Tire abnormality sensor

• US 6,014,599 A
• Filed: 08/28/1997
• Issued: 01/11/2000
• Est. Priority Date: 08/29/1996
• Status: Expired due to Term

• Current Assignee: DENSO Corporation
• Original Assignee: DENSO Corporation
• Inventors: Inoue, Yuichi, Taguchi, Takeyasu
• Primary Examiner(s): Zanelli, Michael J.
• Application Number:
  US08/919,471
• Time in Patent Office: 866 Days
• Field of Search: 701/29, 340/442, 340/443, 340/444, 702/145, 702/146, 702/147, 702/148, 324/161, 324/178, 324/179
• US Class Current: 701/29
• CPC Class Codes: B60C 23/061 by monitoring wheel speed measuring distance traversed on the ground by vehicles G01C22/00

Abstract

To achieve both accuracy in correcting sensing error caused by nonstandard factors of a pulse signal generated by rotation of a rotor to be measured and reduction in cost of an apparatus for doing the same, each passage of rotor sensors which rotate integrally with vehicle tires are sensed to produce pulse signals. The pulse signal periods are sequentially integrated every pulse signal train consisting of multiple pulse signals. When all of the pulse signal periods of the pulse signal train are integrated, the integrated value is stored in memory. The memory always stores the integrated values of the newest one rotation of the rotor to be measured. The pulse signal periods are averaged from the sum of the integrated values. With such a construction, the average of the pulse signal periods can be obtained as a learning reference value in the correction without storing all of the pulse signal periods of one rotation, thereby realizing both correction accuracy and cost reduction.

Claims

1. A tire abnormality sensor comprising:

a rotor for rotating integrally with a wheel and in which a plurality of rotation elements are formed in a circumferential direction thereof;

rotation sensing means for facing the rotor and sensing passage of each of the rotation elements of the rotor;

deviation dependent value calculating means for calculating a deviation dependent value which is dependent on a deviation in sensing periods of sensing signals produced by the rotation sensing means from a reference value;

characteristic variable calculating means for calculating a characteristic variable showing characteristics of the deviation dependent value; and

discriminating means for discriminating between two tire states on the basis of the characteristic variable calculated by the characteristic variable calculating means.

2. The tire abnormality sensor according to claim 1, wherein the characteristic variable is a variation amount in the deviation dependent values in one rotation of the rotor.

3. The tire abnormality sensor according to claim 1, wherein the characteristic variable is an aging change amount in the deviation amount dependent value.

4. The tire abnormality sensor according to claim 1, wherein the discriminating means is for comparing the difference in the characteristic variables with a predetermined value between wheels.

5. The tire abnormality sensor according to claim 1, wherein the discriminating means is for comparing the difference between the characteristic variables of a present time and a previous time with a predetermined value.

6. The tire abnormality sensor according to claim 1, wherein the discriminating means is for comparing the difference between the characteristic variable of a present time and a preset initial value of the characteristic variable with a predetermined value.

7. The tire abnormality sensor according to claim 6, wherein the initial value of the characteristic variable is a value calculated by the characteristic variable calculating means at a tire normal time, and the discriminating means has storing means for storing the calculated value.