INFLUENCING DEVICE COMPRISING A DIAGNOSIS UNIT FOR INFLUENCING AN ACTIVE SUSPENSION SYSTEM OF A VEHICLE

• US 20100023211A1
• Filed: 08/02/2007
• Published: 01/28/2010
• Est. Priority Date: 08/22/2006
• Status: Abandoned Application

• Current Assignee: Daimler AG (Mercedes-Benz Group AG)
• Original Assignee: Daimler AG (Mercedes-Benz Group AG)
• Inventors: Boettiger, Friedrich, Ammon, Dieter
• Application Number:
  US12/438,269
• Publication Number:
  US 20100023211A1
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 701/37
• CPC Class Codes: B60G 17/0165 to an external condition, e.g. rough road surface, side wind
• CPC Class Codes: B60G 2202/413 Hydraulic actuator
• CPC Class Codes: B60G 2400/202 Piston speed; Relative velocity between vehicle body and wheel
• CPC Class Codes: B60G 2400/252 vertical
• CPC Class Codes: B60G 2400/82 Ground surface
• CPC Class Codes: B60G 2400/821 Uneven, rough road sensing affecting vehicle body vibration
• CPC Class Codes: B60G 2400/823 Obstacle sensing
• CPC Class Codes: B60G 2500/104 continuous
• CPC Class Codes: B60G 2600/09 Feedback signal
• CPC Class Codes: B60G 2600/11 Feedforward signal
• CPC Class Codes: B60G 2600/172 Weighting coefficients or factors
• CPC Class Codes: B60G 2600/182 Active control means
• CPC Class Codes: B60G 2600/1873 Model Following
• CPC Class Codes: B60G 2600/60 Signal noise suppression; Electronic filtering means
• CPC Class Codes: B60G 2800/9123 Active Body Control [ABC]
• CPC Class Codes: B60G 2800/914 Height Control System

Abstract

An influencing device for influencing an active chassis system is provided. A roadway sensor produces sensor data relating to a roadway which is located in front of the vehicle in the direction of travel, the sensor data is used to acquire a roadway profile. A pilot control unit determines, as a function of the acquired roadway profile, a pilot control variable which is used to adapt the setting of the spring or damper units to the acquired roadway profile. A diagnostic unit acquires a deviation between the anticipated state of the vehicle and the actual, current state of the vehicle on a basis of a variable which describes the roadway profile and a variable which describes the current state of the vehicle.

Claims

1-20. -20. (canceled)

21. An influencing device for influencing an active chassis system comprising a plurality of controllable spring or damper units of a vehicle, the influencing device comprising:

a roadway sensor that produces sensor data relating to a roadway which is located in front of the vehicle in a direction of travel, said sensor data being used to acquire a roadway profile;

a pilot control unit that determines, as a function of the acquired roadway profile, a pilot control variable that is used to adapt the setting of the spring or damper units to the acquired roadway profile; and

a diagnostic unit that acquires a deviation between the anticipated state of the vehicle and the actual, current state of the vehicle on the basis of a variable describing the roadway profile and a variable describing the current state of the vehicle.

22. The influencing device as claimed in claim 21, wherein the diagnostic unit acquires the anticipated state of the vehicle on the basis of the variable describing the roadway profile.

23. The influencing device as claimed in claim 21, wherein the diagnostic unit acquires, on the basis of the deviation, a correction value which is used to adapt the pilot control variable or a modified pilot control variable.

24. The influencing device as claimed in claim 21, wherein an input signal for a vehicle body control system, which is used to control a position of the vehicle body, is calculated on the basis of the pilot control variable.

25. The influencing device as claimed claim 21, wherein the pilot control unit determines a plurality of separate pilot control variables including a pilot control level for each spring or damper unit, the pilot control level is used to acquire a setpoint level of the respective spring or damper unit, and a pilot control vehicle body position which is used to influence a vehicle body position controller of the vehicle body control system.

26. The influencing device as claimed in claim 25, wherein at least the pilot control level is converted, in a modification stage, into a modified pilot control level taking into account predefined properties of the vehicle body control system, and is used to determine the setpoint level for the spring or damper units.

27. The influencing device as claimed in claim 26, wherein the modification stage is a system dynamics stage, and it determines a dynamics-optimized pilot control level from the pilot control level, wherein the dynamics-optimized pilot control level takes into account the dynamic behavior of the active spring system of the vehicle.

28. The influencing device as claimed in claim 25, wherein the setpoint level for a spring or damper unit is determined on the basis of the pilot control level or a modified pilot control level which is formed therefrom, and an output variable of the vehicle body position controller.

29. The influencing device as claimed in claim 25, wherein the pilot control vehicle body position is used to correct an actual state value, fed back to the vehicle position controller, of the vehicle.

30. The influencing device as claimed in claim 29, wherein a vehicle body position, which is corrected using the pilot control vehicle body position, is fed to the vehicle body position controller, or a vehicle body vertical speed which is corrected using the derivative of the pilot control vehicle body position over time, is fed to the vehicle body position controller.

31. The influencing device as claimed in claim 21, wherein the vehicle body control system has a chassis controller which has the active chassis system with the adjustable spring or damper units which can each have an adjustable spring and/or an adjustable damper.

32. The influencing device as claimed in claim 31, wherein a pilot control level influencing an actual level of the adjustable spring is determined when an adjustable spring is provided in the spring or damper unit, and wherein a damping variable which serves to influence the damping effect of the adjustable damper is determined if an adjustable damper is provided in the spring or damper unit.

33. The influencing device as claimed claim 21, wherein a calculated wheel position that is transmitted to the pilot control unit as an input variable is acquired from the acquired roadway profile in a wheel movement acquisition stage.

34. The influencing device as claimed in claim 33, wherein the dynamic properties of the vehicle wheel are taken into account in the acquisition of the calculated wheel position.

35. The influencing device as claimed in claim 33, wherein at least one of the pilot control variables is acquired as a function of the calculated wheel position.

36. The influencing device as claimed in claim 21, wherein a contour profile describing a position path from a plurality of vehicle body positions for the travel of the vehicle along the roadway profile is acquired on the basis of a variable which describes the roadway profile, wherein the curvature of the contour profile is minimized under the peripheral condition that the maximum spring travel values available at the spring or damper units are complied with.

37. The influencing device as claimed in claim 21, wherein the vehicle body control system is influenced by the pilot control variable or modified pilot control variable in such a way that the vehicle body position of the vehicle body when there are excitations of the roadway in a lower frequency range below a low cutoff frequency essentially follows the roadway profile.

38. The influencing device as claimed in claim 37, wherein the lower cutoff frequency is variable and depends on a variable which describes the acquired roadway profile.

39. The influencing device as claimed in claim 37, wherein the lower cutoff frequency is variable and depends on the maximum spring travel values which are respectively available at the spring or damper units.

40. The influencing device as claimed in claim 37, wherein the vehicle body control system is influenced by the pilot control variable or modified pilot control variable in such a way that the vehicle body position of the vehicle body when there are roadway excitations with frequencies above the lower cutoff frequency remains essentially unchanged.