Motor vehicle accessory to increase power supply and reduce fuel requirements
First Claim
1. An apparatus for use in a vehicle including a fuel-fed engine configured to supply primary motive forces to the vehicle, the apparatus comprising:
- a suspension assembly including a frame, a suspension, one or more drive axles, and one or more wheels coupled to respective ones of the one or more drive axles;
a first wheel of the one or more wheels including at least a first electric motor-generator coupled to provide, in a first mode of operation, a motive rotational force at the first wheel to supplement the primary motive forces, and to provide, in a second mode of operation, a regenerative braking force;
an energy store from which energy is supplied to power the first electric motor-generator in the first mode of operation and to which energy is supplied by regenerative braking in the second mode of operation; and
a controller operatively coupled between the first electric motor-generator and a sensor input to transition the first electric motor-generator between the first, the second and at least a third mode of operation, during motion of the tractor-trailer vehicle over a roadway, using the sensor input;
wherein, based on the sensor input, the controller transitions the first electric motor-generator between the first, the second, and the third mode of operation.
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Accused Products
Abstract
A power control system may include at least one of batteries, a motor, and a data logic analyzer that can interpret certain variable conditions of a transport, such as a tractor trailer, moving along a road or highway. The data can be used to determine when to apply supplemental power to the wheels of a trailer to reduce fuel usage. One example device may include at least one of: a power creation module that generates electrical power, a battery which store the electrical power, a motor affixed to a trailer axle of a trailer which provides a turning force to the trailer axle when enabled to operate from the stored electrical power of the battery, and a motor controller configured to initiate the motor to operate according to a predefined sensor condition.
56 Citations
20 Claims
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1. An apparatus for use in a vehicle including a fuel-fed engine configured to supply primary motive forces to the vehicle, the apparatus comprising:
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a suspension assembly including a frame, a suspension, one or more drive axles, and one or more wheels coupled to respective ones of the one or more drive axles; a first wheel of the one or more wheels including at least a first electric motor-generator coupled to provide, in a first mode of operation, a motive rotational force at the first wheel to supplement the primary motive forces, and to provide, in a second mode of operation, a regenerative braking force; an energy store from which energy is supplied to power the first electric motor-generator in the first mode of operation and to which energy is supplied by regenerative braking in the second mode of operation; and a controller operatively coupled between the first electric motor-generator and a sensor input to transition the first electric motor-generator between the first, the second and at least a third mode of operation, during motion of the tractor-trailer vehicle over a roadway, using the sensor input; wherein, based on the sensor input, the controller transitions the first electric motor-generator between the first, the second, and the third mode of operation. - View Dependent Claims (2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10)
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11. A method comprising:
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replacing an existing suspension assembly of a trailer with a hybridizing suspension assembly, wherein the hybridizing suspension assembly includes a frame, a suspension, one or more drive axles, and one or more wheels coupled to respective ones of the one or more drive axles, a first wheel of the one or more wheels including at least a first electric motor-generator coupled to provide, in a first mode of operation, an assistive motive force at the first wheel and, in a second mode of operation, a regenerative braking force, the one or more wheels configurable with tires to allow the trailer to roll along a roadway when motivated by a fuel consuming engine of a tractor to which the trailer is mechanically coupled in a tractor-trailer vehicle configuration; coupling a controller between the first electric motor-generator and one or more sensor inputs to transition the first electric motor-generator between the first, the second, and at least a third mode of operation, during motion of the tractor-trailer vehicle over the roadway, using the one or more sensor inputs; and transitioning, based on a first sensor input and by the controller, the first electric motor-generator between the first, the second, and the third mode of operation. - View Dependent Claims (12, 13, 14, 15, 16, 17)
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18. An apparatus for use in a vehicle including a fuel-fed engine configured to supply primary motive forces to the vehicle, the apparatus comprising:
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a suspension assembly including a frame, a suspension, one or more drive axles, and one or more wheels coupled to respective ones of the one or more drive axles; a first wheel of the one or more wheels including a first electric motor-generator and a second wheel of the one or more wheels including a second electric motor-generator, the first and second electric motor-generators coupled to provide, in a first mode of operation, a motive rotational force at respective ones of the first and second wheels to supplement the primary motive forces, and to provide, in a second mode of operation, a regenerative braking force; an energy store from which energy is supplied to power the first and second electric motor-generators in the first mode of operation and to which energy is supplied in the second mode of operation; and a controller operatively coupled between the first electric motor-generator, the second electric motor-generator, and one or more sensor inputs to independently transition each of the first and second electric motor-generators between the first, the second and at least a third mode of operation, during motion of the vehicle over a roadway, using the one or more sensor inputs; wherein, based on a first sensor input, the controller transitions the first electric motor-generator between the first, the second, and the third mode of operation. - View Dependent Claims (19, 20)
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Specification