Tesla Patents Ability to Adjust Suspension Based on Fleet Data
Tesla has introduced a new patent on a unique system for adjusting vehicle suspension based on the environment around it.
This new patent addresses the Model 3’s adaptive suspension and future active suspension for other vehicles. Tesla already adjusts air suspensions based on air density, road elevation, and saved data points, but this patent is expected to be relevant for vehicles with air suspension as well.
Active Adjustable Suspension
This new system includes several steps. It generates a road roughness map that will be shared across the fleet to generate a comprehensive network of road conditions, which is updated every time a fleet vehicle passes over the same road.
This network is built of GPS coordinates along with data gathered from vehicle sensors, including accelerometers and suspension height data. Overall, a height map of road roughness and acceleration data is combined to build a dynamic suspension roadmap.
Essentially, by putting together an Active Adaptive Suspension system, road roughness map, and vehicle sensors, Tesla is building a global map of road conditions to change how vehicles adapt to roads in real-time. This is an innovative technique and something that Tesla’s uniquely connected fleet is capable of.
These features could provide several benefits, such as improved ride comfort and increased vehicle safety, by adjusting the suspension for conditions as they arrive. This also has the opportunity to increase vehicle efficiency, as riding over bumps while higher will slightly increase rolling efficiency as the suspension absorbs the impact rather than losing forward momentum.
Air Suspension Saved Points
The Tesla Model S, Model X, and Cybertruck all save data points based on bumps in the road for regular routes. This means that speed bumps, steep driveways, bumpy dirt roads, or car washes will automatically trigger the suspension raising. After passing these points, the suspension will be lowered automatically.
This new active adjustable suspension will likely be a feature on all of Tesla’s future vehicles, which means a smoother ride will be coming soon to future iterations of the Model Y as well. Take a look at our Model Y Juniper Wishlist for more features we’d love to see.
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