Product: Ohlins Gets Active

Öhlins contributed to Ben Spies' dominance in the 2009 World Superbike Championship by supplying his Yamaha YZF-R1 with some of the most advanced electronically managed "active suspension" ever fitted to a motorcycle, race or street.

Öhlins tried to launch its CCES (Continuously Controlled Electronic Suspension) in 2008, fitted to Noriyuki Haga's R1, but at that time, electronically controlled shock absorbers were deemed illegal by the FIM.

Last year, such systems were allowed, and in 2010, Öhlins Racing will offer not only the complete CCES unit but also a kit that can retrofit the company's TTX shocks, converting them into active suspension units. The kit consists of a powerful ECU and related actuator, which can be easily installed by an authorized Öhlins service center on all TTX shocks, as the mechanical compression and rebound adjusters easily accept the system.

The ECU was designed and developed by Öhlins, as were the software and related algorithms. Improvement of the ECU is ongoing in an effort to obtain a highly versatile unit capable of managing several suspension functions, including the steering damper that will be integrated into the system. The next step will be designing actuators suitable for application on Öhlins' latest FGR000, the most advanced racing fork in production today.