Method and system for identifying a tyre of a vehicle

• US 6,745,623 B2
• Filed: 04/25/2002
• Issued: 06/08/2004
• Est. Priority Date: 10/25/1999
• Status: Expired due to Term

• Current Assignee: TRW Automotive Electronics & Components GmbH & Co. KG
• Original Assignee: Lucas Varity GmbH (Automotive Investors LLC)
• Inventors: Schmitt, Hubert
• Primary Examiner(s): Lefkowitz, Edward
• Assistant Examiner(s): ALLEN, ANDRE J
• Application Number:
  US10/134,028
• Publication Number:
  US 20030000296A1
• Time in Patent Office: 775 Days
• Field of Search: 731/46, 731/462, 340/442, 340/443, 340/444, 340/445, 701/1
• US Class Current: 73/146
• CPC Class Codes: B60C 23/0416 allocating a corresponding wheel position on vehicle, e.g. front/left or rear/right

Abstract

The invention concerns a method and a system for identifying tires of a vehicle, tire pressures of the tires of the vehicle being measured and analysed for the driving-dynamic states of the vehicle with the use of parameters which indicate the driving-dynamic states. Individual tires of the vehicle are unambiguously identified on the basis of the analysis of the measured tire pressures or their variations.

Claims

1. Method for identifying a tyre of a vehicle, with the following steps:

measurement of a tyre pressure of at least one vehicle tyre for at least two different driving-dynamic states of a vehicle,

comparison of the tyre pressures, for the purpose of determining a tyre pressure variation, and

analysis of the tyre pressure variation using driving state parameters which characterize the at least two different driving-dynamic states, for the purpose of identifying the vehicle tyre at which the tyre pressures were measured.

2. Method according to claim 1,

characterized in that

the measurement and comparison of the tyre pressures are performed for at least one tyre of at least two different wheels of the vehicle.

3. Method according to claim 1,

characterized in that

the measurement and comparison of the tyre pressures are performed for all tyres at which tyre pressures are determined, and

the analysis of the tyre pressure variations is performed using information which comprises at least one of previously measured tyre pressures and tyre pressure variations.

4. Method according to claim 1,

characterized in that

the measurement of the tyre pressures comprises at least one measurement of the tyre pressures for a predetermined driving-dynamic state of the vehicle.

5. Method according to claim 1,

characterized by

measurement of driving state parameters which characterize the driving-dynamic states of the vehicle.

6. Method according to claim 5,

characterized by

determination of the driving-dynamic states of the vehicle from the driving state parameters.

7. Method according to claim 1,

characterized by

storage of data for the purpose of identifying the tyres.

8. Method according to claim 1,

characterized in that

the method is performed upon each re-startup of the vehicle.

9. Method according to claim 1,

characterized in that

the method is performed during a driving operation of the vehicle at predetermined instants or at predetermined intervals of time.

17. Method according to claim 3, characterized in that the analysis of the tyre pressure variations is performed using information which further comprises reference tables and information which is used for the application of at least one of neural networks and chaos theory methods.

10. System for identifying a tyre of a vehicle, with:

a device which is located at a tyre of a vehicle for the purpose of measuring tyre pressures,

a transmitting device which is connected to the device for measuring the tyre pressures, for the purpose of transmitting tyre pressure signals,

a receiver device for receiving the tyre pressure signals transmitted by the transmitting device,

a processor device which is connected to the receiver device for the purpose of receiving the tyre pressure signals, and

at least one device for measuring driving state parameters which characterize the driving-dynamic states of the vehicle, the at least one device for measuring driving state parameters being connected to the processor device for the purpose of transmitting the driving state parameters,

characterized in that

the processor device is set up to determine, from the tyre pressure signals, tyre pressure variations for the tyres and to evaluate them using the driving state parameters for driving-dynamic states of the vehicle, for the purpose of identifying the tyre at which the device for measuring the tyre pressures is located.

11. System according to claim 10,

characterized in that

the device for measuring corresponding tyre pressures is one of a plurality of devices for measuring the pressure of a tyre, each of the devices for measuring the pressure of a tyre being respectively located at each of at least two tyres which are each respectively assigned to a wheel of the vehicle,

the transmitting device is one of a plurality of transmitting devices, and

each of the devices for measuring the tyre pressures is connected to a respective one of the transmitting devices, the receiver device being set up to receive tyre pressure signals of all transmitting devices.

12. System according to claim 11,

characterized in that

the processor device is set up to determine tyre pressure variations for each tyre at which one of the devices for measuring tyre pressures is located and to evaluate them, using the driving state parameters, for the purpose of assigning the tyre pressure variations to the respective tyre so that each tyre is identified.

13. System according to claim 10,

characterized in that

the device for measuring tyre pressures comprises a pressure sensor.

14. System according to claim 10,

characterized in that

the at least one device for measuring the driving state parameters comprises at least one sensor for measuring driving-dynamic state quantities.

15. System according to claim 10,

characterized in that

at least one of the devices for measuring tyre pressures and the transmitting device has a characteristic identification which is transmitted to the receiver device by the transmitting device at least one of before, after, and isochronously with the tyre pressure signals.

16. System according to claim 12,

characterized in that

the receiver device comprises receiving units which are respectively assigned to one or more of the transmitting devices for the purpose of receiving corresponding tyre pressure signals.