Control device for a wheel suspension system
First Claim
1. A control device for controlling a variable element of a wheel suspension system, comprising:
- a variable suspension element having a variable property interposed between each wheel and an associated part of a vehicle body;
a sensor provided in a part of a vehicle body part adjacent to each wheel for detecting a corresponding dynamic state variable of the vehicle body;
a control unit for controlling the variable suspension element associated with one of the wheels at least according to an output of the sensor associated with a different one of the wheels; and
a base value computing unit that computes a target damping force base value and a correction value computing unit that computes a correction value for a vehicle part corresponding to one of the wheels according to a difference between a vertical speed of the vehicle part corresponding to the one wheel and a vertical speed of the vehicle part corresponding to a different one of the wheels, a target damping force for the vehicle part corresponding to the one wheel being determined from the target damping force base value and the correction value,wherein the dynamic state variable comprises a vertical movement variable of a vehicle body part associated with each wheel, and the control unit controls the variable suspension element in such a manner that a difference between the vertical movement variable of the vehicle body part associated with one of the wheels and the vertical movement variable of the vehicle body part associated with a different one of the wheels may be minimized, andwherein the variable suspension element provides a variable damping force.
1 Assignment
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Accused Products
Abstract
In a control device for controlling a variable element of a wheel suspension system, the variable suspension element associated with one of the wheels is controlled at least according to an output of a sensor associated with a different one of the wheels. The output of the sensor may include a sprung mass speed of a vehicle part associated with each wheel. The variable suspension element may include a variable damping force damper or a variable spring constant spring. Thereby, an undesired response of a vehicle body can be avoided even when a vehicle is subjected to an uneven distribution of wheel loads such as when the vehicle is traveling over a slanted road surface or making a turn.
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Citations
17 Claims
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1. A control device for controlling a variable element of a wheel suspension system, comprising:
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a variable suspension element having a variable property interposed between each wheel and an associated part of a vehicle body; a sensor provided in a part of a vehicle body part adjacent to each wheel for detecting a corresponding dynamic state variable of the vehicle body; a control unit for controlling the variable suspension element associated with one of the wheels at least according to an output of the sensor associated with a different one of the wheels; and a base value computing unit that computes a target damping force base value and a correction value computing unit that computes a correction value for a vehicle part corresponding to one of the wheels according to a difference between a vertical speed of the vehicle part corresponding to the one wheel and a vertical speed of the vehicle part corresponding to a different one of the wheels, a target damping force for the vehicle part corresponding to the one wheel being determined from the target damping force base value and the correction value, wherein the dynamic state variable comprises a vertical movement variable of a vehicle body part associated with each wheel, and the control unit controls the variable suspension element in such a manner that a difference between the vertical movement variable of the vehicle body part associated with one of the wheels and the vertical movement variable of the vehicle body part associated with a different one of the wheels may be minimized, and wherein the variable suspension element provides a variable damping force. - View Dependent Claims (2, 3, 10, 11, 12)
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4. A control device for controlling a variable element of a wheel suspension system, comprising:
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a variable suspension element having a variable property interposed between each wheel and an associated part of a vehicle body; a sensor provided in a part of a vehicle body part adjacent to each wheel for detecting a corresponding dynamic state variable of the vehicle body; a control unit for controlling the variable suspension element associated with one of the wheels at least according to an output of the sensor associated with a different one of the wheels; and a detector for detecting an inclination angle of the vehicle, wherein the sensor further comprises a wheel load sensor for detecting a load acting upon each wheel, and the control unit controls one of the variable suspension elements according to the wheel loads of the corresponding wheel and at least one other wheel, wherein the control unit computes a natural frequency of a vehicle part associated with each variable suspension element by taking into account outputs of the wheel load sensors, and controls at least one of the suspension elements according to the computed natural frequencies of at least one other wheel. - View Dependent Claims (5, 6, 7)
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8. A control device for controlling a variable element of a wheel suspension system, comprising:
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a variable suspension element having a variable property interposed between each wheel and an associated part of a vehicle body; a sensor provided in a part of a vehicle body part adjacent to each wheel for detecting a corresponding dynamic state variable of the vehicle body; a control unit for controlling the variable suspension element associated with one of the wheels at least according to an output of the sensor associated with a different one of the wheels; and a detector for detecting an inclination angle of the vehicle, wherein the sensor further comprises a wheel load sensor for detecting a load acting upon each wheel, and the control unit controls one of the variable suspension elements according to the wheel loads of the corresponding wheel and at least one other wheel, wherein the control unit controls the suspension element in a different mode when the inclination angle detected by the inclination angle detector is greater than a prescribed value.
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9. A control device for controlling a variable element of a wheel suspension system, comprising:
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a variable suspension element having a variable property interposed between each wheel and an associated part of a vehicle body; a sensor provided in a part of a vehicle body part adjacent to each wheel for detecting a corresponding dynamic state variable of the vehicle body; a control unit for controlling the variable suspension element associated with one of the wheels at least according to an output of the sensor associated with a different one of the wheels; and further comprising a detector for detecting a turning movement of the vehicle, wherein the control unit increases a damping force of the damper corresponding to an inner one of the wheels with a prescribed delay after increasing a damping force of the damper corresponding to an outer one of the wheels when a turning movement of the vehicle is detected by the detector.
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13. A control method for controlling a variable element of a wheel suspension system, comprising:
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detecting a dynamic state variable of a vehicle part adjacent to each wheel; and controlling the variable element of the wheel suspension system associated with a subject wheel according to the dynamic variable of a vehicle part of a different one of the remaining wheels. - View Dependent Claims (14, 15, 17)
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16. A control method for controlling a variable element of a wheel suspension system, comprising the steps of:
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detecting a dynamic state variable of a vehicle part adjacent to each wheel; controlling the variable element of the wheel suspension system associated with a subject wheel according to the dynamic variable of a vehicle part of a different one of the remaining wheels; and further comprising detecting a turning movement of the vehicle, wherein the variable suspension element comprises a variable damping force damper, and a damping force of the damper corresponds to an inner one of the wheels being increased with a prescribed delay after increasing a damping force of the damper corresponding to an outer one of the wheels when a turning movement of the vehicle is detected.
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Specification