METHOD FOR DETERMINING THE DRIVING RESISTANCE OF A VEHICLE

• US 20130345902A1
• Filed: 11/17/2011
• Published: 12/26/2013
• Est. Priority Date: 03/04/2011
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Audi AG (Volkswagen AG)
• Original Assignee: Christian Wilhelm
• Inventors: Papajewski, Jens, Wilhelm, Christian, Bass, Kostyantyn
• Granted Patent: US 8,768,536 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 701/1
• CPC Class Codes: B60W 2050/0088 Adaptive recalibration
• CPC Class Codes: B60W 2520/105 Longitudinal acceleration
• CPC Class Codes: B60W 2530/10 Weight
• CPC Class Codes: B60W 2530/209 Fuel quantity remaining in tank
• CPC Class Codes: B60W 2552/15 Road slope, i.e. the inclination of a road segment in the longitudinal direction
• CPC Class Codes: B60W 30/18027 Drive off, accelerating from standstill
• CPC Class Codes: B60W 40/1005 Driving resistance
• CPC Class Codes: B60W 40/13 Load or weight
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 17/00 Digital computing or data processing equipment or methods, specially adapted for specific functions information retrieval, database structures or file system structures therefor G06F16/00

Abstract

A method for determining the driving resistance of a vehicle by taking into account a value for the vehicle mass is described. Before beginning to drive, the vehicle mass and driving resistance coefficients are estimated with an estimation method by taking into account sensor signals, and an initial value for the driving resistance is calculated from the vehicle mass and the driving resistance coefficients. A corrected value for the driving resistance and the vehicle mass is calculated while driving, based on measured driving-related values, which are measured in chronological succession.

Claims

1-7. -7. (canceled)

8. A method of determining a driving resistance of a vehicle, wherein the driving resistance is calculated by taking into account a value of a vehicle mass, the method comprising:

before driving begins, estimating the vehicle mass and driving resistance coefficients with an estimating method by taking into consideration sensor signals,

determining from the estimated vehicle mass and the estimated driving resistance coefficients an initial value of the driving resistance,

while driving, consecutively measuring driving-related values, and

while driving, determining corrected values for the driving resistance and for the vehicle mass based on the measured driving-related values.

9. The method of claim 8, wherein before driving begins, the vehicle mass and the driving resistance coefficients are estimated with a mathematical simulation model by taking into account data that are transmitted via a data bus to a control unit disposed in the vehicle or data that are stored in a control unit.

10. The method of claim 9, wherein the sensor signals comprise data obtained from sensors selected from load sensors, temperature sensors, seat occupancy sensors, pressure sensors, moisture sensors and wheel sensors.

11. The method of claim 8, wherein vehicle-specific default values and correction values derived from the sensor signals are used in the estimation method for estimating the vehicle mass and the driving resistance coefficients.

12. The method of claim 8, wherein the measured driving-related values are values selected from a driving force, a road gradient resistance force, a speed and an acceleration.

13. The method of claim 12, wherein the corrected values for the vehicle mass and the driving resistance coefficients are calculated based on the measured driving-related values by using the following equation of motion:

14. The method of claim 12, wherein the driving-related values are measured at different speeds, and the corrected values for the driving resistance coefficients and the vehicle mass are obtained by solving the following matrix equation with a least-squares method: