Suspension system, vehicle, and method of adjusting the suspension system

1 . A suspension system for a vehicle, the suspension system comprising:

a chassis having a first mounting point and a second mounting point spaced apart from the first mounting point;

a suspension including a suspension mount attached to the chassis at one of the first mounting point and the second mounting point; and

an actuator attached to and configured to shift the suspension mount between the first mounting point and the second mounting point;

wherein:

the first mounting point is a nominal location such that the suspension has a first jounce recession value and the chassis has a first pitch gradient value; and

the second mounting point is an adjusted location such that the suspension has a second jounce recession value that is less than the first jounce recession value and the chassis has a second pitch gradient value that is less than the first pitch gradient value.

2 . The suspension system of claim 1 , wherein the suspension further includes a plurality of suspension mounts including:

an upper aft suspension mount;

an upper fore suspension mount spaced apart from the upper aft suspension mount along a first longitudinal axis;

a lower aft suspension mount spaced apart from the upper aft suspension mount along a first axis; and

a lower fore suspension mount spaced apart from the lower aft suspension mount along a second longitudinal axis and spaced apart from the upper fore suspension mount along a second axis;

wherein the first longitudinal axis and the second longitudinal axis intersect at: a nominal instant center when one of the plurality of suspension mounts is disposed at the first mounting point such that the suspension has a first jounce recession value and the chassis has a first pitch gradient value; and

an adjusted instant center spaced apart from the nominal instant center when the one of the plurality of suspension mounts is disposed at the second mounting point such that the suspension has a second jounce recession value that is less than the first jounce recession value and the chassis has a second pitch gradient value that is less than the first pitch gradient value.

3 . The suspension system of claim 1 , wherein the suspension mount extends away from the chassis when the suspension mount is disposed at the second mounting point.

4 . The suspension system of claim 1 , wherein the suspension includes a control arm having an inboard end adjacent the chassis; and

wherein the suspension mount is disposed at the inboard end and defines a slot therein.

5 . The suspension system of claim 4 , wherein the actuator is a rotational actuator and includes a camming mechanism configured to move the control arm within the slot towards the chassis to the first mounting point and away from the chassis to the second mounting point.

6 . The suspension system of claim 4 , wherein the actuator includes an over center mechanism configured to move the control arm within the slot towards the chassis to the first mounting point and away from the chassis to the second mounting point.

7 . The suspension system of claim 4 , wherein the actuator is a linear actuator configured to move the control arm within the slot towards the chassis to the first mounting point and away from the chassis to the second mounting point.

8 . A vehicle comprising:

a wheel configured for traveling along a surface and including a wheel hub; and

a suspension system configured to optimize contact between the wheel and the surface, the suspension system including:

a chassis spaced apart from the wheel and including a first mounting point and a second mounting point spaced apart from the first mounting point;

a suspension including a control arm having:

an inboard end disposed adjacent to the chassis;

an outboard end disposed adjacent to the wheel hub;

a suspension mount disposed on the inboard end and attached to the chassis at one of the first mounting point and the second mounting point; and

a joint disposed on the outboard end and including a steering knuckle attached to the wheel hub; and

an actuator attached to and configured to shift the suspension mount between the first mounting point and the second mounting point.

9 . The vehicle of claim 8 , wherein:

the first mounting point is a nominal location such that the suspension has a first jounce recession value and the vehicle has a first pitch gradient value; and

the second mounting point is an adjusted location such that the suspension has a second jounce recession value that is less than the first jounce recession value and the vehicle has a second pitch gradient value that is less than the first pitch gradient value.

10 . The vehicle of claim 9 , further including:

an inertial measurement unit configured for sensing a longitudinal acceleration and an angular rate of the vehicle as the vehicle travels along the surface; and

a controller disposed in electrical communication with the inertial measurement unit and the actuator and configured for actuating the actuator on demand and in real time based on the longitudinal acceleration and the angular rate.

11 . The vehicle of claim 10 , wherein the suspension has:

a ride comfort configuration when the suspension has the first jounce recession value in which the wheel translates rearward towards the chassis along a longitudinal axis parallel to the surface as the vehicle traverses an obstacle in the surface; and

a pitch performance configuration when the vehicle has the second pitch gradient value in which a rotation of the chassis about a lateral axis of the vehicle is reduced from the first pitch gradient value;

wherein the controller actuates the actuator on demand to move the suspension mount to the first mounting point and thereby prioritizes the ride comfort configuration over the pitch performance configuration; and

wherein the controller actuates the actuator on demand to move the suspension mount to the second mounting point and thereby prioritizes the pitch performance configuration over the ride comfort configuration.

