ENGINE CONTROL REQUEST FROM ADAPTIVE CONTROL WITH BRAKING CONTROLLER

• US 20110191000A1
• Filed: 02/01/2010
• Published: 08/04/2011
• Est. Priority Date: 02/01/2010
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Bendix Commercial Vehicle Systems LLC (Estate of Heinz Hermann Thiele)
• Original Assignee: Bendix Commercial Vehicle Systems LLC (Estate of Heinz Hermann Thiele)
• Inventors: Grolle, Kenneth A.
• Granted Patent: US 8,577,579 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 701/96
• CPC Class Codes: B60W 10/06 including control of combustion engines
• CPC Class Codes: B60W 10/18 including control of braking systems
• CPC Class Codes: B60W 10/184 with wheel brakes
• CPC Class Codes: B60W 2556/65 Data transmitted between vehicles
• CPC Class Codes: B60W 2720/106 Longitudinal acceleration
• CPC Class Codes: B60W 30/143 Speed control B60W30/16 takes precedence
• CPC Class Codes: B60W 30/16 Control of distance between vehicles, e.g. keeping a distance to preceding vehicle

Abstract

A vehicle control system includes a forward vehicle sensor transmitting a forward vehicle message based on a range to a forward vehicle. An adaptive cruise controller receives the forward vehicle message from the forward vehicle sensor. The adaptive cruise controller transmits a cruise controller message based on the range to the forward vehicle. A braking system controller receives the cruise controller message and transmits an engine control message based on the cruise controller message. An engine controller receives the engine control message and controls a torque and/or speed of an engine as a function of the engine control message.

Claims

1. A vehicle control system, comprising:

a forward vehicle sensor transmitting a forward vehicle message based on a range to a forward vehicle;

an adaptive cruise controller receiving the forward vehicle message from the forward vehicle sensor, the adaptive cruise controller transmitting a cruise controller message based on the range to the forward vehicle;

a braking system controller receiving the cruise controller message and transmitting an engine control message based on the cruise controller message; and

an engine controller receiving the engine control message and controlling an engine as a function of the engine control message.

2. The vehicle control system as set forth in claim 1, wherein:

the range to the forward vehicle is a current range; and

the adaptive cruise controller transmits the cruise controller signal based on the current range to the forward vehicle and a previous range to the forward vehicle.

3. The vehicle control system as set forth in claim 1, wherein:

wherein the cruise controller message is a private message.

4. The vehicle control system as set forth in claim 1, wherein:

the engine control message includes at least one of a torque control request, a speed control request, a speed limit request, and a torque limit request.

5. The vehicle control system as set forth in claim 3, wherein:

the engine control message is a public message.

6. The vehicle control system as set forth in claim 5, wherein:

the engine control message includes an identifier indicating the engine control message was transmitted by the braking system controller.

7. The vehicle control system as set forth in claim 5, wherein:

the public message is a TSC1 message.

8. The vehicle control system as set forth in claim 1, wherein the braking system controller also receives at least one of an additional message from an additional controller on the vehicle and the braking system controller, the braking system controller determining a control of the engine is requested to be changed by the at least one of an additional controller and the braking system controller based on the additional message, the vehicle control system further including:

an arbitrator ensuring only a single engine control message is transmitted from the braking system controller when the braking system controller determines a control of the engine is requested to be changed based on messages from the adaptive cruise controller and at least one of the additional controller and the braking system controller.

9. The vehicle control system as set forth in claim 8, wherein:

when the braking system controller determines a control of the engine is requested to be changed based on messages from both the adaptive cruise controller and the at least one of the additional controller and the braking system controller, the arbitrator determines the braking system controller will transmit an engine control message based on the additional message.

10. A vehicle adaptive control with braking system, comprising:

a data bus;

a forward vehicle sensor sensing a distance to a forward vehicle and transmitting a forward vehicle message, based on the distance, to the data bus;

an adaptive cruise controller receiving the forward vehicle message from the data bus, the adaptive cruise controller determining if at least one of a torque and a speed of the vehicle engine should be adjusted based on the forward vehicle message and transmitting a private cruise controller message, based on the forward vehicle message, to the data bus;

a braking system controller receiving the private cruise controller message from the data bus, the braking system controller determining if the cruise controller message should be included in an engine control message transmitted to the data bus; and

an engine controller receiving the engine control message and controlling an engine as a function of the engine control message.

11. The vehicle adaptive control with braking system as set forth in claim 10, wherein:

the engine controller does not respond to the private cruise controller message.

12. The vehicle adaptive control with braking system as set forth in claim 11, wherein:

the braking system controller receives an additional message from an additional controller on the vehicle; and

the braking system controller transmits the engine control message, which includes one of the cruise controller message and the additional message, to the engine controller via the data bus.

13. The vehicle adaptive control with braking system as set forth in claim 10, wherein:

an arbitrator determines which one of the cruise controller message and the additional message is included in the engine control message based on respective priority levels of the cruise controller message and the additional message.

14. The vehicle adaptive control with braking system as set forth in claim 13, wherein:

the cruise controller message has a lower priority level than the additional message; and

the arbitrator determines the additional message is included in the engine control message.

15. A method for controlling a vehicle engine, the method comprising:

detecting a range to a forward vehicle at a forward vehicle sensor;

transmitting a forward vehicle message, based on a range to the forward vehicle, from the forward vehicle sensor to a vehicle communication data bus;

receiving the forward vehicle message at an adaptive cruise controller;

transmitting a cruise controller message, based on the range to the forward vehicle, from the adaptive cruise controller to the vehicle communication data bus, the cruise controller message including a request to change at least one of a torque and a speed of the engine;

receiving the cruise controller message at a braking system controller;

transmitting an engine control message, based on the cruise controller message, from the braking system controller to the vehicle communication data bus;

receiving the engine control message at an engine controller; and

controlling the at least one of the torque and the speed of the engine as a function of the engine control message.

16. The method for controlling a vehicle engine as set forth in claim 15, wherein transmitting the forward vehicle message includes:

transmitting the cruise controller message as a private message.

17. The method for controlling a vehicle engine as set forth in claim 16, wherein transmitting the engine control message includes:

transmitting the engine control message as a public message.

18. The method for controlling a vehicle engine as set forth in claim 17, wherein transmitting the engine control message includes:

transmitting the engine control message with an identifier indicating the torque control message was transmitted by the braking system controller.

19. The method for controlling a vehicle engine as set forth in claim 15, further including:

receiving at least one additional message at the braking system controller from an additional controller on the vehicle, the at least one additional message including a request to change the at least one of the torque and the speed of the engine.

20. The method for controlling a vehicle engine as set forth in claim 19, further including:

arbitrating between the cruise controller message request to change the at least one of the torque and the speed of the engine and the additional message request to change the at least one of the torque and the speed of the engine; and

including the cruise controller message having an arbitrator selected engine control message transmitted from the braking system controller.

21. A braking system controller comprising:

a communication port receiving messages from a vehicle communication system;

a processing unit, in data communication with the communication port, processing first and second messages requesting to control an engine of the vehicle; and

an arbitrator for selecting one of the first and second messages to be sent to an engine controller via the vehicle communication system, the processing unit generating an engine control message, including the selected message, to be sent to the engine controller via the communication port.

22. A braking system controller as in claim 21 wherein:

the arbitrator is included as part of the braking system controller.