Rear Suspension Systems

In the rear single axle suspension, a solid axle connects the rear wheels with the support of rear springs. The available rear spring in the rear single axle suspension are listed as follows.

• Leaf Springs

Rear Single Axle Suspension with Leaf Springs

The ends of the leaf springs attach directly to the frame, and the shock absorber is attached at the clamp that holds the spring to the axle.

Figure 1.

The rear axle suspension system includes trailing arms, an air spring, and a shock absorber. The shock absorber and the air spring both extend from the trailing arm to the frame and mount to the trailing arm at a position rearward of the axle. The use of trailing-arm in the rear wheels allow for a flatter floor and more cargo room especially in commercial vehicles.

Figure 2.

The main body parts included in the rear solid axle suspension (one axle) with trailing arm is explained:

Trailing Arm

Trailing-arm suspension is a design in which one or more arms are connected between the rear axle and the chassis, toward the front of the vehicle. This allows the rear to move up and down.

Figure 3.

Air Springs

An air spring is also included in the suspension and is located at a load transmitting location between one of the trailing arms and the frame.

Bracket

A bracket pivotally mounts one end of the trailing arm to the frame of the vehicle while the other end of the trailing arm is joined to the frame by a shock absorber and an air spring. Bracket has the effect of lowering the center of gravity of the suspension and moving the force resisting any sway as far from the frame as possible.

Figure 4.

In the rear dual axle solid axle suspension, two solid axle connects a pair of rear wheels with the support of rear springs. The available rear spring in the rear dual axle suspension are listed as follows.

• Bell crank linked leaf springs
• Inverted leaf suspension

Bell Crank Linked Leaf Springs

In the bell crank linked leaf springs, two sets of leaf springs are used and is mounted to the frame at two points. Bell crank rocker is attached in the rear-rear leaf spring. It is used to convert translational motion of one object into translational motion of another object operating at different angles. It acts as an equalizer when the load is applied.

Figure 5.

The main Body parts included in the Bell crank rocker is shown in the following image.

Figure 6.

Inverted Leaf Suspension

In this suspension, the leaf springs are inverted than the normal leaf spring suspension. The smallest length leaf springs are attached at the top and the longest stays at the bottom.

Figure 7.