Tire air pressure monitor device

• US 9,050,863 B2
• Filed: 02/20/2012
• Issued: 06/09/2015
• Est. Priority Date: 05/13/2011
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Nissan Motor Co., Ltd.
• Original Assignee: Nissan Motor Co., Ltd.
• Inventors: Shima, Takashi, Sakaguchi, Kazuo, Terada, Syoji
• Primary Examiner(s): Phan, Hai
• Assistant Examiner(s): Wu, Zhen Y
• Application Number:
  US13/822,117
• Publication Number:
  US 20130169428A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,205 Days
• Field of Search: 340/447, 731/464
• US Class Current: 1/1
• CPC Class Codes: B60C 23/02 Signalling devices actuated by tyre pressure hand-held tyre pressure gauges G01L17/00
• CPC Class Codes: B60C 23/0408 transmitting the signals by non-mechanical means from the wheel or tyre to a vehicle body mounted receiver
• CPC Class Codes: B60C 23/0416 allocating a corresponding wheel position on vehicle, e.g. front/left or rear/right
• CPC Class Codes: B60C 23/0488 Movement sensor, e.g. for sensing angular speed, acceleration or centripetal force
• CPC Class Codes: B60C 23/0489 for detecting the actual angular position of the monitoring device while the wheel is turning

Abstract

When the difference between the first rotating period determined based on detection by the G sensor and the second rotating period Ta determined based on the detected value of the wheel velocity sensor is equal to or smaller than the prescribed value, the rotational position of each wheel corresponding to the wireless signal transmitted at the prescribed rotational position is adopted in determining the wheel position; when the difference is over the prescribed value, the rotational position of each wheel corresponding to the wireless signal transmitted at the rotational position different from the rotational position is not used in determining the wheel position.

Claims

1. A tire pneumatic pressure monitoring apparatus comprising:

a tire pneumatic pressure sensor configured to be installed on a tire of each wheel to detect pneumatic pressure acting on the tires;

an acceleration sensor configured to be installed on the tire of each of the wheels to detect an acceleration in a prescribed direction acting on the tires;

a transmitter arranged on each of the wheels to detect a rotational position of a corresponding one of the wheels based on a detected value of the acceleration sensor, the transmitter wirelessly transmitting the pneumatic pressure at a prescribed rotational position together with a unique information identifier as a wireless signal;

a receiver configured to be arranged on a vehicle body to receive the wireless signals;

a wheel velocity sensor arranged to detect a velocity of a corresponding one of the wheels;

a rotational position computing section arranged on to detect the rotational position of each of the wheels upon the wireless signal containing the unique information identifier being transmitted;

a transmitting position determination section comprising a first rotating period determining section that determines a wheel rotating period of the wheel corresponding to the unique information identifier when the wireless signal is transmitted based on the detected value of the acceleration sensor as the first rotating period, a second rotating period determining section that determines the rotating period of the wheel corresponding to the unique information identifier when the wireless signal is transmitted as the second rotating period based on the detected value of the wheel velocity sensor, and a determination section that validates the rotational position of each of the wheels based on a difference between the first rotating period and the second rotating period for the wireless signal transmitted at the prescribed rotational position when the difference between the first rotating period and the second rotating period is equal to or smaller than a prescribed value, and invalidates the rotational position of each of the wheels based on a difference between the first rotating period and the second rotating period for the wireless signal transmitted at the prescribed rotational position when the difference between the first rotating period and the second rotating period is greater than the prescribed value; and

a wheel position determination section that determines the wheel position of the transmitter corresponding to the unique information identifier based on the rotational position of each of the wheels when the wireless signal is transmitted that determines that transmission is made at the prescribed rotational position.

2. The tire pneumatic pressure monitoring apparatus according to claim 1, wherein

the first rotating period determining section is arranged on each wheel side;

and

the transmitter has the first rotating period annexed to the wireless signal and transmitted.

3. The tire pneumatic pressure monitoring apparatus according to claim 1, wherein

the first rotating period determining section is arranged on the vehicle body side.