Traction control apparatus

• US 8,504,254 B2
• Filed: 12/25/2009
• Issued: 08/06/2013
• Est. Priority Date: 01/08/2009
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Komatsu Ltd.
• Original Assignee: Komatsu Ltd.
• Inventors: Uematsu, Koji, Hatake, Kazuhiro
• Primary Examiner(s): Black, Thomas
• Assistant Examiner(s): LI, CE LI
• Application Number:
  US13/142,038
• Publication Number:
  US 20110270497A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,320 Days
• Field of Search: 701/50, 701 69- 71, 701 74- 75, 701/78, 701 82- 83, 701 89- 90, 180/197, 180/233, 180/244, 303/139, 303/144, 303/151, 303/163, 303/165, 303/113.2
• US Class Current: 701/50
• CPC Class Codes: B60T 2210/16 Off-road driving conditions
• CPC Class Codes: B60T 2270/202 for all-wheel drive vehicles
• CPC Class Codes: B60T 8/175 Brake regulation specially adapted to prevent excessive wheel spin during vehicle acceleration, e.g. for traction control safety devices for propulsion unit control responsive to, or preventing, skidding of wheels B60K28/16
• CPC Class Codes: B60T 8/1769 specially adapted for vehicles having more than one driven axle, e.g. four-wheel drive vehicles
• CPC Class Codes: E02F 9/2083 Control of vehicle braking systems
• CPC Class Codes: F02D 29/02 peculiar to engines driving vehicles; peculiar to engines driving variable pitch propellers

Abstract

An object of the invention is to provide a traction control apparatus capable of suitably controlling an error, if it occurs, between an estimation of a vehicle speed and an actual vehicle speed. A traction control apparatus according to the invention includes a vehicle speed estimator and a driving-force controller. The traction control apparatus includes a vehicle state determiner that determines whether the vehicle speed of the construction vehicle estimated by the vehicle speed estimator and the driving-force control by the driving-force controller are balanced, and a driving-force control changer that changes a driving-force control by the driving-force controller when the vehicle state determiner determines the vehicle speed and the driving-force control to be unbalanced.

Claims

1. A traction control apparatus for an all-wheel-drive construction vehicle, comprising:

a vehicle speed estimator that estimates a vehicle speed, the vehicle speed estimator comprising a rotation speed detector that detects a rotation speed of each of wheels and a reference wheel-speed calculator that calculates a reference wheel-speed based on the rotation speed detected by the rotation speed detector;

a driving-force controller that performs a driving-force control of the construction vehicle based on the vehicle speed estimated by the vehicle speed estimator;

a vehicle state determiner that determines whether or not the vehicle speed of the construction vehicle estimated by the vehicle speed estimator and the driving-force control by the driving-force controller are balanced; and

a driving-force control changer that changes a driving-force control by the driving-force controller when the vehicle state determiner determines that the vehicle speed and the driving-force control are unbalanced;

wherein the driving-force controller comprises a braking mechanism controller that controls a braking mechanism of the construction vehicle, wherein

the braking mechanism controller calculates a slip ratio of each of the wheels based on the rotation speed detected by the rotation speed detector and controls the braking mechanism so that the calculated slip ratio converges to a predetermined target value, and

the vehicle state determiner determines the vehicle speed and the driving-force control to be unbalanced when the slip ratio calculated by the braking mechanism controller exceeds the target value and is kept at a predetermined threshold or more for a predetermined time or more.

2. The traction control apparatus according to claim 1, wherein

the vehicle state determiner determines the vehicle speed and the driving-force control to be unbalanced when a braking control amount of the braking mechanism by the braking mechanism controller is kept at a predetermined threshold or more for a predetermined time or more.

3. The traction control apparatus according to claim 1, wherein

the vehicle state determiner determines the vehicle speed and the driving-force control to be unbalanced when the slip ratios of right and left ones of the wheels calculated by the braking mechanism controller are both at a predetermined threshold or less, and the braking control amount of the braking mechanism by the braking mechanism controller is kept at the predetermined threshold or more for the predetermined time or more.

4. The traction control apparatus according to claim 2, wherein

the construction vehicle is an articulate-type dump truck,

an articulate angle detector for detecting an articulate angle of the construction vehicle is provided, and

the vehicle state determiner comprises a first threshold changing section that changes at least one of the threshold of the slip ratio, the threshold of the braking control amount and an elapsed time for determination in accordance with the detected articulate angle.

5. The traction control apparatus according to claim 2, wherein

the construction vehicle is the articulate-type dump truck,

the articulate angle detector that detects the articulate angle of the construction vehicle is provided, and

the vehicle state determiner comprises a second threshold changing section that changes at least one of the threshold of the slip ratio, the threshold of the braking control amount and the elapsed time for determination in accordance with a change amount of the detected articulate angle per unit time.

6. The traction control apparatus according to claim 2, wherein

the vehicle state determiner determines the vehicle speed and the driving-force control to be unbalanced when at least one of conditions is satisfied, the conditions including:

that the braking control amount of each of the right and left ones of the wheels by the braking mechanism controller is the predetermined threshold or more;

that a total value of the braking control amounts of the right and left ones of the wheels is a predetermined threshold or more;

that a total value of the braking control amounts of all the wheels is a predetermined threshold or more; and

that a total value of a larger one of the braking control amounts of the right and left front ones of the wheels disposed in a front travel direction and a larger one of the braking control amounts of the right and left ones of the wheels disposed backward from the front wheels and braked by the braking mechanism is a predetermined value.

7. The traction control apparatus according to claim 2, wherein

the driving-force control changer changes a driving-force control by setting the vehicle speed estimated by the vehicle speed estimator at the reference wheel speed calculated by the reference wheel-speed calculator.

8. The traction control apparatus according to claim 2, wherein

the driving-force control changer changes a driving-force control by releasing the control by the driving-force controller.