Robust control of hand wheel torque for active front steering system

Active front steering (AFS) system has been used as a promising technology which improves the steering portability and handing stability of vehicles. It employs a steering motor to realize the functions of variable steering ratio and vehicle stability control. However, it has a serious problem of unexpected reaction hand wheel torque caused by the additional steering angle. In this paper, the optimum hand wheel torque is designed based on the linear tire model. Considering the uncertainty and disturbance of the steering system and vehicle, an H∞ controller is developed to make sure the hand wheel torque follows the reference torque accurately and quickly. The simulation shows that the proposed controller can compensate the unnatural reaction torque and provide a good steering feel for the driver.