Modelling and simulation of a fore-and-aft driver's seat suspension system with road excitation

Abstract This paper describes a simplified simulation of two configurations of the fore-and-aft seat suspension system. A fore-and-aft suspension system model was proposed based on the laboratory measurements of the seat vibration isolation performance. Friction was identified as an important parameter, so different approaches to simulating the suspension friction were investigated. Predicted seat vibration mitigation properties were compared with those measured in the laboratory in response to the recordings of the fore-and-aft vibration measured at the base of the driver's seat in an on-road tractor–trailer combination (articulated truck). Optimisation of the suspension elements parameters was then performed to identify the maximum attainable attenuation. A solution incorporating supercritical suspension damping predicted to give an improvement of the order of 10% in the x-direction mitigation properties as compared to a fixed (locked) horizontal suspension system. Relevance to the industry Simulations conducted in this study are of use to seat manufacturers in developing the fore-and-aft seat suspension systems with improved vibration mitigation properties and for predicting its dynamic performance. The optimisation study shows the attainable vibration mitigation limits for a horizontal suspension system.