Integrated controller for vehicle

• US 5,540,298 A
• Filed: 09/07/1994
• Issued: 07/30/1996
• Est. Priority Date: 09/19/1991
• Status: Expired due to Term

• Current Assignee: Mazda Motor Corporation
• Original Assignee: Mazda Motor Corporation
• Inventors: Hara, Toshihiro, Fujise, Kazuki, Yamamoto, Yasunori, Uemura, Hiroki, Yoshioka, Tohru, Adachi, Tomohiko, Butsuen, Tetsuro, Okuda, Kenichi
• Primary Examiner(s): Focarino, Margaret A.
• Assistant Examiner(s): Hurley, Kevin
• Application Number:
  US08/302,239
• Time in Patent Office: 692 Days
• Field of Search: 180/169, 180/167, 180/271, 340/903, 340/904, 342/70, 342/71, 342/72, 364/424.01, 364/461, 364/424.02, 364/426.01, 303/95, 303/97, 303/100
• US Class Current: 180/169
• CPC Class Codes: B60G 17/0195 characterised by the regulation being combined with other vehicle control systems conjoint control of vehicle sub-units including control of suspension systems B60W10/22
• CPC Class Codes: B60G 2200/44 steerable
• CPC Class Codes: B60G 2200/462 Toe-in/out
• CPC Class Codes: B60G 2202/154 with an accumulator
• CPC Class Codes: B60G 2400/106 longitudinal with regard to vehicle, e.g. braking
• CPC Class Codes: B60G 2400/204 Vehicle speed
• CPC Class Codes: B60G 2400/41 Steering angle
• CPC Class Codes: B60G 2400/822 Road friction coefficient determination affecting wheel traction
• CPC Class Codes: B60G 2401/176 Radio or audio sensitive means, e.g. Ultrasonic
• CPC Class Codes: B60G 2600/02 Retarders, delaying means, dead zones, threshold values, cut-off frequency, timer interruption
• CPC Class Codes: B60G 2600/044 Alarm means
• CPC Class Codes: B60G 2600/182 Active control means
• CPC Class Codes: B60G 2800/012 Rolling condition
• CPC Class Codes: B60G 2800/21 Traction, slip, skid or slide control
• CPC Class Codes: B60G 2800/22 Braking, stopping
• CPC Class Codes: B60G 2800/24 Steering, cornering
• CPC Class Codes: B60G 2800/912 Attitude Control; levelling control
• CPC Class Codes: B60G 2800/92 ABS - Brake Control
• CPC Class Codes: B60G 2800/93 Skid or slide control [ASR]
• CPC Class Codes: B60G 2800/96 ASC - Assisted or power Steering control
• CPC Class Codes: B60G 2800/962 : Four-wheel steering
• CPC Class Codes: B60T 7/22 : initiated by contact of vehicle, e.g. bumper, with an external object, e.g. another vehicle , or by means of contactless obstacle detectors mounted on the vehicle
• CPC Class Codes: B60T 8/48 : connecting the brake actuator to an alternative or additional source of fluid pressure , e.g. traction control systems
• CPC Class Codes: B62D 17/00 : Means on vehicles for adjusting camber, castor, or toe-in
• CPC Class Codes: B62D 5/06 : fluid, i.e. using a pressurised fluid for most or all the force required for steering a vehicle
• CPC Class Codes: B62D 6/00 : Arrangements for automatically controlling steering depending on driving conditions sensed and responded to, e.g. control circuits means for initiating a change in direction B62D1/00; steering valves B62D5/06; combined with means for inclining the vehicle body or wheels on bends B62D9/00
• CPC Class Codes: G01S 15/931 : of land vehicles
• CPC Class Codes: G01S 17/86 : Combinations of lidar systems with systems other than lidar, radar or sonar, e.g. with direction finders
• CPC Class Codes: G01S 17/931 : of land vehicles
• CPC Class Codes: G01S 7/484 : Transmitters

Abstract

An integrated controller for a vehicle comprises a contact preventive device for detecting a distance between a vehicle and an obstacle and a relative speed, and deciding whether the vehicle may come in contact with the obstacle based on the results of detection so as to perform automatic braking or automatic steering, and a characteristic changing device for causing the suspension or steering characteristic of the vehicle to be changed. The control part of the characteristic changing device changes the suspension or steering characteristic based on information from the control part of the contact preventive device when operating the contact preventive device. In case the characteristic changing device is an active suspension device, the control part changes the suspension characteristic so as to increase a control gain when performing automatic braking and to inhibit the vehicle from being rolled when performing automatic steering. Consequently, it is possible to early change the suspension characteristic when operating the contact preventive device. Thus, the running stability of the vehicle can be enhanced.

Claims

1. An integrated controller for a vehicle comprising:

a contact preventive device for detecting a distance between a vehicle and an obstacle and a relative speed, and deciding whether the vehicle may come in contact with the obstacle based on the results of detection so as to perform a contact preventive operation, and

characteristic changing means for causing a suspension or steering characteristic of the vehicle to be changed,

wherein said characteristic changing means includes a control part which receives information from a control part of said contact preventive device and changes the suspension characteristic or the steering characteristic so as to prevent unstable behavior of the vehicle in response to the contact preventive operation of said contact preventive device.

