Here's a example project link
Took a while!
Getting the implementation done took a while - longer than I had hoped. I had to modify and clean up a decent portion of the base code in order to support both suspension types. Lots of little things cropped up here and there. For example, in double wishbone, the left and right KPI values are equal and stay constant with suspension movement, so I had only one value to output and could calculate KPI during the early knuckle calculation. But in Mac strut, KPI varies as the strut changes length, so I needed two outputs (left/right) and had to calculate KPI at the end of the suspension calculations.
Changes to the project controls:
Frame tab:
- "suspension type" - obviously Macpherson strut is now an option. In the project link, double wishbone is 0 and Mac strut is 1.
Control arm tab:
- No upper control arm length input for Mac strut.
- Added outputs "left strut length" and "right strut length"
Knuckles tab:
- No upper ball joint input for Mac strut.
- Added input "X distance between hub and strut axis". If knuckle's hub surface is vertical (Y), this value is the distance along X (perpendicular to the center of the hub) to the center of the strut. This value determines how far inboard/outboard the strut sits in relation to the hub. It's easier to visualize by looking at the dimension highlighter as you mouse over the control.
- Added input "strut inclination angle". A strut axis which is parallel to the hub surface has a 90 degree inclination angle.
- Added output "X loc of strut axis relative to lower ball joint". This works like "X distance between hub and strut axis", except that this is calculated at the lower lower ball joint. A positive value means the bottom of the strut axis is inboard relative to the lower ball joint.
- Added outputs for left and right KPI
- Added outputs for left and right spindle lengths. I still need to set up the dimension highlighters for these outputs for Mac strut. The spindle length dimension highlighter works for double wishbone, so that can give you an idea in the meantime
Up next:
- Finish dimension highlighters for strut length and spindle lengths
- Add type-in support for bump/droop and roll
- Add control for adjusting roll and bump at the same time
Found problems?
If you find a bug which isn't mentioned in the known problems, feel free to mention it in the comments or send a message to admin@vsusp.com. Suggestions are always welcome, and they help me to make VSusp more useful.
Thank you!
Finally, a big thank you to everyone for the nice words and the suggestions in general!
