Steering apparatus
First Claim
1. An apparatus for use in turning steerable wheels of a vehicle upon manual rotation of a hand wheel, said apparatus comprising:
- a front steering gear connected with front steerable wheels of the vehicle, said front steering gear being operable to turn the front steerable wheels of the vehicle upon manual rotation of the hand wheel;
a rear steering gear connected with rear steerable wheels of the vehicle, said rear steering gear being operable to turn the rear steerable wheels upon manual rotation of the hand wheel;
a sensor for sensing a parameter related to the steering of said front steerable wheels; and
a controller which is operatively connected with said sensor and said rear steering gear, said controller being operable in response to the sensed parameter to effect operation of said rear steering gear to maintain a predetermined kinematic relationship between the front steerable wheels and the rear steerable wheels throughout a first range of turning movement of the front steerable wheels. the kinematic relationship being such that the front steerable wheels have a first angular relationship with the rear steerable wheels that remains the same throughout the first range of turning movement of the front steerable wheels,said controller being operable to effect of operation of said rear steering gear to oversteer the rear steerable wheels in response to an output from said sensor corresponding to at least a predetermined torque applied to the hand wheel which occurs when turning of the front steerable wheels during a second range of movement near a mechanical end of their range of turning movement.
3 Assignments
0 Petitions
Accused Products
Abstract
An apparatus for use in turning steerable vehicle wheels upon manual rotation of a hand wheel includes a torque sensor connected with a torque sensor and a rear steering gear. The controller selectively controls the rear steering gear in response to an output from the torque sensor upon manual application of at least a predetermined torque to the hand wheel. The controller selectively controls the rear steering gear in response to the output from the torque sensor through a first range of turning movement of the front wheels so that the steering angle of the rear wheels has a first relationship to the steering angle of the front wheels and through a second range of turning movement of the front wheels so that the steering angle of the rear wheels has a second relationship different from the first relationship.
29 Citations
16 Claims
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1. An apparatus for use in turning steerable wheels of a vehicle upon manual rotation of a hand wheel, said apparatus comprising:
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a front steering gear connected with front steerable wheels of the vehicle, said front steering gear being operable to turn the front steerable wheels of the vehicle upon manual rotation of the hand wheel; a rear steering gear connected with rear steerable wheels of the vehicle, said rear steering gear being operable to turn the rear steerable wheels upon manual rotation of the hand wheel; a sensor for sensing a parameter related to the steering of said front steerable wheels; and a controller which is operatively connected with said sensor and said rear steering gear, said controller being operable in response to the sensed parameter to effect operation of said rear steering gear to maintain a predetermined kinematic relationship between the front steerable wheels and the rear steerable wheels throughout a first range of turning movement of the front steerable wheels. the kinematic relationship being such that the front steerable wheels have a first angular relationship with the rear steerable wheels that remains the same throughout the first range of turning movement of the front steerable wheels, said controller being operable to effect of operation of said rear steering gear to oversteer the rear steerable wheels in response to an output from said sensor corresponding to at least a predetermined torque applied to the hand wheel which occurs when turning of the front steerable wheels during a second range of movement near a mechanical end of their range of turning movement. - View Dependent Claims (2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10)
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11. An apparatus for use in turning steerable wheels of a vehicle upon manual rotation of a hand wheel, said apparatus Comprising:
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a front steering gear connected with front steerable wheels of the vehicle, said front steering gear being operable to turn the front steerable wheels of the vehicle upon manual rotation of the hand wheel; a rear steering gear connected with rear steerable wheels of the vehicle, said rear steering gear being operable to turn the rear steerable wheels upon manual rotation of the hand wheel; a sensor for sensing a parameter related to the steering of said front steerable wheels; and a controller which is operatively connected with said sensor and said rear steering gear, said controller being operable in response to the sensed parameter to effect operation of said rear steering gear to maintain a predetermined kinematic relationship between the front steerable wheels and the rear steerable wheels throughout a first range of turning movement of the front steerable wheels, wherein the kinematic relationship has the following equation;
RA=K1HA+K2HT, where RA=turning angle of the rear steerable wheels, HA=rotational magnitude of the hand wheel, HT=operator torque applied to the hand wheel, and K1 and K2 are constant values.
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12. An apparatus for use in turning steerable vehicle wheels upon manual rotation of a hand wheel, said apparatus comprising:
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a front steering gear connected with steerable front wheels of the vehicle, said front steering gear being operable to turn the steerable front wheels of the vehicle upon manual rotation of the hand wheel; a rear steering gear connected with steerable rear wheels of the vehicle; a torque sensor connected with the hand wheel; and a controller which is connected with said torque sensor and rear steering gear, said controller selectively controlling said rear steering gear in response to an output from said torque sensor upon manual application of at least a predetermined torque to the hand wheel, said torque sensor having an output which corresponds to a torque which is less than the predetermined torque throughout turning of the steerable front wheels through a first range of turning movement, said torque sensor having an output which corresponds to a torque which is at least as great as the predetermined torque which occurs when turning of the steerable front wheels during a second range of turning movement of the front steerable wheels, said controller selectively controlling said rear steering gear in response to the output from said torque sensor through the first range of turning movement of the said front steerable wheels so that that steering angle of the rear steerable wheels has a first relationship to the steering angle of the front steerable wheels, said controller selectively controlling said rear steering gear in response to the output from said torque sensor through the second range of turning movement of said front steerable wheels so that the steering angle of the rear steerable wheels has a second relationship to the steering angle of the front steerable wheels different from the first relationship. - View Dependent Claims (13, 14, 15, 16)
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Specification