Vehicle stability control system and method

• US 9,352,731 B2
• Filed: 08/28/2013
• Issued: 05/31/2016
• Est. Priority Date: 01/23/2008
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Ford Global Technologies, LLC (Ford Motor Company)
• Original Assignee: Ford Global Technologies, LLC (Ford Motor Company)
• Inventors: Lu, Jianbo, Johnson, Leonard K., Meyers, Joseph Carr
• Primary Examiner(s): Nguyen, Bao Long T
• Application Number:
  US14/012,797
• Publication Number:
  US 20140012477A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,007 Days
• US Class Current: 1/1
• CPC Class Codes: B60K 31/00 Vehicle fittings, acting on a single sub-unit only, for automatically controlling vehicle speed, i.e. preventing speed from exceeding an arbitrarily established velocity or maintaining speed at a particular velocity, as selected by the vehicle operator fittings acting on two or more sub-units B60W30/14; speedometers G01P; systems or devices for controlling speed in general G05D13/00 ; in traffic anti-collision system for road vehicles G08G1/16
• CPC Class Codes: B60T 2201/04 Hill descent control
• CPC Class Codes: B60T 2201/06 Hill holder; Start aid systems on inclined road
• CPC Class Codes: B60T 2230/02 Side slip angle, attitude angle, floating angle, drift angle
• CPC Class Codes: B60T 7/12 for automatic initiation; for initiation not subject to will of driver or passenger limiting speed of vehicles other than rail vehicles B60K31/00
• CPC Class Codes: B60T 7/122 for locking of reverse movement
• CPC Class Codes: B60T 8/1755 Brake regulation specially adapted to control the stability of the vehicle, e.g. taking into account yaw rate or transverse acceleration in a curve road vehicle drive control systems for control of driving stability otherwise than by controlling a particular sub-unit B60W30/02
• CPC Class Codes: B60T 8/17551 determining control parameters related to vehicle stability used in the regulation, e.g. by calculations involving measured or detected parameters
• CPC Class Codes: B60T 8/17552 responsive to the tire sideslip angle or the vehicle body slip angle
• CPC Class Codes: B60W 10/06 including control of combustion engines
• CPC Class Codes: B60W 10/184 with wheel brakes
• CPC Class Codes: B60W 2510/0225 Clutch actuator position
• CPC Class Codes: B60W 2510/0604 Throttle position
• CPC Class Codes: B60W 2510/1005 Transmission ratio engaged
• CPC Class Codes: B60W 2510/186 Status of parking brakes
• CPC Class Codes: B60W 2520/10 Longitudinal speed
• CPC Class Codes: B60W 2520/105 Longitudinal acceleration
• CPC Class Codes: B60W 2520/125 Lateral acceleration
• CPC Class Codes: B60W 2520/14 Yaw
• CPC Class Codes: B60W 2520/28 Wheel speed
• CPC Class Codes: B60W 2540/12 : Brake pedal position
• CPC Class Codes: B60W 2552/15 : Road slope, i.e. the inclination of a road segment in the longitudinal direction
• CPC Class Codes: B60W 2710/0677 : Engine power
• CPC Class Codes: B60W 30/18118 : Hill holding

Abstract

A vehicle stability control system comprises a 5-sensor cluster and a stability controller configured to communicate with the 5-sensor cluster and receive signals corresponding to a lateral acceleration, a longitudinal acceleration, a yaw rate, a roll rate, and a pitch rate from the 5-sensor cluster. The stability controller can also be configured to determine a braking amount or a throttle amount to maintain vehicle stability. The system also comprises a brake controller configured to communicate with the stability controller and receive a braking request from the stability controller, and a throttle controller configured to communicate with the stability controller and receive a throttle request from the stability controller. The system may also comprise a braking or throttling command computed based on various scenarios detected by measured and calculated signals.

Claims

1. A vehicle stability control system, comprising:

a 5-sensor cluster;

a stability controller configured to communicate with the 5-sensor cluster and receive signals corresponding to a lateral acceleration, a longitudinal acceleration, a yaw rate, a roll rate, and a pitch rate from the 5-sensor cluster, the stability controller also configured to determine a braking amount or a throttle amount to maintain vehicle stability;

a brake controller configured to communicate with the stability controller and receive a braking request from the stability controller; and

a throttle controller configured to communicate with the stability controller and selectively and independently receive decrease throttle requests and increase throttle requests from the stability controller.

2. The vehicle stability control system of claim 1, wherein the stability controller is configured to receive signals corresponding to a sideslip angle, a vehicle longitudinal velocity, wheel speeds, a throttle input, a transmission status, and a brake status.

3. The vehicle stability control system of claim 2, wherein the stability controller is configured to receive signals corresponding to a clutch status.

4. The vehicle stability control system of claim 2, wherein the brake status includes a foot brake status and a parking brake status.

5. The vehicle stability control system of claim 1, wherein the stability controller comprises a state estimator.

6. The vehicle stability control system of claim 5, wherein the state estimator is configured to receive signals corresponding to the lateral acceleration, the longitudinal acceleration, the yaw rate, the roll rate, and the pitch rate from the 5-sensor cluster.

7. The vehicle stability control system of claim 6, wherein the state estimator is configured to determine road grade based on inputs from the 5-sensor cluster.

8. The vehicle stability control system of claim 7, wherein the state estimator is configured to use the road grade to determine whether the vehicle'"'"'s throttle or brakes should be activated via the throttle request or braking request, respectively.

9. The vehicle stability control system of claim 1, wherein the stability controller is configured to detect a vehicle sliding into a loss of control.

10. A vehicle stability control system, comprising:

a sensor cluster; and

a state estimator configured to receive signals from the sensor cluster and to calculate a pitch angle of a vehicle based on the signals to determine a road grade of a road on which the vehicle is traveling,

the state estimator being configured to selectively issue an increase throttle request to maintain vehicle stability based on the determined road grade.

11. The system of claim 10, wherein the state estimator is further configured to receive signals corresponding to a lateral acceleration, a longitudinal acceleration, a yaw rate, a roll rate, and a pitch rate from the sensor cluster.

12. The system of claim 10, wherein the state estimator forms part of a stability controller, wherein the stability controller is configured to receive signals corresponding to a sideslip angle, a vehicle longitudinal velocity, wheel speeds, a throttle input, a transmission status, and a brake status of the vehicle.

13. The system of claim 10, wherein the state estimator is further configured to selectively issue a decrease throttle request to maintain vehicle stability based on the determined road grade.

14. The system of claim 13, wherein the state estimator is further configured to selectively issue a decrease braking request or an increase braking request to maintain vehicle stability based on the determined road grade.