Brake control system and method
First Claim
1. A method for controlling a brake mechanism of a towed vehicle towed by a towing vehicle, comprising the steps of:
- measuring acceleration of one of the towed vehicle or the towing vehicle in first and second directions using a two-dimensional accelerometer device and establishing first and second acceleration values, the first and second directions being perpendicular, respectively; and
,controlling the brake mechanism of the towed vehicle as a function of the first and second acceleration values, wherein the step of controlling the brake mechanism includes the step of establishing a magnitude of a horizontal component of the acceleration of one of the towing vehicle or the towed vehicle as a function of the first and second acceleration values.
1 Assignment
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Accused Products
Abstract
A system and method establishes an acceleration of a vehicle which may be used to control a brake system of a towed vehicle towed by a towing vehicle. The system and method establish a gravity vector representing acceleration due to gravity, measure acceleration of the vehicle in a first direction and responsively establish a first acceleration value, measure acceleration of the vehicle in a second direction and responsively establish a second acceleration value, and establish a magnitude of the acceleration of the vehicle in a plane orthogonal to the gravity vector as a function of the gravity vector and the first and second acceleration values.
10 Citations
26 Claims
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1. A method for controlling a brake mechanism of a towed vehicle towed by a towing vehicle, comprising the steps of:
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measuring acceleration of one of the towed vehicle or the towing vehicle in first and second directions using a two-dimensional accelerometer device and establishing first and second acceleration values, the first and second directions being perpendicular, respectively; and
,controlling the brake mechanism of the towed vehicle as a function of the first and second acceleration values, wherein the step of controlling the brake mechanism includes the step of establishing a magnitude of a horizontal component of the acceleration of one of the towing vehicle or the towed vehicle as a function of the first and second acceleration values. - View Dependent Claims (2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12, 13, 14, 15, 16, 17, 18, 19)
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20. A system for controlling a brake mechanism of a towed vehicle towed by a towing vehicle, comprising:
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an accelerometer device for measuring acceleration of one of the towed vehicle or the towing vehicle in a first direction and responsively establishing a first acceleration value and for measuring acceleration of the vehicle in a second direction and responsively establishing a second acceleration value, the first and second directions being perpendicular; and
,a controller coupled to the accelerometer device for receiving the first and second acceleration values and for controlling the brake mechanism of the towed vehicle as a function of the first and second acceleration values and for establishing a magnitude of a horizontal component of the acceleration of one of the towing vehicle or the towed vehicle as a function of the first and second acceleration values. - View Dependent Claims (21, 22, 23, 24)
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25. A method for controlling a brake mechanism of a towed vehicle towed by a towing vehicle, comprising the steps of:
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measuring acceleration of one of the towed vehicle or the towing vehicle in first and second directions using a two-dimensional accelerometer device and establishing first and second acceleration values, the first and second directions being perpendicular, respectively; establishing a magnitude of a horizontal component of the acceleration of one of the towing vehicle or the towed vehicle as a function of the first and second acceleration values; and
,controlling the brake mechanism of the towed vehicle as a function of the horizontal component of the acceleration of one of the towing vehicle or the towed vehicle.
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26. A system for controlling a brake mechanism of a towed vehicle towed by a towing vehicle, comprising:
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an accelerometer device for measuring acceleration of one of the towed vehicle or the towing vehicle in a first direction and responsively establishing a first acceleration value and for measuring acceleration of the vehicle in a second direction and responsively establishing a second acceleration value, the first and second directions being perpendicular; and
,a controller coupled to the accelerometer device for receiving the first and second acceleration values and establishing a magnitude of a horizontal component of the acceleration of one of the towing vehicle or the towed vehicle as a function of the first and second acceleration values and for controlling the brake mechanism of the towed vehicle as a function of the horizontal component of the acceleration of one of the towing vehicle or the towed vehicle.
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Specification