Vehicle stability regulating system

• US 6,718,279 B2
• Filed: 09/11/2001
• Issued: 04/06/2004
• Est. Priority Date: 03/11/1999
• Status: Expired due to Fees

• Current Assignee: Lucas Varity GmbH (Automotive Investors LLC)
• Original Assignee: Lucas Varity GmbH (Automotive Investors LLC)
• Inventors: Büstgens, Burkhard, Bestmann, Harald
• Primary Examiner(s): Barlow, John
• Assistant Examiner(s): Walling, Meagan S
• Application Number:
  US09/951,782
• Publication Number:
  US 20020046003A1
• Time in Patent Office: 938 Days
• Field of Search: 702/151, 702/150, 702/130, 702/136, 702/35, 702/79, 702/145, 702/148, 702/189-90, 701/1, 701/37, 701/41, 701/116, 701/205, 701/213, 701/214, 701/215, 701/216
• US Class Current: 702/151
• CPC Class Codes: B60T 2250/062 loosing zero-point calibration of yaw rate sensors when travelling on banked roads or in case of temperature variations
• CPC Class Codes: B60T 8/172 Determining control parameters used in the regulation, e.g. by calculations involving measured or detected parameters B60T8/17551 takes precedence
• CPC Class Codes: B60T 8/1755 Brake regulation specially adapted to control the stability of the vehicle, e.g. taking into account yaw rate or transverse acceleration in a curve road vehicle drive control systems for control of driving stability otherwise than by controlling a particular sub-unit B60W30/02

Abstract

Vehicle stability regulating system for land vehicles, with a yaw rate sensor (GRS) which during operation delivers a first output signal (GR) representative of the yaw rate of the vehicle and a second output signal (Temp) representative of the operating or ambient temperature of the yaw rate sensor (GRS), and an additional sensor arrangement (SENS), which delivers a third output signal (0-GR) representing a non-yawing state of the vehicle, at least within a predetermined range of tolerance, wherein the first, the second and the third output signal are fed into an electronic control unit (ECU), and wherein the electronic control unit (ECU) comprises a computer unit (CPU) and at least one writable data memory (RAM) and a control program memory (ROM), which is connected to the computer unit, wherein a control program stored in the control program memory controls the computer unit so that in a learning mode the computer unit determines a temperature-related zero offset value from the first output signal in accordance with the second output signal and stores it in the data memory, and wherein in an operating mode the computer unit reads a temperature-related zero offset value out of the data memory, taking account of the third output signal or the second output signal, and relates it to the first output signal in order to generate an activating signal for intervening in the road behavior of the vehicle.

Claims

1. Device for regulating the stability of vehicles for land vehicles, comprising:

an electronic control unit (ECU) for receiving a first, a second and a third output signal (GR, Temp, O-GR),

a yaw rate sensor (GRS) for delivering the first output signal (GR), which represents a yaw rate of the vehicle, wherein the second output signal (Temp), which is an output signal of the yaw rate sensor (GRS), represents the operating or ambient temperature of the yaw rate sensor, and

a sensor arrangement (SENS) for delivering the third output signal (0-GR), which represents a non-yawing state of the vehicle, wherein the electronic control unit

in a learning mode determines a temperature-related zero offset value from the first output signal in accordance with the second output signal and stores it in a data memory (RAM) if the third output signal indicates a non-yawing state of the vehicle, and

in an operating mode reads a temperature-related zero offset value out of the data memory in accordance with the second output signal and corrects the first output signal with this zero offset value in order to generate a control signal for controlling the road behavior of the vehicle.

2. Device according to claim 1 wherein the second output signal is a frequency signal of the yaw rate sensor varied by the operating or ambient temperature according to a known regularity.

3. Device according to claim 2 wherein the second output signal is the oscillation frequency of the yaw rate sensor which is correlated with the operating or ambient temperature of the yaw rate sensor.

4. Device according to claim 3 wherein the electronic control unit stores the determined zero offset value in the data memory if a comparison of the determined zero offset value with a theoretical zero offset value resulting from a gradient of adjacent temperature-related zero offset values stored in the data memory for checking the plausibility of the determined zero offset value has been successfully concluded.

5. Device according to claim 4 wherein the electronic control unit adds zero offset values missing from the data memory by interpolating between zero offset values already stored in the data memory.

