Subjective and Objective Steering Feel Evaluation of Compact SUV Electric Power Steering System Using Hardware in the Loop Simulation 2021-26-0080
Hardware-in-the-loop (HIL) test benches are indispensable for the development of modern vehicle dynamics controllers (VDCs). They can be regarded as a standard methodology today, because of the extremely safety critical nature of the multi-sensor and multi-actuator systems used in vehicle dynamics control. The required high quality standards can only be ensured by systematic testing within a virtual HIL environment before going into a real car. The steering system is an important aspect of the automobile from operational safety and driver enjoyment perspectives.
Current Problem/Opportunity is realistic subjective steering feel prediction before vehicle build. And upfront predict the handling characteristics more accurately with subjective feel before proto build.
Current Issue is difficult to convert the objective data into subjective feel and difficult to incorporate the nonlinear steering characteristics with hysterics, friction and power assist curves using virtual simulation.
Solution is HIL system with hardware steering should give realistic torque feedback while steering input is given manually to the hardware steering system. It will enable to achieve the desired vehicle dynamic characteristics before proto build.
The objective of this study is HIL Simulator of steering has to provide realistic torque feedback with manual steering input to the hardware steering system. The steering input (steering wheel angle) provided by actuator for open/closed loop manoeuvre will predict the realistic vehicle handling behavior in the CAE model. The system has to have capability to tune the steering system for different design parameters (PAS, friction, gear ratio, etc.). The validation of the HIL setup with real vehicle data need to have more than 85% correlation.
The development of advanced EBS and vehicle dynamics control systems requires significant resources and testing. Even in the most controlled environment, on-track vehicle tests are not repeatable. This tool is useful for control system development and electro-mechanical actuator development.
In this paper, to accelerate the EPS development for compact SUV, a Hardware in the Loop (HIL) simulator with EPS system is presented. The developed HIL simulator environment is employed to implement, develop and evaluate steering effort and steering feel in different vehicle dynamics maneuver. The prepared simulator allows realistic, real-time evaluation of mobility and performance benefits over simulated actual routes in a safe lab setting before actual deployment in an experimental vehicle. To show the capabilities of the designed HIL simulator with Carsim vehicle dynamic model, which reduce the development time, cost and improves performance of the vehicle.
Citation: Anthonysamy, B., TK, S., TK, S., N, B. et al., "Subjective and Objective Steering Feel Evaluation of Compact SUV Electric Power Steering System Using Hardware in the Loop Simulation," SAE Technical Paper 2021-26-0080, 2021, https://doi.org/10.4271/2021-26-0080. Download Citation
