Automatic car-speed controller

• US 5,125,471 A
• Filed: 08/07/1990
• Issued: 06/30/1992
• Est. Priority Date: 08/08/1989
• Status: Expired due to Term

• Current Assignee: Magneti Marelli S.p.A., Jidosha Denki Kogyo Kabushiki Kaisha (Mitsuba Corporation)
• Original Assignee: Jidosha Denki Kogyo Kabushiki Kaisha (Mitsuba Corporation)
• Inventors: Yamaguchi, Yuichi, Danzaki, Tsutomu, Tsukahara, Akihiko, Iwaoka, Toshio
• Primary Examiner(s): Culbreth, Eric D.
• Application Number:
  US07/563,644
• Time in Patent Office: 693 Days
• Field of Search: 180/179, 180/177, 180/170, 123/352, 364/426.04
• US Class Current: 180/179
• CPC Class Codes: B60K 31/047 the memory being digital

Abstract

An automatic car-speed controller is provided with a car-speed sensor, a command switch, a car-speed memory, an actuator, a control circuit for controlling the actuator, and a prohibition circuit for preventing a driving motor of the actuator to rotate in the accelerating direction at the time of cancelling car-speed control or occurrence of some abnormality in the control circuit or the like, or a discrimination circuit for detecting whether a first limit switch is normal or not without driving a throttle in the opening direction.

Claims

1. An automatic car-speed controller comprising:

a car-speed sensor means for sensing an actual car-speed and outputting car-speed data proportional to said actual car-speed;

a command switch means for outputting a cruise command signal;

a car-speed memorizing means for memorizing the car-speed data output from said car-speed sensor means in response to an operation of said command switch means;

a motor driven actuator means provided with a motor means for driving a throttle means by rotation of said motor means through a clutch means, and provided with a first switch means to detect a full-closed position of said throttle means and change into an OFF-state and a second switch means to detect a full-opened position of said throttle means and change into an OFF-state for shutting off an electric current to said motor means upon detecting arrival of the throttle means into one of the full-closed and full-opened positions;

a control means for controlling said actuator means in accordance with a difference between actual car-speed and memorized car-speed; and

a discrimination means for detecting normality of said first switch means by determining that said first switch means changes to an ON-state from the OFF-state when driving said actuator means within a range in which said throttle means remains at the full-closed position due to slack between the actuator means and the throttle means.