SPEED AND SEVERITY TRIGGER FOR AN ACTIVE DEVICE OF A VEHICLE

• US 20130090780A1
• Filed: 03/29/2012
• Published: 04/11/2013
• Est. Priority Date: 03/29/2011
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Jaguar Land Rover Limited (TATA Motors Limited)
• Original Assignee: Jaguar Cars Limited (TATA Motors Limited)
• Inventors: Bunker, Paul
• Granted Patent: US 9,346,465 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 701/1
• CPC Class Codes: B60R 2021/01252 Devices other than bags
• CPC Class Codes: B60R 2021/01313 monitoring the vehicle steering system or the dynamic control system
• CPC Class Codes: B60R 21/0132 responsive to vehicle motion parameters , e.g. to vehicle longitudinal or transversal deceleration or speed value
• CPC Class Codes: B60T 8/17551 determining control parameters related to vehicle stability used in the regulation, e.g. by calculations involving measured or detected parameters
• CPC Class Codes: B60W 40/12 related to parameters of the vehicle itself , e.g. tyre models

Abstract

A method of determining the category of action of an active device of a vehicle comprises repeatedly measuring a vehicle parameter indicative of a change of vehicle state, determining a rate of change of the vehicle parameter and determining a modified vehicle parameter by reference to said rate of change. A threshold is applied to said modified vehicle parameter and a trigger signal is generated for an active device of the vehicle in response to the threshold being reached and in accordance with a severity of said vehicle parameter, which may be vehicle speed related.

Claims

1. A method of determining the category of action of an active device of a vehicle, the method comprising:

measuring a vehicle parameter indicative of a change of vehicle state;

determining a rate of change of said vehicle parameter;

modifying said vehicle parameter to a modified vehicle parameter by reference to said rate of change;

applying a threshold to said modified vehicle parameter,

determining a severity of said vehicle parameter, and

determining a category of action for an active device of the vehicle according to said severity in response to said threshold being reached.

2. The method of claim 1, wherein said rate of change is determined by reference to successive measurements of said vehicle parameter and a clock signal.

3. The method of claim 1, wherein a category of action relates said modified vehicle parameter and said severity.

4. The method of claim 3, wherein said category of action is represented by a discrete value of a numerical range.

5. The method of claim 1, wherein said category of action indicates one or more of the speed of movement of the active device, the position of the active device and the load generated by the active device.

6. The method of claim 1, wherein the vehicle parameter is selected from the group consisting of vehicle position, vehicle speed, vehicle braking, change of direction of the vehicle, and lateral acceleration of the vehicle.

7. The method of claim 1, and having a plurality of successive thresholds for generating successive categories of action.

8. The method of claim 7, wherein successive thresholds increase the category of action of the active device, by reference to one of speed, position and load.

9. The method of claim 1, and inhibited below a predetermined value of said modified vehicle parameter.

10. The method of claim 1, and inhibited where said threshold is crossed in a decreasing direction of said vehicle parameter.

11. The method of claim 1, wherein the modified vehicle parameter is determined from a look-up table.

12. The method of claim 1, wherein the modified vehicle parameter is determined from an algorithm.

13. The method of claim 1, wherein said severity is determined by reference to vehicle speed.

14. A system for a vehicle adapted to perform the method of claim 1.

15. A vehicle having a system as claimed in claim 14.