Genetic-based fuzzy control for half-car active suspension systems

In this paper, a fuzzy controller is designed for automotive active suspension systems. A half-car model is used in order to consider the pitch angle of the body and the coupling dynamics of front and rear wheels. It is assumed that the three measurements of body acceleration, front suspension deflection and rear suspension deflection are available. The fuzzy control rules are separately designed for each measurement. After the fuzzy control rules are determined, a genetic algorithm is applied to tune the membership functions of these control rules. To measure the performance of the designed genetic-based fuzzy active suspension system, three road disturbance models are designed to simulate actual load conditions. The performance of the designed system is evaluated with respect to these disturbance models, and it is shown that the designed active suspension system provides good performance in improving ride quality and maintaining vehicle maneuvrability. It is also shown that the designed active suspension system shows robust performance with system model uncertainties.