Method for increasing the driving stability of a vehicle

• US 8,437,950 B2
• Filed: 12/22/2003
• Issued: 05/07/2013
• Est. Priority Date: 01/31/2003
• Status: Expired due to Fees

• Current Assignee: Knorr-Bremse Systeme Fur Nutzfahrzeuge GMBH (Estate of Heinz Hermann Thiele)
• Original Assignee: Knorr-Bremse Systeme Fur Nutzfahrzeuge GMBH (Estate of Heinz Hermann Thiele)
• Inventors: Schramm, Herbert, Hecker, Falk, Guecker, Ulrich, Hummel, Stefan, Horn, Matthias
• Primary Examiner(s): Algahaim, Helal A
• Application Number:
  US10/544,307
• Publication Number:
  US 20080208442A1
• Time in Patent Office: 3,424 Days
• Field of Search: 701/38, 701/70, 701/72, 701/124, 280/5.5, 280/5.507
• US Class Current: 701/124
• CPC Class Codes: B60G 2800/0124 Roll-over conditions
• CPC Class Codes: B60G 2800/9124 Roll-over protection systems, e.g. for warning or control
• CPC Class Codes: B60G 2800/922 EBV - Electronic brake force distribution
• CPC Class Codes: B60T 2230/03 Overturn, rollover
• 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 8/17554 specially adapted for enhancing stability around the vehicles longitudinal axle, i.e. roll-over prevention road vehicle drive control systems for roll-over prevention otherwise than by controlling a particular sub-unit B60W30/04
• CPC Class Codes: B60T 8/243 for roll-over protection
• CPC Class Codes: B60T 8/246 Change of direction

Abstract

A method for increasing the driving stability of a vehicle, particularly of a commercial vehicle, which counteracts a vehicle instability by a control intervention in a control system operating the drive and/or the brakes of the vehicle, in which the control intervention occurs as a function of the ratio between the height of the center of gravity of the vehicle and a spring constant of the vehicle suspension.

Claims

1. A method for increasing the driving stability of a vehicle, the method comprising:

determining a ratio between a height h of a center of gravity of the vehicle and a spring constant c of a vehicle suspension; and

performing a control intervention to counteract a vehicle instability with a control system by operating at least one of a drive and brakes of the vehicle, wherein the control intervention is performed as a function of the ratio between a height h of the center of gravity of the vehicle and the spring constant c of the vehicle suspension;

wherein the ratio between the height of the center of gravity and the spring constant is determined while cornering from the following relation;

Δ

s·

c·

b=m·

a_y·

h, where

Δ

s is the difference between the right and left compression travels

c is the spring constant of the suspension,

b is the track width,

m is the mass of the vehicle,

a_y is the lateral acceleration,

h is the height of the center of gravity of the vehicle.

2. The method of claim 1, wherein a difference between a compression travels Δ

s and the lateral acceleration a_y is measured by sensors while the vehicle is cornering.

3. The method of claim 2, wherein if the ratio h/c is high, then one of a permitted lateral acceleration and an overturning limit angle is lowered.

4. The method of claim 2, wherein if the ratio h/c is low, then one of a permitted lateral acceleration and an overturning limit angle is increased.

5. The method of claim 2, wherein if the ratio h/c is high, then one of a permitted lateral acceleration and an overturning limit angle is lowered, and wherein if the ratio h/c is low, then one of the permitted lateral acceleration and the overturning limit angle is increased.

6. The method of claim 5, further comprising:

storing the determined parameters in a non-volatile memory; and

comparing the determined parameters to each other for different payloads, especially unloaded and loaded, so as to allow for a classification of an overturning tendency as a function of a respective vehicle mass.

7. The method of claim 5, further comprising:

storing the determined parameters in a non-volatile memory; and

comparing the determined parameters to each other for unloaded payloads and loaded payloads, so as to allow for a classification of an overturning tendency as a function of a respective vehicle mass.

8. The method of claim 1, wherein if the ratio h/c is high, then one of a permitted lateral acceleration and an overturning limit angle is lowered.

9. The method of claim 1, wherein if the ratio h/c is low, then one of a permitted lateral acceleration and an overturning limit angle is increased.

10. The method of claim 1, wherein if the ratio h/c is high, then one of a permitted lateral acceleration and an overturning limit angle is lowered, and wherein if the ratio h/c is low, then one of the permitted lateral acceleration and the overturning limit angle is increased.

11. The method of claim 10, further comprising:

storing the determined parameters in a non-volatile memory; and

comparing the determined parameters to each other for different payloads, especially unloaded and loaded, so as to allow for a classification of an overturning tendency as a function of a respective vehicle mass.

12. The method of claim 10, further comprising:

storing the determined parameters in a non-volatile memory; and

comparing the determined parameters to each other for unloaded payloads and loaded payloads, so as to allow for a classification of an overturning tendency as a function of a respective vehicle mass.

13. The method of claim 2, wherein if the ratio h/c is high, then one of a permitted lateral acceleration and an overturning limit angle is lowered.

14. The method of claim 13, further comprising:

storing the determined parameters in a non-volatile memory; and

comparing the determined parameters to each other for different payloads, especially unloaded and loaded, so as to allow for a classification of an overturning tendency as a function of a respective vehicle mass.

15. The method of claim 13, further comprising:

storing the determined parameters in a non-volatile memory; and

comparing the determined parameters to each other for unloaded payloads and loaded payloads, so as to allow for a classification of an overturning tendency as a function of a respective vehicle mass.

16. The method of claim 2, wherein if the ratio h/c is low, then one of a permitted lateral acceleration and an overturning limit angle is increased.

17. The method of claim 16, further comprising:

storing the determined parameters in a non-volatile memory; and

comparing the determined parameters to each other for different payloads, especially unloaded and loaded, so as to allow for a classification of an overturning tendency as a function of a respective vehicle mass.

18. The method of claim 16, further comprising:

storing the determined parameters in a non-volatile memory; and

comparing the determined parameters to each other for unloaded payloads and loaded payloads, so as to allow for a classification of an overturning tendency as a function of a respective vehicle mass.