Acceleration response in determining vehicles objective drive ability assessment

Abstract

Vehicle drive ability defined as smoothness of a vehicle operation at the will of the driver under all driving conditions. Drive ability evaluation is conducted by giving subjective rating based certain test standard procedures. A group of test evaluators performed drive ability test and gave individual rating based on subjective feeling. After discussion, a final overall rating is generated with consensus from all evaluators. Human subjective rating can be inconsistent due to physical health condition and individual preferences. Vehicle's acceleration profile can be associated with second order response. Every acceleration profile has specific damping factor and natural frequency. A study is conducted to determine the possibility of using second order parameter to setup an objective drive ability assessment. Test vehicles with different acceleration conditions are evaluated to determine drive ability subjective rating. Acceleration profile for each vehicles is analyzed to determine its damping factor and natural frequency. A relation of damping factor and natural frequency with subjective drive ability rating is established. The established relation of drive ability is essential in providing guideline for future ECU calibration and tuning.