BODY LEANING CONTROL SYSTEM, AND A SADDLE RIDING TYPE VEHICLE HAVING THE SAME

• US 20100025944A1
• Filed: 07/29/2009
• Published: 02/04/2010
• Est. Priority Date: 07/31/2008
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Yamaha Hatsudoki Kabushiki Kaisha (Yamaha Corporation)
• Original Assignee: Yamaha Hatsudoki Kabushiki Kaisha (Yamaha Corporation)
• Inventors: Hara, Nobuo, Oomura, Yasuhiro
• Granted Patent: US 8,251,375 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 280/5.509
• CPC Class Codes: B62D 9/02 combined with means for inwardly inclining vehicle body on bends
• CPC Class Codes: B62K 5/01 Motorcycles with four or more wheels specially adapted for disabled riders B62K5/003
• CPC Class Codes: B62K 5/10 with means for inwardly inclining the vehicle body on bends

Abstract

A body leaning control system includes a support mechanism arranged to support a pair of wheels to be movable up and down relative to a vehicle body, a resistance applying mechanism arranged to apply to the support mechanism a resistance to up-and-down motions of the pair of wheels, a lean amount acquiring device arranged to detect a lean amount of the vehicle body, and a controller arranged, based on detection results received from the lean amount acquiring device, to set the resistance of the resistance applying mechanism to a first resistance when the lean amount of the vehicle body exceeds a first angle, and to set the resistance of the resistance applying mechanism to a second resistance smaller than the first resistance when the lean amount of the vehicle body is at the first angle or less. This system can conveniently inhibit the vehicle body from leaning in excess of the first angle.

Claims

1. A body leaning control system for a saddle riding type vehicle capable of making turns by leaning a vehicle body, the body leaning control system comprising:

a support mechanism arranged to support at least a pair of traveling members that contact a traveling surface and are provided at opposite sides of the vehicle body to be movable up and down relative to the vehicle body;

a resistance applying mechanism arranged to apply to the support mechanism a resistance to up-and-down motions of the pair of traveling members;

a lean amount acquiring device arranged to detect information on a lean amount of the vehicle body; and

a controller arranged to perform control, based on detection results received from the lean amount acquiring device, to set the resistance of the resistance applying mechanism to a first resistance when the lean amount of the vehicle body exceeds a first angle, and to set the resistance of the resistance applying mechanism to a second resistance smaller than the first resistance when the lean amount of the vehicle body is equal to or less than the first angle.

2. The system according to claim 1, further comprising a vehicle speed detecting device arranged to detect a vehicle speed, wherein the controller is arranged to set the first angle based on a detection result received from the vehicle speed detecting device.

3. The system according to claim 2, wherein the controller is arranged to set the first angle to include a region where the first angle increases with the vehicle speed.

4. The system according to claim 1, further comprising a vehicle speed detecting device arranged to detect a vehicle speed, wherein the controller is arranged, based on detection results received from the vehicle speed detecting device, to set the first resistance to include a region where the first resistance decreases with an increase in the vehicle speed.

5. The system according to claim 1, wherein the lean amount of the vehicle body is a degree of an angle at which the vehicle body leans sideways relative to a substantially vertical direction.

6. The system according to claim 1, further comprising an angular speed acquiring device arranged to detect information on an angular speed of the lean amount of the vehicle body, wherein the controller is arranged to perform control, based on detection results received from the angular speed acquiring device, to set the first resistance to include a region where the first resistance increases with the angular speed of the lean amount.

7. The system according to claim 1, further comprising an angular speed acquiring device arranged to detect information on an angular speed of the lean amount of the vehicle body, wherein the controller is arranged to determine whether the lean amount of the vehicle body is decreasing, based on detection results received from the lean amount acquiring device and the angular speed acquiring device, and to set the resistance of the resistance applying mechanism to a third resistance smaller than the first resistance when the lean amount of the vehicle body exceeds the first angle and is decreasing.

8. The system according to claim 7, wherein the third resistance has a substantially minimum value of the resistance of the resistance applying mechanism.

9. The system according to claim 1, wherein the second resistance has a substantially minimum value of the resistance of the resistance applying mechanism.

10. The system according to claim 1, wherein the support mechanism includes:

a right side support mechanism arranged to vertically movably support a right traveling member of the pair of traveling members;

a left side support mechanism arranged to vertically movably support a left traveling member of the pair of traveling members; and

a balancer mechanism rotatably supported by the vehicle body and interlocked to the right side support mechanism and the left side support mechanism to allow the right traveling member and the left traveling member to move up and down in corresponding amounts in opposite directions; and

the resistance applying mechanism includes;

a damper body arranged to damp rotation of the balancer mechanism relative to the vehicle body; and

an adjusting element arranged to vary a damping force of the damper body;

wherein

the controller is arranged to control resistance applied to the rotation of the balancer mechanism by driving the adjusting element.

11. The system according to claim 1, wherein the traveling members are wheels or skis.

12. A saddle riding type vehicle arranged to make turns by leaning a vehicle body, the saddle riding type vehicle comprising:

a body leaning control system including;

a support mechanism arranged to support at least a pair of traveling members that contact a traveling surface and are provided at opposite sides of the vehicle body to be movable up and down relative to the vehicle body;

a resistance applying mechanism arranged to apply to the support mechanism a resistance to up-and-down motions of the pair of traveling members;

a lean amount acquiring device arranged to detect information on a lean amount of the vehicle body; and

a controller arranged to perform control, based on detection results received from the lean amount acquiring device, to set the resistance of the resistance applying mechanism to a first resistance when the lean amount of the vehicle body exceeds a first angle, and to set the resistance of the resistance applying mechanism to a second resistance smaller than the first resistance when the lean amount of the vehicle body is at the first angle or less.