Apparatus and method for alarming decrease in tire air-pressure

• US 6,388,568 B1
• Filed: 07/18/2001
• Issued: 05/14/2002
• Est. Priority Date: 07/18/2000
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Sumitomo Electric Industries Limited (Sumitomo Corporation), Sumitomo Rubber Industries Limited
• Original Assignee: Sumitomo Electric Industries Limited (Sumitomo Corporation), Sumitomo Rubber Industries Limited
• Inventors: Yanase, Minao, Arita, Masakazu
• Primary Examiner(s): Pope, Daryl
• Application Number:
  US09/906,693
• Publication Number:
  US 20020021212A1
• Time in Patent Office: 300 Days
• Field of Search: 340/438, 340/442, 340/443-444, 340/445-447, 180/197, 731/462, 731/468
• US Class Current: 340/442
• CPC Class Codes: B60C 23/061 by monitoring wheel speed measuring distance traversed on the ground by vehicles G01C22/00

Abstract

An apparatus for alarming decrease in tire air-pressure which alarms decrease of internal pressure of a tire on the basis of a rotational information. The apparatus comprises rotational information detecting means; memory means for storing the rotational information of each of the tires; calculation processing means for calculating a reciprocal number of a turning radius and calculating a judged value from the rotational information of the respective tires; internal pressure judging means for comparing the judged value with a reference value for the judged value at every regions in right turning regions and left turning regions so as to judge decrease in internal pressure; torque judging means for judging decrease in limited slip differential torque of the limited slip differential device; and updating means for initializing the reference value for updating the reference value. The judgement accuracy can be maintained. Thereby, the erroneous alarm is prevented from being issued and decrease in air-pressure can be judged accurately.

Claims

1. An apparatus for alarming decrease in tire air-pressure which alarms decrease of internal pressure of a tire on the basis of a rotational information obtained by tires attached to a four-wheeled vehicle mounting a limited slip differential device thereon, comprising:

rotational information detecting means for detecting a rotational information of each of the tires;

memory means for storing the rotational information of each of the tires;

calculation processing means for calculating a reciprocal number of a turning radius from the rotational information of the tire attached to a driving shaft among the rotational information of the respective tires and calculating a judged value from the rotational information of the respective tires;

internal pressure judging means for comparing the judged value with a reference value for the judged value at every regions in right turning regions and left turning regions of the turning radius on the basis of a relation between the reciprocal number of the turning radius and the judged valve so as to judge decrease in internal pressure;

torque judging means for judging decrease in limited slip differential torque of the limited slip differential device on the basis of respective judged value in the right turning region and the left turning region; and

updating means for initializing the reference value for updating the reference value.

2. The apparatus of claim 1, wherein the initialization of reference values in the updating means is performed when the absolute value of the judged value in the decreased limited slip differential torque is decreased to not more than the first threshold.

3. The apparatus of claim 1, wherein the initialization of reference values in the updating means is performed when absolute values of the respective judged values are substantially equal to each other between the right turning region and the left turning region and the absolute value of the judged values are not more than the second threshold.

4. A method for alarming decrease in tire air-pressure which alarms decrease of internal pressure of a tire on the basis of a rotational information obtained by tires attached to a four-wheeled vehicle mounting a limited slip differential device thereon, comprising the steps of:

detecting a rotational information of each of the tires;

storing the rotational information of each of the tires;

calculating a reciprocal number of turning radius from the rotational information of the tire attached to driving shaft among the rotational information of the respective tires and calculating a judged value from the rotational information of the respective tires;

comparing the judged value with a reference value for the judged value at every regions in right turning regions and left turning regions of the turning radius on the basis of a relation between the reciprocal number of the turning radius and the judged valve so as to judge decrease in internal pressure;

judging decrease in limited slip differential torque of the limited slip differential device on the basis of respective judged value in the right turning region and the left turning region; and

initializing the reference value for updating the reference value.

5. The method of claim 4, wherein the initialization of reference values in the updating means is performed when the absolute value of the judged value in the decreased limited slip differential torque is decreased to not more than the first threshold.

6. The method of claim 4, wherein the initialization of reference values in the updating means is performed when absolute values of the respective judged values are substantially equal to each other between the right turning region and the left turning region and the absolute value of the judged values are not more than the second threshold.