The pressure and the vibration measurement in automotive shock absorbers

The purpose of this article was to develop a measurement system for analyzing the dynamic behavior of automotive hydraulic dampers as well as to examine the internal pressures in each hydraulic chamber of the damper. Dampers are one of the components of the vibration/noise system that originates at the contact point/surface between the wheel and the road, and then ends at the body of the vehicle. Specifically, dampers are often a source of flow-induced or motion-induced noise due to the operation of the valves. In this paper, measurement results are presented in the form of time histories of the internal pressures and piston rod acceleration, respectively. Fast Fourier Transform (FFT) graphs are also presented in order to identify the major components of the phenomena under investigation in a frequency domain.