Volvo is looking to redesign your next car’s suspension system, and not just for better handling. The CarBuzz research team has found a new patent from the Swedish automaker that would make a car’s suspension lighter and stronger than existing designs, with no compromise to performance.
It would even make it easier to work on down the road, for both Volvo technicians and independent mechanics. That’s good news for any of the brand’s legion fans who keep their XC90 SUVs in the family for a decade or more.
Volvo Wants To Let You Take Your (Suspension) Fork Off
Volvo Suspension DesignVolvo
Volvo starts off by describing two main types of suspension forks, which attach the strut to the knuckle, and their main issues. These are single-leg, where the single leg needs to be extra strong and thus extra heavy, or dual-leg, where the fork is much lighter but has to be completely removed to change out the driveshaft that passes through the middle.
But what if you could take the dual-leg suspension fork design and make one of the forks modular and removable?
Volvo’s new idea makes the collar that holds the strut integral to one single leg of a suspension fork. The main attachment to the lower control arm, and a safety section that slides over the control arm, are also part of that leg. That single leg is thinner and lighter than it would be on a standard suspension design because a second leg bolts to it in two places. The first attachment is at the collar which holds the damper, and the second is at the same point the first leg attaches to the lower control arm.
If you need to remove the half-shaft (or CV joint assembly), it’s a matter of removing one nut and loosening another instead of having to remove significant portions of the suspension. The second leg can then be swung out of the way or removed to let the axle out. That would also make the process cheaper. The collar and bolt hole where the second leg attaches could even become the collar that holds the strut in place. It wouldn’t have to be bolted to the car directly, saving even more parts and weight.
Why Would Volvo Want Such A Complicated Design?
Maserati Quattroporte Skyhook SuspensionMaserati
Why do you want a stronger suspension? If the suspension arms bend, that’s movement the springs and shocks can’t control. Movement like that affects the alignment as well as the car’s responses to what you’re trying to do with the steering wheel. The stronger it is, or stiffer in this case, without becoming brittle, the more that effect is reduced.
Making the suspension lighter is good for ride and handling. There is less weight acting against the shock, so the shock has less to do. Because the arms are what is called “unsprung weight,” that is weight the spring can’t control, reducing it has a much larger effect than other weight reduction measures.
The benefits for serviceability are obvious. Not that removing driveshafts is a particularly common repair, but being able to swap them in a hurry is a plus. It probably has similar benefits on the assembly line, which is a much larger concern for Volvo.
CarBuzz Insight – Why This Matters:
2015 Volvo S60. Sedan. Motion. On-roadVolvo
A better suspension makes for a better car. If it’s cheaper to assemble, that could be good for the company that makes it –and maybe even the consumer. Automotive suspension designs go back more than 100 years, but that isn’t stopping automakers and their engineers from trying new things. Sometimes those new things even make it to production.
Patent filings do not guarantee the use of such technology in future vehicles and are often used exclusively as a means of protecting intellectual property. Such a filing cannot be construed as confirmation of production intent.
Source: US Patent & Trademark Office
