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The suspension system of a heavy truck's driver seat plays an important role to reduce the vibrations transmitted to the seat occupant from the cab floor. Air-spring is widely used in the seat suspension system, for the reason that its spring rate is variable and it can make the seat suspension system keep constant ‘tuned’ frequency compared to the conventional coil spring. In this paper, vibration differential equation of air-spring system with auxiliary volume is derived, according to the theory of thermodynamic, hydrodynamics. The deformation-load static characteristic curves of air-spring is obtained, by using a numerical solution method. Then, the ADAMS model of the heavy truck's driver seat suspension system is built up, based on the structure of the seat and parameters of the air-spring and the shock-absorber. At last, the model is validated by comparing the simulation results and the test results, considering the seat acceleration PSD and RMS value.

Nowadays, studying the human body response in a seated position has attracted a lot of attention as environmental vibrations are transferred to the human body through floor and seat. This research has constructed a multi-body biodynamic human model with 17 degrees of freedom (DOF), including the backrest support and the interaction between feet and ground. Three types of human biodynamic models are taken into consideration: the first model doesn't include the interaction between the feet and floor, the second considers the feet and floor interaction by using a high stiffness spring, the third one includes the interaction by using a soft spring. Based on the whole vehicle model, the excitation to human body through feet and back can be obtained by ride simulation. The simulation results indicate that the interaction between feet and ground exerts non-negligible effect upon the performance of the whole body vibration by comparing the three cases.

In this paper, a multi-mode active seat suspension with a single actuator is proposed and built. A one-DOF seat suspension system is modelled based on a quarter car model of commercial vehicle with an actuator which is comprised of a DC motor and a gear reducer. Aiming at improving ride comfort and reducing energy consumption, a multi-mode controller is established. According to the seat vertical acceleration and suspension dynamic travel signals, control strategies switch between three modes: active drive mode, energy harvesting mode and plug breaking mode.

Vehicle Thermal Management System (VTMS) is a crosscutting technology affecting the fuel consumption, engine performance and emissions. With the new approved fuel economy targets and the enhanced vehicle performance requirements, the ability to predict the impact on the fuel consumption of different VTMS modifications is becoming an important issue in the pre-prototype phase of vehicle development. This paper presents a methodology using different simulation tools to model the entire VTMS in order to understand and quantify its behavior. The detailed model contains: engine cooling system, lubrication system, powertrain system, HVAC system and intake and exhaust system. A detail model of the power absorbed by the accessory components operating in VTMS such as pumps and condenser is presented. The power of the accessory components is not constant but changing with respect to engine operation. This absorbed power is taken into account within the power produced by the engine shaft.

Vehicle Thermal Management System (VTMS) is a cross-cutting technology that directly or indirectly affects engine performance, fuel economy, safety and reliability, driver/passenger comfort, emissions. This paper presents a novel methodology to investigate VTMS based on Modelica language. A detailed VTMS platform including engine cooling system, lubrication system, powertrain system, intake and exhaust system, HVAC system is built, which can predict the steady and transient operating conditions. Comparisons made between the measured and calculated results show good correlation and approve the forecast capability for VTMS. Through the platform a sensitivity analysis is presented for basic design variables and provides the foundation for the design and matching of VTMS. Modelica simulation language, which can be efficiently used to investigate multi-domain problems, was used to model and simulate VTMS.