Kinematic and mechanical design of an independent suspension system for 8x8 armoured military vehicles

In this thesis, kinematic and mechanical design of independent suspension system for 8x8 armoured military vehicles was carried out. In the kinematic design, the hard points that can be placed in the working volume of the suspension system of the vehicle are determined. Hard points are evaluated for various suspension design criteria and kinematic design of double wishbone suspension system is obtained. Kinematic simulations under static and dynamic loading conditions is performed and the joint forces are obtained. After the draft model of parts were created, the topology optimization model for mass reduction is created in the Altair Hyperworks finite element program. Topological optimizations are performed for the specified loading conditions and a design with maximum rigidity and minimum weight is obtained. The design is improved and analyzed in the Ansys Workbench finite element program with various static loading scenarios. Since the suspension system iss subjected to repeated loads under road conditions, the designed parts are evaluated by fatigue analysis in the Ansys nCode program. Finally, design of an 8x8 armored personnel carrier vehicle independent suspension system is obtained.