Automatic tilting vehicle

• US 10,639,953 B2
• Filed: 03/14/2018
• Issued: 05/05/2020
• Est. Priority Date: 03/17/2017
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Toyota Jidosha Kabushiki Kaisha (Toyota Motor Corporation)
• Original Assignee: Toyota Jidosha Kabushiki Kaisha (Toyota Motor Corporation)
• Inventors: Kimura, Yukihide, Yano, Toshihide, Yamamoto, Junrou, Nagasawa, Taku
• Primary Examiner(s): Freedman, Laura
• Application Number:
  US15/921,234
• Publication Number:
  US 20180264905A1
• Time in Patent Office: 783 Days
• CPC Class Codes: B60G 17/0162 mainly during a motion involving steering operation, e.g. cornering, overtaking B60G17/0164 takes precedence
• CPC Class Codes: B60G 17/0182 involving parameter estimation, e.g. observer, Kalman filter
• CPC Class Codes: B60G 17/0195 characterised by the regulation being combined with other vehicle control systems conjoint control of vehicle sub-units including control of suspension systems B60W10/22
• CPC Class Codes: B60G 21/005 transversally
• CPC Class Codes: B60G 21/007 means for adjusting the wheel inclination
• CPC Class Codes: B60G 21/08 characterised by use of gyroscopes gyroscopes for stabilising vehicle bodies without controlling suspension arrangements B62D37/06
• CPC Class Codes: B60G 2202/42 Electric actuator
• CPC Class Codes: B60G 2300/122 Trikes
• CPC Class Codes: B60G 2300/45 Rolling frame vehicles
• CPC Class Codes: B60G 2400/0511 Roll angle
• CPC Class Codes: B60G 2400/0521 Roll rate
• CPC Class Codes: B60G 2400/0523 Yaw rate
• CPC Class Codes: B60G 2400/102 vertical
• CPC Class Codes: B60G 2400/104 lateral or transversal with regard to vehicle
• CPC Class Codes: B60G 2400/106 longitudinal with regard to vehicle, e.g. braking
• CPC Class Codes: B60G 2400/204 Vehicle speed
• CPC Class Codes: B60G 2400/208 of wheel rotation
• CPC Class Codes: B60G 2400/302 Selected gear ratio; Transmission function
• CPC Class Codes: B60G 2400/34 Accelerator pedal position
• CPC Class Codes: B60G 2400/39 Brake pedal position
• CPC Class Codes: B60G 2400/40 : Steering conditions
• CPC Class Codes: B60G 2400/41 : Steering angle
• CPC Class Codes: B60G 2401/28 : Gyroscopes
• CPC Class Codes: B60G 2401/904 : the sensor being an xyz axis sensor
• CPC Class Codes: B60G 2600/20 : Manual control or setting means
• CPC Class Codes: B60G 2600/604 : low pass
• CPC Class Codes: B60G 2800/012 : Rolling condition
• CPC Class Codes: B60G 2800/70 : Estimating or calculating vehicle parameters or state variables
• CPC Class Codes: B62D 9/02 : combined with means for inwardly inclining vehicle body on bends
• CPC Class Codes: B62J 45/414 : Acceleration sensors
• CPC Class Codes: B62J 45/4151 : for sensing lateral inclination of the cycle
• CPC Class Codes: B62K 5/027 : Motorcycles with three wheels specially adapted for disabled riders B62K5/023
• CPC Class Codes: B62K 5/05 : characterised by a single rear wheel
• CPC Class Codes: B62K 5/08 : with steering devices acting on two or more wheels
• CPC Class Codes: B62K 5/10 : with means for inwardly inclining the vehicle body on bends

Abstract

An automatic tilting vehicle is provided that includes left and right front wheels supported by knuckles, a steerable rear wheel, a vehicle tilting device, and a control unit. The vehicle tilting device includes a swing member, a tilt actuator for swing the swing member, and a pair of tie rods pivotally attached to the swing member and the knuckles. The control unit calculates a target lateral acceleration of the vehicle, estimates a lateral acceleration of the vehicle caused by the gyro moments of the wheels and calculates a target tilt angle of the vehicle based on a sum of the target lateral acceleration and the lateral acceleration caused by the gyro moments.

