Method and apparatus for determining the velocity of a vehicle body

• US 5,706,196 A
• Filed: 08/05/1996
• Issued: 01/06/1998
• Est. Priority Date: 06/07/1993
• Status: Expired due to Term

• Current Assignee: Tenneco Automotive Operating Company Incorporated (Apollo Global Management, Inc.)
• Original Assignee: Monroe Auto Equipment Company (Apollo Global Management, Inc.)
• Inventors: Romstadt, Douglas J.
• Primary Examiner(s): Teska, Kevin J.
• Assistant Examiner(s): Walker, Tyrone V.
• Application Number:
  US08/689,189
• Time in Patent Office: 519 Days
• Field of Search: 364/424.046, 364/424.047, 364/426.01, 364/426.027, 364/426.036, 364/426.037, 364/571.01, 364/571.02, 364/571.05, 280/707, 280/840
• US Class Current: 701/37
• CPC Class Codes: B60G 17/018 characterised by the use of a specific signal treatment or control method
• CPC Class Codes: B60G 2400/102 vertical
• CPC Class Codes: B60G 2400/104 lateral or transversal with regard to vehicle
• CPC Class Codes: B60G 2400/204 Vehicle speed
• CPC Class Codes: B60G 2500/10 Damping action or damper
• CPC Class Codes: B60G 2600/12 Sampling or average detecting; Addition or substraction
• CPC Class Codes: B60G 2600/16 Integrating means, i.e. integral control
• CPC Class Codes: B60G 2600/184 Semi-Active control means
• CPC Class Codes: B60G 2600/1877 Adaptive Control
• CPC Class Codes: B60G 2600/60 Signal noise suppression; Electronic filtering means
• CPC Class Codes: B60G 2600/602 high pass
• CPC Class Codes: B60G 2600/604 low pass
• CPC Class Codes: B60G 2800/012 Rolling condition
• CPC Class Codes: B60G 2800/014 Pitch; Nose dive

Abstract

An adjustable damping system (26) for an automotive vehicle (12) having a damper (10) and sensors (28, 30, 32) for determining the movement of the automotive vehicle (12) and generating a signal representing the movement of the automotive vehicle (12). The adjustable damping system (26) further includes a damper control logic unit 40 for automatically adjusting the damping characteristics of the damper (10) in response to the signal. The adjustable damping system (26) further includes a signal compensation unit (42) which is able to improve the accuracy with which signals representing the movement of the automotive vehicle (12) are determined.

Claims

1. An adjustable damping system for an automotive vehicle comprising:

a plurality of dampers;

a plurality of vertical acceleration sensors for sensing vertical movement of the vehicle at least at three points of said vehicle and generating a plurality of vertical acceleration signals;

a longitudinal speed sensor circuit for generating a filtered longitudinal speed signal indicative of the longitudinal speed of the vehicle;

a lateral acceleration sensor circuit for generating a filtered lateral acceleration signal indicative of the lateral acceleration of the vehicle;

a signal compensation system comprising;

a filter chain integrator for receiving said vertical acceleration signals from said vertical acceleration sensors and generating a first plurality of signals indicative of the vertical movement of said automotive vehicle at said at least three points;

a pitch-only system responsive to said filter chain integrator for determining a pitch component of each of said first plurality of signals and generating a plurality of pitch signals;

a roll-only system responsive to said filter chain integrator for determining a roll component of each of said first plurality of signals and generating a plurality of roll signals;

a first plurality of adders for adding and subtracting said plurality of pitch signals with said first plurality of signals from said filter chain integrator and with said filtered longitudinal speed signal to produce a plurality of compensated pitch signals;

a second plurality of adders for adding and subtracting said plurality of roll signals with said first plurality of signals from said filter chain integrator and with said filtered lateral acceleration signal to produce a plurality of compensated roll signals;

a third plurality of adders for adding and subtracting said first plurality of signals from said filter chain integrator with said plurality of compensated pitch signals and said plurality of compensated roll signals to produce a plurality of first compensated vertical movement signals;

a velocity translation system for receiving said first compensated vertical movement signals and generating a plurality of second compensated vertical movement signals indicative of the vertical velocity of the vehicle at four points of the vehicle; and

a damper control system responsive to said compensated pitch signals, said compensated roll signals and said second compensated vertical movement signals for comparing said compensated pitch, compensated roll and second compensated vertical movement signals with predetermined threshold values and generating a plurality of damping signals for controlling said dampers.