Vehicle dynamics and active rollover stability control of an electric narrow three-wheeled vehicle: a review and concern towards improvement

Abstract

Narrow electric three-wheeled vehicles are a potential solution to stringent issues of traffic congestion, parking space, vehicular emissions and the fuel crisis. However, narrow three-wheelers have poor manoeuvrability at high speed due to rollover propensity. Researchers have been addressing these conflicting requirements using an active tilt control, a concept of automatic tilting. This paper reviews the different methodologies of tilt control and vehicle dynamics of narrow three-wheeled vehicles, followed by major technical implications. The steering direct tilt control system based on an active steering gain curve has exhibited the substantial potential to control tilting to offer a minimum perceived lateral acceleration and tilting torque, such that the least deviation occurs in the desired path. However, the active steering gain curve can further be optimised by incorporating the desired tilt angle depending upon the rollover index of three-wheelers. The designed control system, including combined lateral and longitudinal dynamics needs to be investigated experimentally under various operating conditions like banked and graded roads, varying friction surfaces and multi-passenger configurations for severe manoeuvres over a large range of vehicle speed.