With over 100 years of experience in hydraulics comes a rich set of knowledge and experience. This includes the physical assessment of the comfort and characteristics of the driver by experienced drivers, technology to predict vehicle behavior through computer simulations based on statistical analysis and more. KYB now uses the next generation of artificial intelligence to accelerate and improve the analysis of the huge amount of data collected during the development, testing and production of products.
We asked the KYB team for research and developments for artificial intelligence (AI) and some of their latest technological developments:
How does KYB use AI technology for the main development of shock absorber technology?
In the field of technology, it is important to sort a huge amount of data and turn it into technical importance. To do this, the KYB digital transformation department builds an Iot platform that uses cloud technology for fast, safe and economical collection, analysis and visualization of huge amounts of data. We use AI technology as a platform core.
AI is not a magical technology where if we enter the data, the necessary information from the user will come out. The strong side of AI is the effective and accurate extract of the essence from huge amounts of data. Therefore, it is necessary to choose the data to be entered by taking advantage of the long experience and expertise of KYB. We have learned the points that require attention to the volume that takes the shock absorber during switching the direction of movement and the high frequency zone of compression / spring expansion during acceleration. From these points, we can use AI to extract the relevant characteristics found in the control of “reversal of vehicle data” and grip on the road with “movement data on uneven surface surfaces”.
Tell us about KYB Prosmoothtm technology and adjusting hydraulic fluid supplements?
Our team conducted experiments when driving with up to 600 different combinations of oil and components to collect huge amounts of data, together with the evaluation reports of our qualified testing engineers. We prepared hydraulic fluid and sliding parts of shock absorbers with different characteristics, we changed the components a huge number of times, physically evaluating vehicles in response to the tastes and requirements of customers.
The difference between the physical assessment and the actual behavior of the vehicle was analyzed to determine the link between test tests, the assessments of individual components and elements. We have determined the root cause of the friction characteristics that affect the feeling of riding, which led to the start of KYB Prosmoothtm. The internal rubbing of the shock absorber is controlled by the use of newly developed materials for sliding parts and technology to regulate hydraulic fluid additives. This product provides both luxury driving and superb turning.
The improved combination of ride, a sense of road and grip is originally used by the KYB motor sports department, where they increase the productivity of racing shock absorbers. With the introduction of AI KYB technology will mean that we can test even more by collecting and analyzing a large volume of data faster and more precisely by giving our engineers a direction to improve this avant-garde product.
What future trends see KYB in vehicle manufacturers?
The huge number of jeeps and the increase in autonomous driving and electric vehicles encourage vehicle manufacturers to change their opinion on shock absorbers. For many vehicle manufacturers, comfort is now becoming a priority. In addition, weight loss is not as important as a few years ago because of the increased efficiency of the vehicle and the number of vehicles, which are now completely electric or equipped with hybrid technology. For electric vehicles, the size of the suspension is also a factor due to the size and location of the batteries, as evidenced by the recent cooperation between KYB and Ree to create a suspension.
For the more basic segment, vehicles can be provided with passive additional systems such as ADC (frequency-dependent systems) and hydraulic restraints (progressive hydraulic pillows), the recently awarded KYB development with PSA. For the average segments, the tendency will be to use variable attenuation in simple configurations (2 subtraction modes selected automatically or manually), and for higher segments systems such as Kyb Intelligent Damping Control will be the trend with 1 valve or 2 valves (in the top segments), combined with road scanning technology, as seen in the recent KYB development for OE with Lexus, Toyota and PSA.
