Vehicle performance analyzer

• US 4,179,740 A
• Filed: 09/02/1977
• Issued: 12/18/1979
• Est. Priority Date: 09/02/1977
• Status: Expired due to Term

• Current Assignee: John R. Malin
• Original Assignee: John R. Malin
• Inventors: Malin, John R.
• Primary Examiner(s): Ruggiero, Jospeh F.
• Application Number:
  US05/830,171
• Time in Patent Office: 837 Days
• Field of Search: 364/442, 364/424, 364/431, 364/565, 235/61 J, 235/92 FL, 235/92 MT, 73/113, 73/114, 73/1 R, 73/2
• US Class Current: 701/123
• CPC Class Codes: G01F 25/10 of flowmeters
• CPC Class Codes: G01F 9/023 with electric, electro-mechanic or electronic means

Abstract

A vehicle performance analyzer which determines and displays instantaneous miles-per-hour, miles-per-gallon and miles-to-end-of-tank. The instantaneous outputs are calculated by a microprocessor using a vehicle speed sensor coupled to the drive shaft of the vehicle transmission, a fuel flow sensor introduced in the fuel line between the fuel pump and the carburation system and an analog-to-digital electrical signal converter connected to the electrical fuel gauge. The microprocessor is directed by a resident program contained in read-only memory, which also contains a calibration procedure allowing the person installing the device to accurately calibrate the device to the particular vehicle on which it is installed. This eliminates the need for a variety of special sensors designed to meet the variable needs of different makes and models of vehicles. It also eliminates inaccuracies due to variances in some parameters of different vehicles of identical makes and models.

Claims

1. A user calibratable vehicle performance system comprising:

a plurality of on-board sensing means including speed measuring means for generating a digital representation of the instantaneous vehicle speed;

flow measuring means for generating a digital representation of the instantaneous fuel consumption of the vehicle;

3. The combination in accordance with claim 1 including mode select means for allowing the input of calibration data by said manual calibration means only when said mode select means is in a calibration mode.

2. fuel gauge means for generating a digital representation of the amount of fuel remaining in the vehicle fuel supply;

digital computer means responsive to the output of said speed measuring means, said flow measuring means and said fuel gauge means for computing instantaneous miles per gallon of fuel consumption and miles to the end of the vehicle fuel supply;

and manually operated calibration means coupled to said computer means for inputting actual data observed by the user at a series of sets of conditions;

said manually operated calibration means including manually controlled means for introducing into said digital computer observed data in numerical form;

said digital computer responding to said sensing means and the numerical input for generating and displaying a binary signal representative of the calibration constant to be stored in the memory of said digital computer;

said manually operated calibration means including a plurality of user operated binary switches for matching the display to input calibration data to the memory of said computer.

said computer means thereafter operative to calculate vehicle performance as a function of said calibration values.

4. The combination in accordance with claim 2 wherein said mode select means includes a position for operation wherein said computer means calculates performance of said vehicle employing the calibration constants last inputted and when said mode select means was in the calibration mode.

6. The combination in accordance with claim 4 wherein said system includes means for sensing vehicle speed coupled to said computer means whereby said system may display vehicle speed.

7. The combination in accordance with claim 4 wherein said display means comprises a single display and including a selector switch for selecting which parameter is to be displayed coupled to said computer means.

8. The combination in accordance with claim 4 wherein said display means comprises a plurality of displays, one for each quantity calculated by said computer means.

9. The combination in accordance with claim 4 including mode select means for selecting either an operating or a calibrate mode of operation wherein said computer means is operative when said mode select means is in a calibrate mode to receive actual input observed parameters from said manually controlled switches;

said computer means being operative when in a calibrate mode as determined by said mode select means to calculate a correction factor for parameters as measured by said on-board sensing means as a function of said input data from said manually controlled switches;

said computer means being operative when in an operating mode as determined by said mode selecting means to compute and transmit to said display means corrected value of said quantities.

10. The combination in accordance with claim 4 wherein said computer means calculates instantaneous slope of the value of the quantities as said correction factors.

12. The combination in accordance with claim 10 including selector switch means including a miles per hour position coupled to said computer means whereby corrected vehicle speed may be displayed.

14. The combination in accordance with claim 10 wherein said second user operated switches need only be operated to match said binary display to input correct data for storage in said non-volatile memory.

15. The combination in accordance with claim 10 wherein said second set of user operated switches have two positions corresponding to respective binary display conditions.

16. The combination in accordance with claim 14 wherein said decimal digit display means is controlled by said computer means when in a calibration mode to display numerically encoded instructions for said user.

18. The combination in accordance with claim 16 wherein said central computing unit is programmed to divide the speed as sensed by said speed sensor by the quantity of fuel as sensed by said fuel flow sensor;

whereby said system may display miles per gallon.

19. The combination in accordance with claim 16 wherein said central computing unit multiplies fuel quantity by fuel consumption rate as determined by the quotient of speed and fuel flow;

whereby said system may display miles to empty tank.

20. The combination in accordance with claim 16 wherein said manual controls are operative to introduce into the memory of said central processing unit data with respect to at least one of the following parameters;

vehicle speed, fuel flow, and meter gas gauge as a function of actual independent observed conditions.

