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University of the Witwatersrand, Johannesburg

School of Mechanical, Industrial & Aeronautical Engineering
MECN2003: Software Development
Laboratory 6: MatLab 2
Students are to work in pairs and submit the finished lab via KEWL by 0800 the morning
following the tutorial.
A represenation of a typical double wishbone suspension configuration is shown in the figure
below:
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Road Surface
The position of the instantaneous centre of rotation (IC) of each wheel is located at the intesection of the lines drawn through each of the suspension links (link lines). The link lines are
drawn from the attachment points of the wishbone to the wheel hub (USW and LSW for the
upper and lower wishbones respectively) through the attachment points of the wishbones to the
vehicle chassis (USC and LSC) toward the centreline of the vehicle. Typically the IC for a double wishbone suspension will lie on the opposite side of the vehicle centreline to the wheel as
shown. For a symmetrical vehicle suspension, the ICs are symmetrical about the centreline of
the vehicle. Also, although shown as such the attachment points of the wishbones to the wheels
and chassis are not necessary coplanar.
The swing arm is the name given to the line linking the IC of a wheel with the wheel-to-road
contact point (WRCP), which typically lies at the centre of the wheel on the road surface. The
intersection of the swing arms defines the geometric roll centre (GRC) of the vehicle, which
coincides with the intersection of either of the swing arms with the vehicle centreline for a
symmetrically-loaded symmetrical suspension.
A program is required which can calculate the symmetrical instantaneous centre of rotation (IC)
for a symmetrical double wishbone vehicle suspension based on the coordinates of the wishbone
ends. The coordinates of the wishbone ends must be input to the code by the user via a GUI
input system. Once calculated, the link lines must be plotted to indicate to the user the position
of the IC as an indication of the extent of the swing arm. The coordinates of the IC must also be
presented to the user via a graphical interface. All calculations must be made for the right side
of the vehicle, as shown (i.e. for the first quadrant coordinates of the wishbone ends).
Bonus marks will be awarded for elements of the code which improve the robustness / flexibility
thereof such as input checking and re-entry of information if it is incorrect in format or such.

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Programs are to be submitted via the KEWL interface. Students must submit only their program
file named MatLab2Groupn.m, where n is their group number on the MECN2003 KEWL page.
[20 Marks + 2 Bonus Marks]