6. Device according to claim 5 wherein the data memory contains a first temperature-related zero offset value which represents a zero offset value at the final assembly stage with the vehicle at a standstill and a predetermined operating and ambient temperature of the yaw rate sensor.

7. Device according to claim 1 wherein the electronic control unit stores the determined zero offset value in the data memory if a comparison of the determined zero offset value with a theoretical zero offset value resulting from a gradient of adjacent temperature-related zero offset values stored in the data memory for checking the plausibility of the determined zero offset value has been successfully concluded.

8. Device according to claim 1 wherein the electronic control unit adds zero offset values missing from the data memory by interpolating between zero offset values already stored in the data memory.

9. Device according to claim 1 wherein the data memory contains a first temperature-related zero offset value which represents a zero offset value at the final assembly stage with the vehicle at a standstill and a predetermined operating and ambient temperature of the yaw rate sensor.

10. Device according to claim 1 wherein the second output signal is a voltage signal of the yaw rate sensor varied by the operating or ambient temperature according to a known regularity.

11. Method for regulating the stability of vehicles for land vehicles, comprising the following steps:

delivering a first output signal, (GR) by means of a yaw rate sensor (GRS) which represents a yaw rate of the vehicle,

delivering a second output signal (Temp) by means of a yaw rate sensor (GRS) which represents an operating or ambient temperature of the yaw rate sensor,

delivering a third output signal (0-GR) by means of a sensor arrangement (SENS) which represents a non-yawing state of the vehicle,

detecting the first, the second and the third output signal by means of an electronic control unit (ECU),

in a learning mode determining a temperature-related zero offset value from the first output signal in accordance with the second output signal and storing the temperature-related zero offset value in a data memory (RM) if the third output signal indicates a non-yawing state of the vehicle, and

in an operating mode reading a temperature-related zero offset value out of the data memory, taking account of the second output signal, and correcting the first output signal with the zero offset value which is read out in order to generate a control signal for controlling the road behavior of the vehicle.

12. Method according to claim 11 wherein the second output signal is a frequency signal of the yaw rate sensor varied by the operating or ambient temperature according to a known regularity.

13. Method according to claim 12 wherein the second output signal is delivered as the oscillation frequency of the yaw rate sensor, wherein the oscillation frequency is correlated with the operating or ambient temperature of the yaw rate sensor.

14. Method according to claim 13 wherein the storage of the determined zero offset value comprises the following steps:

determining a gradient of adjacent temperature-related zero offset values stored in the data memory,

comparing the determined zero offset value with a theoretical zero offset value resulting from the determined gradient in order to check the plausibility of the determined zero offset value, and

storing the determined zero offset value if the plausibility check has been successfully concluded.

15. Method according to claim 14 wherein the determination of temperature-related zero offset values in learning mode comprises the following steps:

interpolating between zero offset values stored in the data memory, and

storing zero offset values missing from the data memory by interpolating determined zero offset values.

16. Method according to claim 15 wherein the determination of the zero offset-values in learning mode comprises the following steps:

determining a first temperature-related zero offset value at the final assembly stage with the vehicle at a standstill and a predetermined operating or ambient temperature of the yaw rate sensor, and

storing the first temperature-related zero offset value in the data memory.

17. Method according to claim 11 wherein the storage of the determined zero offset value comprises the following steps:

determining a gradient of adjacent temperature-related zero offset values stored in the data memory,

comparing the determined zero offset value with a theoretical zero offset value resulting from the determined gradient in order to check the plausibility of the determined zero offset value, and

storing the determined zero offset value if the plausibility check has been successfully concluded.

18. Method according to claim 11 wherein the determination of temperature-related zero offset values in learning mode comprises the following steps:

interpolating between zero offset values stored in the data memory, and

storing zero offset values missing from the data memory by interpolating determined zero offset values.

19. Method according to claim 11 wherein the determination of the zero offset-values in learning mode comprises the following steps:

determining a first temperature-related zero offset value at the final assembly stage with the vehicle at a standstill and a predetermined operating or ambient temperature of the yaw rate sensor, and

storing the first temperature-related zero offset value in the data memory.

20. Method according to claim 11 wherein the second output signal is a voltage signal of the yaw rate sensor varied by the operating or ambient temperature according to a known regularity.