Front suspension
The front suspension is best described as an independent-front swing-arm design. These swing arms articulate about the lower support tube via a cylindrical bushings—restricting the motion to a single axis. There is no movement at the wheel-end of the swing-arm, but it is welded statically to the wheel mounting-plate--the front wheels do not articulate as in a conventional vehicle--front-wheel-steering is instead performed by the front braking system, and rear wheel which is discussed in more detail in the next section. Wheel jounce gives the tires aggressive camber gain and toe-in, allowing the thin tire to stay planted. Oppositely, wheel rebound translates to toe-out, and positive camber. Connected to the wheel-bracket and is a coil-over, which is attached at the frame and wheel with ball-joints.
Rear suspension
The rear suspension is a modified tandem rear swing-arm, with ball-joint attachments to the body instead of bushings, and pivoting rear wheel joints, with bushings that allow the entire wheel to rotate as shown—the steering components of this system are discussed in the next section. Shown as well is a sub-assembled wheel fender and splashguard (in gray), which is attached directly to the trailing arms near the wheel, and doubles as a license plate attachment location.
Springs and shocks
Double rate coil-over spring and shocks are ideal for use in both the front and rear suspension since they allow for a more consistent ride at the two distinctly different total vehicle weights: of approximately 800-1000 lbs with only one occupant and no cargo, and 1600 lbs at maximum capacity.
Steering
The all-wheel steering system is composed of front brake steering, and rear swing-arm steering:
Front brake steering
Brake steering works by actuating the left or right front brakes, which steers the vehicle left or right. This design eliminates the need for cumbersome steering mechanisms, such as the knuckles with upper and lower ball joints. Because of this configuration, the front wheels impart significantly reduced inertial loads onto the front frame. Some reduction in the total front inertial loading also comes from the reduced tire and wheel sizes.
Regenerative front wheel steering
Because it utilizes front wheel brake steering, that makes it possible to utilize an electronic regenerative-steering system. The function of this system is to utilize the wheel-motors to provide the initial wheel braking, through reversed motor-polarity, and thereby generating power, which is fed back into the battery system.
Rear wheel swing-arm steering
Rear wheel steering consists of steering controls such as handlebars, a rear-steering link-system, a rear-mounted steering rack with swing-arm links, and rear wheel bushings. The controls consist of handlebars, with drive-by-wire connections to the rear-mounted steering-rack. The rack has two links that connect to the rear swing arms with ball joints. Lastly, the wheel pivots allow the wheel to rotate, so turning the handlebar thus pivots and turns the wheel as shown.
Standard front steering (optional)
For customers that might prefer standard vehicle steering and traditional vehicles controls, this design easily incorporates standard front wheel steering configuration, with a steering wheel. Click here to add text.