12 . The vehicle of claim 8 , wherein the suspension mount defines a slot therein.

13 . The vehicle of claim 12 , wherein the actuator is a rotational actuator and includes a camming mechanism configured to move the control arm within the slot towards the chassis to the first mounting point and away from the chassis to the second mounting point.

14 . The vehicle of claim 12 , wherein the actuator includes an over center mechanism configured to move the control arm within the slot towards the chassis to the first mounting point and away from the chassis to the second mounting point.

15 . The vehicle of claim 12 , wherein the actuator is a linear actuator configured to move the control arm within the slot towards the chassis to the first mounting point and away from the chassis to the second mounting point.

16 . The vehicle of claim 8 , wherein the suspension further includes an upper control arm and a lower control arm each having a plurality of suspension mounts;

wherein the upper control arm includes:

an upper aft suspension mount; and

an upper fore suspension mount spaced apart from the upper aft suspension mount along a first longitudinal axis;

wherein the lower control arm includes:

a lower aft suspension mount spaced apart from the upper aft suspension mount along a first axis; and

a lower fore suspension mount spaced apart from the lower aft suspension mount along a second longitudinal axis and spaced apart from the upper fore suspension mount along a second axis; and

wherein the actuator is attached to one of:

the upper aft suspension mount such that the actuator is configured to move the upper aft suspension mount along the first axis with respect to the lower aft suspension mount;

the lower aft suspension mount such that the actuator is configured to move the lower aft suspension mount along the first axis with respect to the upper aft suspension mount;

the upper fore suspension mount such that the actuator is configured to move the upper fore suspension mount along the second axis with respect to the lower fore suspension mount; and

the lower fore suspension mount such that the actuator is configured to move the lower fore suspension mount along the second axis with respect to the upper fore suspension mount.

17 . A method of adjusting a suspension system of a vehicle, the method comprising:

monitoring:

an inertial measurement unit of the vehicle configured for sensing a longitudinal acceleration and an angular rate of the vehicle as a wheel of the vehicle travels along a surface; a demand condition requesting adjustment of the suspension system, wherein the suspension system includes:

a chassis having a first mounting point and a second mounting point spaced apart from the first mounting point;

a suspension including a suspension mount attached to the chassis at one of the first mounting point and the second mounting point; and

an actuator attached to and configured to shift the suspension mount between the first mounting point and the second mounting point; and

a threshold positional condition of the vehicle;

concurrent to monitoring, setting, with a controller that is disposed in electrical communication with the inertial measurement unit and the actuator and configured for actuating the actuator on demand and in real time based on the longitudinal acceleration and the angular rate, one of an on flag and an off flag for each of:

the longitudinal acceleration;

the angular rate;

the demand condition; and

the threshold positional condition; and

after setting at least one on flag, commanding the actuator to shift the suspension mount between the first mounting point and the second mounting point to thereby adjust the suspension system of the vehicle.

18 . The method of claim 17 , wherein:

the first mounting point is a nominal location such that the suspension has a first jounce recession value and the vehicle has a first pitch gradient value; and

the second mounting point is an adjusted location such that the suspension has a second jounce recession value that is less than the first jounce recession value and the vehicle has a second pitch gradient value that is less than the first pitch gradient value;

wherein the suspension has:

a ride comfort configuration when the suspension has the first jounce recession value in which the wheel translates rearward towards the chassis along a longitudinal axis parallel to the surface as the vehicle traverses an obstacle in the surface; and

a pitch performance configuration when the vehicle has the second pitch gradient value in which a rotation of the chassis about a lateral axis of the vehicle is reduced from the first pitch gradient value; and

wherein commanding the actuator includes automatically transitioning the suspension from the ride comfort configuration to the pitch performance configuration to thereby reduce the first pitch gradient value and reduce the first jounce recession value in preparation for or during an increased acceleration condition of the vehicle in which the longitudinal acceleration is greater than a threshold value.

19 . The method of claim 17 , further including, after commanding the actuator, resetting the actuator with the controller to thereby move the suspension mount from the second mounting point to the first mounting point.