Active suspension is not new. More than four decades ago, research began on active suspension, with electronic controls as we know it today. In fact, in this video you will even see how, in the early '90s, F1 showed how the Williams system worked in the pits.
The basic concept of active suspension, and this is fundamental, is that thanks to it each wheel can be managed independently and greater grip is achieved. But on motorcycles active suspension is not so widespread. And it is not because it is more expensive than a passive suspension due to the elements that make it up and, also, because it has not proven as effective in motorcycles as in four-wheeled vehicles.
After all, with two wheels and a reduced size and weight and, especially, being able to adjust the suspensions, good performance can be achieved with a lower investment. But that does not mean that there are no motorcycles on the market with active suspension, nor that brands do not continue working on their evolution.
Specifically Yamaha, which has the R1M with active suspension in its catalog, has filed a patent that seeks to improve the performance of active suspension during braking. One of the big problems we have on the motorcycle when braking is the transfer of weights, and how this transfer of weights influences the behavior of the motorcycle and the work of the suspensions.
Yamaha's active suspension would bring street behavior closer to that of a current MotoGP
Under hard braking, the front suspension is going to sag, which is what we might expect. But the problem is that in this situation the rear wheel can lose contact with the asphalt and everything can get complicated there. With this new active suspension patent, at a time when electronics are gaining ground in street motorcycles, the aim is to keep the motorcycle much more stable, preventing it from sinking, but only in case of necessity.
And not only that, they also work on controlling the rear axle to achieve the best traction during acceleration, seeking the same operation as the so-called “rear device” of the MotoGP, but everything controlled electronically instead of having to activate it manually.
This technological step would take active suspension a little further and could improve not only performance on sports bikes, but safety on all types of motorcycles. In any case, the problem would remain the same, and no matter how good it sounds, we are sure that it will not be cheap…