Claims

1. An automatic tilting vehicle comprising:

a pair of laterally spaced front wheels,

at least one steerable rear wheel,

a vehicle tilting device,

and a control unit;

the pair of front wheels are rotatably supported by corresponding knuckles;

the vehicle tilting device includes a swing member swinging about a swing axis extending in the longitudinal direction of the vehicle, a tilt actuator for swinging the swing member about the swing axis, and a pair of tie rods that are pivotally attached to the swing member at upper end pivotal attachment portions on both lateral sides of the swing axis and pivotally attached to corresponding knuckles at lower end pivotal attachment portions;

the tilt actuator is connected to a vehicle body via a suspension spring;

the control unit is configured to calculate a target tilt angle of the vehicle for tilting the vehicle to the inner side of a turn and to control the tilt actuator so that a tilt angle of the vehicle conforms to the target tilt angle, wherein

the control unit is configured to calculate a target lateral acceleration of the vehicle based on an amount of steering operation of a driver and a vehicle speed, to calculate gyro moments at least of the pair of front wheels based on wheel speeds and a yaw rate of the vehicle, to estimate a lateral acceleration of the vehicle caused by the gyro moments, and to calculate the target tilt angle of the vehicle based on a sum of the target lateral acceleration and the lateral acceleration caused by the gyro moments.

2. The automatic tilting vehicle according to claim 1, wherein the control unit is configured to calculate the gyro moments based on at least wheel speeds of the pair of front wheels, the yaw rate of the vehicle, and the tilt angle of the vehicle.

3. The automatic tilting vehicle according to claim 2, further comprising a setting device that is configured to be operated by at least one occupant, which includes the driver, to set whether to limit the target tilt angle of the vehicle to a predetermined allowable maximum tilt angle or less and the control unit is configured to limit the target tilt angle to the allowable maximum tilt angle when a magnitude of the target tilt angle exceeds the allowable maximum tilt angle in a situation where the setting device limits the magnitude of the target tilt angle.

4. The automatic tilting vehicle according to claim 3, wherein the control unit is configured to perform low pass filter processing on any one of the wheel speeds, the gyro moments, and the lateral acceleration of the vehicle caused by the gyro moments in a situation where the setting device sets to limit the magnitude of the target tilt angle.

5. The automatic tilting vehicle according to claim 4, wherein the control unit is configured to perform low pass filter processing on any one of the wheel speeds, the gyro moments, and the lateral acceleration of the vehicle caused by the gyro moments even in a situation where the setting device does not set to limit the magnitude of the target tilt angle, and a cutoff frequency of the low-pass filter process in the situation where the setting device sets to limit the magnitude of the target tilt angle is set to a value lower than the cutoff frequency of the low pass filter process in the situation where the setting device does not set to limit the magnitude of the target tilt angle.

6. The automatic tilting vehicle according to claim 1, further comprising a setting device that is configured to be operated by at least one occupant, which includes the driver, to set whether to limit the target tilt angle of the vehicle to a predetermined allowable maximum tilt angle or less and the control unit is configured to limit the target tilt angle to the allowable maximum tilt angle when a magnitude of the target tilt angle exceeds the allowable maximum tilt angle in a situation where the setting device limits the magnitude of the target tilt angle.

7. The automatic tilting vehicle according to claim 6, wherein the control unit is configured to perform low pass filter processing on any one of the wheel speeds, the gyro moments, and the lateral acceleration of the vehicle caused by the gyro moments in a situation where the setting device sets to limit the magnitude of the target tilt angle.

8. The automatic tilting vehicle according to claim 7, wherein the control unit is configured to perform low pass filter processing on any one of the wheel speeds, the gyro moments, and the lateral acceleration of the vehicle caused by the gyro moments even in a situation where the setting device does not set to limit the magnitude of the target tilt angle, and a cutoff frequency of the low-pass filter process in the situation where the setting device sets to limit the magnitude of the target tilt angle is set to a value lower than the cutoff frequency of the low pass filter process in the situation where the setting device does not set to limit the magnitude of the target tilt angle.