/vehicle control systems could be further enhanced. This paper presents a real-time vehicle dynamics parameter estimation method that estimates vehicle understeer coefficient and front/rear cornering compliances. The algorithm is implemented using Simulink, and analyzed, and validated using VehSim, which is a PC windows-based vehicle simulation software for vehicle dynamics controls and integration. The simulation results show that the developed algorithm is well capable of estimating vehicle dynamics parameters of VehSim, and, therefore, is highly feasible for in-vehicle applications.