1.4.2 Dual-Mass Equivalent System
Conventional motor vehicles are not only suspended on tire springs (wheel) but also on body suspension. The simplest equivalent system, which nevertheless possesses essential features of a real vehicle suspension, is represented by the dual-mass equivalent system described below. It is derived by the reduction of a four-wheel vehicle, where the considered body mass is substituted by the proportion of the entire vehicle mass acting on the considered wheel. Among other things, the influence of mass coupling is neglected.
The figure shows the structure of a dual-mass equivalent system. The system consists of the proportional body mass, a wheel or axle mass, the body springs and dampers as well as the tire (wheel) suspension and damping.