Model Based Estimation of Height of Center of Gravity in Heavy Vehicles.

Abstract: Abstract   The center of gravity height in a vehicle a ects its dynamic driving properties but there is no accurate way of measuring the height of center of gravity today. One example of vehicle stabilizing systems is vehicle rollover warning and assist system which has to rely on a relatively accurate height of center of gravity estimate in order to be implemented in vehicles e_ciently and would otherwise be considered useless. In this thesis a literature study on the height of center of gravity in heavy vehicles in general and semitrailers in particular is conducted at Scania CV and emphasis is towards a model relying as little as possible on data from outside the tractor. A partly new model for detecting the vehicle's axle loads at di_erent acceleration values is developed and compared to other models, pros and cons are examined, furthermore an estimation tool is developed for the new model in a realistically applicable manner with regards to normal driving situations and solution limitations.The estimation tool is tested on Scania semitrailers with di_erent suspension con_gurations and the result shows that the height of center of gravity can be estimated as close as 4.1 (cm) from the real value for 4x2 Gen 2 Scania tractor and 3.3 (cm) for 4x2 Gen 3 Scania tractor.