Roll center position and active control of rear suspension geometry

In modern sporty luxury cars it is becoming more and more important to control the body and wheel motions. This is necessary first to increase the driver feeling of car control and second, even more important reason, to increase safety and performances. The basis of kinematic body and wheels movements is strictly connected to the ssumption that the vehicle body roll about a kinematic roll axis. When a car corners, the tires react to the centrifugal force at the center of gravity. This lateral force can be translated to the roll center with appropriate forces and moments. The amount of body roll in a corner depends on the position of the roll axis relative to the car center of gravity. The closer the roll axis is to the center of gravity, the less the body will roll.