Stabilisation (Anti-Rocking)
Stabilisation is the reduction of the rocking that occurs when you move inside a parked vehicle. Levelling corrects the angle, while stabilisation restrains the body from bouncing on the suspension. Both can be provided by the same jacks, but they solve different problems.
The source of rocking is that the vehicle is a mass-spring system standing on tyres and springs. When you walk inside, this system is excited and an oscillation lasting a few seconds appears. Adding extra contact points between the body and the ground increases the stiffness of the system and both reduces the oscillation and damps it quickly.
- Levelling: brings the measured angle close to zero; the criterion is degrees.
- Stabilisation: reduces the amplitude of motion; its criterion is the felt oscillation.
- Even if the vehicle is level, rocking continues if the jacks are not loaded enough.
- The wider the spacing between the jacks, the greater the stabilisation effect.
Practical consequence: if you still feel rocking after the automatic cycle has finished, one or more of the jacks may not be carrying enough load. If the ground is soft, add a base plate and repeat the cycle. Do not try to use the jacks as a parking brake; stabilisation only reduces vertical oscillation, it does not prevent the vehicle from sliding.
Context in which this term is used: Guide to automatic RV levelling