Optimal Tuning of Inerter–Spring–Damper Vehicle Suspension for Mitigation of Bridge Response

The coupled, dynamic loads from vehicles travelling on a bridge can cause excessive vibration of the bridge and limit its service life. The coupled vehicle–bridge interaction (VBI) is strongly determined by the properties of the vehicle suspension, the vehicle speed, and the bridge flexibility. A bridge-friendly vehicle is designed to minimize the contact force between the tires and the bridge, enhancing the vehicle’s performance and protecting the bridge from damage by optimizing the vehicle suspension system. In this paper, we investigate the concept of bridge-friendly vehicle by optimally tuning the parameters of the vehicle suspension to mitigate the bridge vibration. The vehicle is modeled with an inerter–spring–damper (ISD) suspension. A time-frozen technique is applied to obtain the time-varying displacement transmissibility functions of the coupled system, and effects of the suspension inerter on the time–frequency characteristics of the transmissibility are discussed. The fixed-point principle is applied to derive the optimal values of the ISD, which are shown to depend only on a priori known structural parameters of the bridge and vehicle parameters. Numerical simulations of the coupled system responses are presented to demonstrate the effectiveness of the tuned ISD in mitigating the vibration of the vehicle and the bridge. Effects of considering the inerter in the suspension model in this tuning problem for bridge-friendliness are also discussed.