System and method for predictive road sensing to minimize transient electrical load issues

• US 10,266,168 B2
• Filed: 08/06/2015
• Issued: 04/23/2019
• Est. Priority Date: 08/06/2015
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Ford Global Technologies, LLC (Ford Motor Company)
• Original Assignee: Ford Global Technologies, LLC (Ford Motor Company)
• Inventors: Thornburg, Doug B.
• Primary Examiner(s): Cass, Jean Paul
• Application Number:
  US14/820,339
• Publication Number:
  US 20170036676A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,356 Days
• Field of Search: None
• CPC Class Codes: B60L 15/20 for control of the vehicle or its driving motor to achieve a desired performance, e.g. speed, torque, programmed variation of speed
• CPC Class Codes: B60L 15/2009 for braking
• CPC Class Codes: B60L 2240/64 Road conditions
• CPC Class Codes: B60L 2240/647 Surface situation of road, e.g. type of paving
• CPC Class Codes: B60L 3/0015 Prevention of collisions
• CPC Class Codes: B60W 10/18 including control of braking systems
• CPC Class Codes: B60W 10/20 including control of steering systems
• CPC Class Codes: B60W 10/22 including control of suspension systems
• CPC Class Codes: B60W 10/30 including control of auxiliary equipment, e.g. air-conditioning compressors or oil pumps
• CPC Class Codes: B60W 2552/00 Input parameters relating to infrastructure
• CPC Class Codes: B60W 30/18009 related to particular drive situations
• CPC Class Codes: B60W 50/0097 Predicting future conditions
• CPC Class Codes: Y02T 10/64 Electric machine technologies in electromobility
• CPC Class Codes: Y02T 10/72 Electric energy management in electromobility
• CPC Class Codes: Y02T 90/16 Information or communication technologies improving the operation of electric vehicles

Abstract

Various embodiments of the present disclosure provide systems and methods for predictive road sensing to minimize transient electrical load issues in a vehicle. More specifically, various embodiments include a system and method for minimizing electrical load issues in a vehicle by sensing a vehicle'"'"'s surroundings using sensing devices (such as sensors, or a camera), utilizing detected road condition information to determine a need for starting and/or operating a motor, and preemptively soft starting the motors to avoid a spike in transient load for the vehicular control system.

Claims

1. A vehicle comprising:

a detector to obtain road condition information; and

a processor to;

identify a changing road condition utilizing the road condition information;

predict, in response to identifying the changing road condition, whether a voltage drop is to occur based on activation of a vehicle system for encountering the changing road condition;

cause, responsive to predicting the voltage drop, an alternator to increase an output power prior to encountering the changing road condition to deter the voltage drop from occurring; and

prior to the vehicle encountering the changing road condition;

approximate a first amount of voltage drawn from the alternator to the vehicle system for encountering the changing road condition; and

determine whether the alternator includes the first amount and a second amount of voltage for providing a stable system voltage to the vehicle.

2. The vehicle of claim 1, wherein the detector includes at least one of a camera, a sensor, and a radar and the vehicle system includes at least one of a vehicle brake system, a vehicle steering system, a vehicle suspension system, and a vehicle all wheel drive system.

3. The vehicle of claim 1, wherein the vehicle system is to activate in response to the vehicle encountering the changing road condition, the changing road condition consisting of one or more of a bump in a road, a curb along the road, a collision on the road, and an animal crossing the road.

4. The vehicle of claim 1, wherein the processor is configured to communicate the changing road condition to an electrical power manager.

5. The vehicle of claim 4, wherein the vehicle system comprises one or more actuators that are controlled by voltage output from the alternator.

6. The vehicle of claim 5, wherein the processor communicates with the electrical power manager to cause the alternator to increase the output power of the vehicle system.

7. The vehicle of claim 6, wherein the electrical power manager causes the alternator to increase the output power to reduce a transient electrical load of the vehicle to deter the voltage drop from occurring by causing the alternator to ramp up the voltage that controls the one or more actuators of the vehicle system over a period of time.

15. The vehicle of claim 1, wherein the processor causes the alternator to increase the output power of the vehicle system prior to the vehicle encountering the changing road condition to spread a current drawn by the vehicle system over a period of time to reduce a spike in the transient electrical load as the vehicle encounters the changing road condition.

17. The vehicle of claim 1, wherein the processor is to, prior to the vehicle encountering the changing road condition, determine the vehicle system for encountering the changing road condition among a plurality of vehicle systems.

18. The vehicle of claim 1, wherein the processor is to, prior to the vehicle encountering the changing road condition, cause the alternator to increase the output power in response to the alternator having a voltage amount less than a sum of the first amount and the second amount.

19. The vehicle of claim 18, wherein the processor is to, prior to the vehicle encountering the changing road condition, cause the alternator to increase the output power to a level equivalent to the sum in response to the alternator having the voltage amount less than the sum.

8. A vehicle control method comprising:

obtaining, by a road condition detector, road condition information for a vehicle;

identifying, by a processor, a changing road condition that is upcoming based on the road condition information;

determining, in response to identifying the changing road condition, whether a voltage drop is to occur as a result of activating a vehicle system for encountering the changing road condition;

activating the vehicle system prior to the vehicle encountering the changing road condition;

causing, in response to determining that the voltage drop is to occur, an alternator to increase an output power of the vehicle system prior to the vehicle encountering the changing road condition to deter the voltage drop from occurring; and

prior to the vehicle encountering the changing road condition;

approximating a first amount of voltage drawn from the alternator to the vehicle system for encountering the changing road condition; and

determining whether the alternator includes the first amount and a second amount of voltage for providing a stable system voltage to the vehicle.

9. The method of claim 8, wherein the road condition detector includes at least one of a camera, a sensor, and a radar.

10. The method of claim 8, wherein the vehicle system includes at least one of a vehicle brake system, a vehicle steering system, a vehicle suspension system, and a vehicle all wheel drive system.

11. The method of claim 8, further comprising communicating, by the processor, the changing road condition to an electrical power manager.

12. The method of claim 11, wherein the vehicle system comprises one or more actuators that are controlled by voltage output from the alternator.

13. The method of claim 12, further comprising causing the processor to communicate with an electrical power manager to cause the alternator to increase the output power of the vehicle control method.

14. The method of claim 13, further comprising causing, via the electrical power manager, the alternator to increase output power to reduce the transient electrical load of the vehicle by causing the alternator to ramp up the voltage that controls the one or more actuators of the vehicle system over a period of time.

16. The method of claim 8, further including identifying which of a plurality of vehicle systems to activate based upon the changing road condition encountered by the vehicle.