A passenger car’s suspension system can be modeled as four identical vertical springs…
PHYSICS · Multi-part · AP · Physics 1: Algebra-based · Force and Translational Dynamics · Force and Translational Dynamics
Problem
A passenger car’s suspension system can be modeled as four identical vertical springs (one at each wheel) supporting the car’s chassis. Each spring has an effective spring constant k=20,000N/m. When the car is empty, the springs support a total mass of 1.20×103kg distributed evenly among the four springs.
(1) (a) Calculate the compression of each spring relative to its natural length when the empty car is at static equilibrium.
(2) A fully loaded group of passengers adds an additional 4.00×102kg to the car’s mass, again evenly distributed.
(3) (b) Determine the new compression of each spring under the added load and the corresponding vertical displacement of the car’s chassis relative to the empty-car position.
(4) (c) Describe qualitatively how locating the new equilibrium point is essential for analyzing the car’s vertical oscillations when it passes over a bump. In your explanation, comment on why engineers are interested in changes to the ride height but typically analyze oscillations about the shifted equilibrium rather than about the natural spring length.