2. The integrated controller for a vehicle according to claim 1, wherein the characteristic changing means is an active suspension device for feeding and discharging a fluid to and from cylinders provided between a body and wheels so that the suspension characteristic can be changed.

3. The integrated controller for a vehicle according to claim 1, wherein the characteristic changing means is an antiskid braking device for performing control so as to independently operate the braking devices of at least two wheels on left and right sides.

4. The integrated controller for a vehicle according to claim 1, wherein the characteristic changing means is a four wheel steering device for simultaneously steering front and rear wheels.

5. The integrated controller for a vehicle according to claim 1, wherein the characteristic changing means is a toe control device for causing the toe angle of a rear wheel to be changed.

6. The integrated controller for a vehicle according to claim 2, wherein the contact preventive device automatically applies a braking force to each wheel so as to prevent contact, and the control part of the active suspension device increases a control gain when automatic braking is performed by the operation of the contact preventive device.

7. The integrated controller for a vehicle according to claim 2, wherein the contact preventive device automatically steers steering wheels so as to prevent contact, and the control part of the active suspension device changes the suspension characteristic so as to inhibit the vehicle from being rolled when automatic steering is performed by the operation of the contact preventive device.

8. The integrated controller for a vehicle according to claim 2, wherein the active suspension device includes a cylinder provided between a body and each wheel, a hydraulic pump which communicates with a hydraulic chamber of said cylinder through a hydraulic passage, a control valve provided on the hydraulic passage for controlling the feed and discharge of a hydraulic pressure to and from said cylinder, and a control part for controlling the positional switching of said control valve.

9. The integrated controller for a vehicle according to claim 3, wherein the contact preventive device automatically applies a braking force to each wheel so as to prevent contact, and the control part of the antiskid braking device changes the steering characteristic of the vehicle in the under-steer direction when the vehicle is turning and automatic braking is performed by the operation of the contact preventive device.

10. The integrated controller for a vehicle according to claim 3, wherein the contact preventive device automatically applies a braking force to each wheel so as to prevent contact, and the control part of the antiskid braking device makes the braking forces of left and right wheels almost equal to each other when the vehicle is running on a road on which the left and right wheels have different road friction coefficients and automatic braking is performed by the operation of the contact preventive device.

11. The integrated controller for a vehicle according to claim 8, wherein the contact preventive device automatically steers steering wheels so as to prevent contact, and the control part of the antiskid braking device changes the steering characteristic of the vehicle in the over-steer direction when automatic steering is performed by the operation of the contact preventive device.

12. The integrated controller for a vehicle according to claim 3, wherein the antiskid braking device includes a plurality of braking devices provided on wheels, a master cylinder for generating a braking pressure corresponding to the operating force of a brake pedal, a plurality of control valves provided on communicating passages of said braking devices to said master cylinder for adjusting the braking pressures of said braking devices, and a control part for controlling said control valves.

13. The integrated controller for a vehicle according to claim 4, wherein the contact preventive device automatically applies a braking force to each wheel so as to prevent contact, and the control part of the four wheel steering device steers rear and front wheels onto the same phase side in the same direction so as to change the steering characteristic of the vehicle in the under-steer direction when the vehicle is turning and automatic braking is performed by the operation of the contact preventive device.

14. The integrated controller for a vehicle according to claim 4, wherein the four wheel steering device includes a rear wheel steering device for steering left and right rear wheels, said rear wheel steering device having a steering rod which extends in the direction of a car width and is connected to the left and right rear wheels so that steering can be performed, an actuator for moving said steering rod in the axial direction, and a control part for controlling the operation of said actuator.

15. The integrated controller for a vehicle according to claim 5, wherein the contact preventive device automatically applies a braking force to each wheel so as to prevent contact, and the control part of the toe control device displaces rear wheels in the toe-in direction so as to change the steering characteristic of the vehicle in the under-steer direction when automatic braking is performed by the operation of the contact preventive device.

16. The integrated controller for a vehicle according to claim 5, wherein left and right rear wheels are supported on a body through wheel supporting members and a pair of front and rear lateral rinks, and the toe control device includes a drive mechanism connected to the body side end of the lateral rink for each wheel for displacing the lateral rink in the direction of a car width, and a control part for controlling said drive mechanism.

17. The integrated controller for a vehicle according to claim 6, wherein an automatic braking device as a contact preventive device includes a braking device provided on each wheel, a hydraulic circuit for adjusting the braking pressure of said braking device separately from the operation of a brake pedal, distance and relative speed detecting means for detecting a distance between a vehicle and an obstacle and a relative speed, and a control part for deciding whether the vehicle may come in contact with the obstacle based on the results of detection and controlling said hydraulic circuit so as to increase the braking pressure of said braking device when there is a possibility of contact.

18. The integrated controller for a vehicle according to claim 7, wherein an automatic steering device as a contact preventive device includes a rod which extends in the direction of a car width and is connected to left and right steering wheels so that steering can be performed, a cylinder for moving said rod in the axial direction, a hydraulic circuit for controlling the operation of said cylinder, distance and relative speed detecting means for detecting a distance between a vehicle and an obstacle and a relative speed, and a control part for deciding whether the vehicle may come in contact with the obstacle based on the results of detection and controlling said hydraulic circuit so as to steer the steering wheels by the operation of said cylinder when there is a possibility of contact.