22. The combination in accordance with claim 20 including manual input means for registering calibration input data in numerical form;

said central processing unit including means for encoding input data from said manual input means in binary form and for combining said binary form calibration input data with information from said sensors to produce calibration constants and for displaying calibration constant data on said binary display whereby the user may store such input data in binary form by matching said binary display by said plurality of manual calibration input means.

23. The combination in accordance with claim 20 wherein said central computing unit is coupled to said digital display to display thereon user commands when said mode selection means is in a calibration mode.

24. The combination in accordance with claim 20 wherein said central computing unit includes:

memory means for storing calibration data therein.

26. The combination in accordance with claim 20 including a plurality of digital displays, one for each function to be displayed and means coupling the output of said central computing unit determining each parameter to be displayed to a respective digital display.

5. A vehicle performance monitoring system comprising:

on-board sensing means for measuring the following parameters;

(a) fuel flow;

(b) fuel quantity;

(c) vehicle speed

digital computing means coupled to said on-board sensing means for computing the following quantities from parameters measured by said on-board sensing means;

(d) instaneous fuel consumption rate; and

(e) instaneous distance to end of fuel supply;

said computing means including a plurality of manually controlled switches inputting in numerical form actual desired performance data;

said computer responding to the numerical inputted data for calculating correction factors for said parameters

binary display means for displaying corrective factors as computed by said computing means;

binary switch means operable by the user to match the binary display means;

said binary switch means coupled to the memory of said computer to store correction factors therein;

said numerical display means for displaying vehicle performance parameters as calculated and corrected by said computer means.

11. A vehicle performance system comprising;

speed measuring means for generating a digital representation of the instantaneous vehicle speed;

flow measuring means for generating a digital representation of the instantaneous fuel consumption;

fuel gauge means for generating a digital representation of the amount of fuel remaining in the fuel tank;

digital computer means responsive to the outputs of said speed measuring means, said flow measuring means and said fuel gauge means for computing instantaneous miles per gallon and miles to end of tank; and

decimal digit display means for selectively displaying said miles per gallon and miles to end of tank and calibration input commands;

wherein said computer means further includes

a set of data input switches settable by the vehicle user to produce a digital representation of the actual observed values corresponding to said above outputs to allow said computer to compute correction factors to be applied to said outputs;

said computer means including a non-volatile programmable memory for storing said correction factors;

binary display means coupled to said computer means for displaying the required input to said non-volatile memory to store the required correction therein; and

a second set of user operated switches for introducing the required input to said non-volatile memory by matching said display.

13. The combination in accordance with claim 11 wherein said selector switch includes a miles per gallon setting wherein said computer means is operative to produce a digital representation of the actual instantaneous fuel consumption rate.

17. A vehicle performance system for use with a vehicle having a fuel gauge and vehicle speed measuring apparatus, a fuel supply and an engine comprising:

first sensor means coupled to said fuel gauge for developing an electrical signal related to the representation of fuel quantity appearing on said gauge;

second sensor for developing an electrical signal representative of fuel flow from the fuel supply to the engine of the vehicle;

a third sensor for producing an electrical signal representation of fuel flow from the fuel supply to the engine of the vehicle;

means for converting the signals generated by said first, second and third sensors into digital form;

a plurality of manual controls for introducing calibration signal input representing in digital numerical form for each parameter to be displayed by said system from actual observed data;

a central computing unit including memory means coupled to said converting means and said manual control for receiving signal inputs therefrom;

means for selecting a mode of operation of said system including the two following modes;

(a) calibrate

(b) operate;

said central computing unit programmed to calculate at least miles per gallon of fuel consumption and miles to end of tank;

means for displaying the results of the calculations of said central computing unit as determined by said mode select means; and

means responsive to the input of actual observed data for changing the calibration of said system;

said last means including said computer and a second display coupled thereto for indicating to the user the calibration required based upon the calibration input by said manual controls and a second set of manual controls for use by the user for introducing said calibration changes into the memory of said computer.

21. A vehicle performance system comprising:

(a) means for sensing vehicle speed;

(b) means for sensing the flow rate of fuel to the engine of said vehicle;

(c) means for sensing the quantity of fuel in the fuel supply of said vehicle;

(d) means for converting the values sensed by each of the foregoing sensing means into digital form;

(e) a central computing unit for performing arithmetical calculations on the digitized values as sensed by said sensing means and including non-volatile memory for holding calibration constants for said calculations;

(f) function switch means for selecting the calculation to be performed;

(g) a plurality of manual calibration input means accessible to the user for introducing actual observed data into said central computing unit as said vehicle is in operation;

(h) display means for displaying the output for said central computer unit in digital form;

(i) means within said computer for varying the arithmetical determination based upon the calibration from said manual calibration input means; and

(j) binary display means controlled by said central computing unit for displaying required non-volatile calibration data and a plurality of binary manually controlled input means coupled to the memory of said central computing unit for introducing non-volatile calibration into said memory.

25. The combination in accordance with claim 21 including second memory means coupled to said sensing means for storing sensed vehicle parameters therein;

said last memory coupled to said digital display and including function switch means for selecting the function to be displayed on said display.