Three-wheel vehicle electronic stability system and control strategy therefor
First Claim
1. A three wheel vehicle having:
- a frame,a pair of front wheels, the front wheels being connected to the frame via a front suspension, each of the front wheels having a tire, the tire having a tire grip threshold,a single rear wheel, the rear wheel being connected to the frame via a rear suspension, the rear wheel having a tire, each of the tires having a tire grip threshold,an engine supported by the frame and operatively connected to at least one of the wheels to provide power to propel the vehicle,a braking system including brakes associated with each of the wheels to brake the vehicle,a steering system including a handlebar operatively connected to the front wheels to steer the vehicle,a straddle seat disposed on the frame, the seat being suitable for accommodating at least a driver of the vehicle sitting in straddle fashion,the tire grip thresholds of tires being, for a set of combinations of lateral and longitudinal accelerations that the vehicle may undergo, greater than a wheel lift threshold of a vehicle, such that the vehicle experiences wheel lift before the tires lose grip,a plurality of sensors arranged on the vehicle so as to provide electronic signals related to vehicle information including at least engine speed, engine throttle position, lateral acceleration, and longitudinal acceleration, andan electronic stability system (ESS) including a processor and memory, the ESS being electronically connected to at least the engine, the sensors, and the braking system, the memory including instructions that when executed by the processor;
cause a determination, using information from the sensors including information related to the longitudinal acceleration of the vehicle, information related to the lateral acceleration of the vehicle, and data from the memory, of whether (i) a precursory condition indicative of a wheel lift before the tires lose grip exists and (ii) the tire grip threshold of any of the tires has been exceeded; and
cause a reduction of the longitudinal acceleration of the vehicle by a first amount less than that which would cause the tire grip threshold of any of the tires to be exceeded when a precursory condition indicative of a wheel lift before the tires lose grip exists and the tire grip threshold of none of the tires has been exceeded, thereby increasing an amount of lateral acceleration that the vehicle can undergo before experiencing wheel lift other than by reducing the lateral acceleration of the vehicle.
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Accused Products
Abstract
A method for enhancing stability of a three wheel vehicle having a pair of front wheels and a single rear wheel, each of the wheels having a tire with a tire grip threshold. The method including deploying an electronic stability system (ESS) on the vehicle, providing the ESS with input from various vehicle sensors related to the longitudinal and lateral acceleration of the vehicle, causing the ESS to determine whether (i) a precursory condition indicative of a wheel lift exists and (ii) the tire grip threshold of any of the tires has been exceeded; and when a precursory condition indicative of a wheel lift exists and the tire grip threshold of none of the tires has been exceeded, causing the ESS to reduce the longitudinal acceleration of the vehicle by a first amount less than that which would cause the tire grip threshold of any of the tires to be exceeded.
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Citations
20 Claims
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1. A three wheel vehicle having:
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a frame, a pair of front wheels, the front wheels being connected to the frame via a front suspension, each of the front wheels having a tire, the tire having a tire grip threshold, a single rear wheel, the rear wheel being connected to the frame via a rear suspension, the rear wheel having a tire, each of the tires having a tire grip threshold, an engine supported by the frame and operatively connected to at least one of the wheels to provide power to propel the vehicle, a braking system including brakes associated with each of the wheels to brake the vehicle, a steering system including a handlebar operatively connected to the front wheels to steer the vehicle, a straddle seat disposed on the frame, the seat being suitable for accommodating at least a driver of the vehicle sitting in straddle fashion, the tire grip thresholds of tires being, for a set of combinations of lateral and longitudinal accelerations that the vehicle may undergo, greater than a wheel lift threshold of a vehicle, such that the vehicle experiences wheel lift before the tires lose grip, a plurality of sensors arranged on the vehicle so as to provide electronic signals related to vehicle information including at least engine speed, engine throttle position, lateral acceleration, and longitudinal acceleration, and an electronic stability system (ESS) including a processor and memory, the ESS being electronically connected to at least the engine, the sensors, and the braking system, the memory including instructions that when executed by the processor; cause a determination, using information from the sensors including information related to the longitudinal acceleration of the vehicle, information related to the lateral acceleration of the vehicle, and data from the memory, of whether (i) a precursory condition indicative of a wheel lift before the tires lose grip exists and (ii) the tire grip threshold of any of the tires has been exceeded; and cause a reduction of the longitudinal acceleration of the vehicle by a first amount less than that which would cause the tire grip threshold of any of the tires to be exceeded when a precursory condition indicative of a wheel lift before the tires lose grip exists and the tire grip threshold of none of the tires has been exceeded, thereby increasing an amount of lateral acceleration that the vehicle can undergo before experiencing wheel lift other than by reducing the lateral acceleration of the vehicle. - View Dependent Claims (2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10)
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11. A method for enhancing the stability of a three wheel vehicle, the vehicle having:
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a frame, a pair of front wheels, the front wheels being connected to the frame via a front suspension, each of the front wheels having a tire, the tire having a tire grip threshold, a single rear wheel, the rear wheel being connected to the frame via a rear suspension, the rear wheel having a tire, the tires having a tire grip threshold, an engine supported by the frame and operatively connected to at least one of the wheels to provide power to propel the vehicle, a braking system including brakes associated with each of the wheels to brake the vehicle, a steering system including a handlebar operatively connected to the front wheels to steer the vehicle, a straddle seat disposed on the frame, the seat being suitable for accommodating at least a driver of the vehicle sitting in straddle fashion, a plurality of sensors arranged on the vehicle so as to provide electronic signals related to vehicle information including at least engine speed, throttle position, lateral acceleration, and longitudinal acceleration, and an electronic stability system (ESS) including a processor and memory, the ESS being electronically connected to at least the engine, the sensors, the braking system, the tire grip thresholds of tires being, for a set of combinations of lateral and longitudinal accelerations that the vehicle may undergo, greater than a wheel lift threshold of a vehicle, such that the vehicle experiences wheel lift before the tires lose grip, the method comprising; providing the ESS with information from the sensors related to at least the longitudinal acceleration of the vehicle and the lateral acceleration of the vehicle; causing the ESS to determine, using information from the sensors and data from the memory, whether (i) a precursory condition indicative of a wheel lift exists and (ii) the tire grip threshold of any of the tires has been exceeded; and when a precursory condition indicative of a wheel lift exists and the tire grip threshold of none of the tires has been exceeded, causing the ESS to reduce the longitudinal acceleration of the vehicle by a first amount less than that which would cause the tire grip threshold of any of the tires to be exceeded. - View Dependent Claims (12, 13, 14, 15, 16, 17, 18, 19, 20)
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Specification