Vehicle behavior control apparatus

• US 8,948,951 B2
• Filed: 03/24/2014
• Issued: 02/03/2015
• Est. Priority Date: 03/22/2013
• Status: Expired due to Fees

• Current Assignee: Toyota Jidosha Kabushiki Kaisha (Toyota Motor Corporation)
• Original Assignee: Toyota Jidosha Kabushiki Kaisha (Toyota Motor Corporation)
• Inventors: Kimura, Yukihide, Katsuyama, Etsuo
• Primary Examiner(s): Nguyen, Cuong H
• Application Number:
  US14/222,998
• Publication Number:
  US 20140288745A1
• Time in Patent Office: 316 Days
• Field of Search: 701/22, 903/930, 280/124.125, 280/124.126, 303/189
• US Class Current: 701/22
• CPC Class Codes: B60K 7/0007 the motor being electric
• CPC Class Codes: B60W 10/04 including control of propulsion units
• CPC Class Codes: B60W 10/08 including control of electric propulsion units, e.g. motors or generators
• CPC Class Codes: B60W 10/184 with wheel brakes
• CPC Class Codes: B60W 10/20 including control of steering systems
• CPC Class Codes: B60W 10/22 including control of suspension systems
• CPC Class Codes: B60W 2720/16 Pitch
• CPC Class Codes: B60W 2720/30 Wheel torque
• CPC Class Codes: B60W 2720/40 Torque distribution
• CPC Class Codes: B60W 2720/403 between front and rear axle
• CPC Class Codes: B60W 30/00 Purposes of road vehicle drive control systems not related to the control of a particular sub-unit, e.g. of systems using conjoint control of vehicle sub-units
• CPC Class Codes: Y02T 10/72 Electric energy management in electromobility

Abstract

A vehicle Ve comprises six wheels of front left and right wheels FW1 FW2, middle left and right wheels MW1, MW2, and rear left and right wheels RW1, RW2. Each of in-wheel motors 21-26 is provided/installed in each of the wheels. An electronic control unit 41 calculates a target heave force for controlling a heave behavior, and a target pitching moment My for controlling a pitching behavior, using a state of a movement of a vehicle body Bo obtained from a movement state detecting sensor 43. The unit 41 calculates a driving force and a braking force of the front wheels FW1 FW2 and the rear wheels RW1, RW2, in order to achieve the calculated target heave force and the target pitching moment, and calculates a driving force and a braking force of the middle wheels MW1, MW2 for suppressing a forward-and-backward movement of the vehicle, the movement caused by independently (simultaneously) controlling the behaviors coupling with each other.

Claims

1. A vehicle behavior control apparatus comprising:

a force generating mechanism which makes front wheels and rear wheels of a vehicle generate a driving force or a braking force, independently from each other;

suspension mechanisms, each of which connects each of said front wheels and said rear wheels, both arranged as unsprung articles of said vehicle, to a vehicle body arranged as a sprung article of said vehicle; and

a control section which controls said driving force or said braking force that said force generating mechanism makes said front wheels and said rear wheels generate, in accordance with behaviors of said vehicle body;

wherein,

said force generating mechanism makes wheels provided separately from said front and said rear wheels generate a driving force or a braking force, independently,

said control section;

obtains a state of a movement of said vehicle body when said vehicle is running;

calculates, based on said obtained state of said movement, a plurality of target movement state amounts for controlling at least behaviors which are coupled with each other among behaviors of said vehicle body;

calculates said driving force or said braking force that said force generating mechanism makes said front and rear wheels generate, and said driving force or said braking force that said force generating mechanism makes said wheels provided separately from said front and rear wheels generate, such that a plurality of said calculated target movement state amounts are achieved; and

controls an operation of said force generating mechanism using signals indicative of said calculated driving force or said calculated braking force that said force generating mechanism makes said front and rear wheels generate, and a signal indicative of said calculated driving force or said calculated braking force that said force generating mechanism makes said wheels provided separately from said front and rear wheels generate.

2. The vehicle behavior control apparatus according to claim 1, wherein,

said control section calculates said driving force or said braking force that said force generating mechanism makes said front and rear wheels generate, and said driving force or said braking force that said force generating mechanism makes said wheels provided separately from said front and rear wheels generate, using a distribution which is geometrically determined, based on a geometry among at least said front and rear wheels and said suspension mechanisms in said vehicle, such that a plurality of said calculated target movement state amounts are achieved.

3. The vehicle behavior control apparatus according to claim 2, wherein,

said control section sets, when an operating state of said suspension mechanisms, varying depending on a behavior change of said vehicle body, satisfies a predetermined condition, both said driving force or said braking force that said force generating mechanism makes said front and rear wheels generate, and said driving force or said braking force that said force generating mechanism makes said wheels provided separately from said front and rear wheels generate, at zero, such that a plurality of said calculated target movement state amounts are achieved.

4. The vehicle behavior control apparatus according to claim 3, wherein,

said predetermined condition is a condition which momentary rotation angles should satisfy, each of said momentary rotation angles being indicative of an operating state of each of said suspension mechanisms, and corresponding to a change in height of said vehicle body caused by said behavior change of said vehicle body,

said control section determines to set both said driving force or said braking force that said force generating mechanism makes said front and rear wheels generate, and said driving force or said braking force that said force generating mechanism makes said wheels provided separately from said front and rear wheels generate to zero such that a plurality of said calculated target movement state amounts are achieved, when said momentary rotation angles of said suspension mechanisms satisfy said predetermined condition, said momentary rotation angle being obtained according to said change in said height of said vehicle body while said vehicle is running.

5. The vehicle behavior control apparatus according to claim 1, wherein,

said behaviors which are coupled with each other are a heave behavior in which said front side portion of said vehicle body and rear side portion of said vehicle body vibrate vertically in the substantially same phase with each other and a pitching behavior in which said front side portion and said rear side portion vibrate vertically in the substantially opposite phase to each other;

and

said control section calculates at least a target heave force to suppress said heave behavior and a target pitching moment to suppress said pitching behavior.

6. The vehicle behavior control apparatus according to claim 5, wherein,

said control section calculates said driving force or said braking force that said wheels provided separately from said front and rear wheels are made to generate such that at least said forward-and-backward movement of said vehicle is suppressed, said forward-and-backward movement being caused by said driving force or said braking force that said front and rear wheels generate to achieve said calculated target heave force and said target pitching moment.

7. The vehicle behavior control apparatus according to claim 1, wherein,

said suspension mechanism further connects said wheels provided as unsprung articles, and separately from said front and rear wheels, to said vehicle body.

8. The vehicle behavior control apparatus according to claim 1, wherein,

said wheels provided separately from said front and rear wheels are arranged between said front wheels and said rear wheels, with respect to said vehicle body.

9. The vehicle behavior control apparatus according to claim 1, wherein,

said force generating mechanism includes electric motors, each of which is installed in each of said wheels of said vehicle.