Trailer presence detection system and method
First Claim
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1. A method of detecting a vehicle trailer adapted to be connected at a hitch of a towing vehicle, the method comprising:
- sensing a first vehicle condition indicative of a movement of the towing vehicle;
sensing a second vehicle condition indicative of an angle of the towing vehicle;
determining a disturbance at the hitch based on data including at least the movement of the vehicle and the angle of the vehicle; and
detecting a trailer presence when the determined disturbance at the hitch is above a threshold.
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Abstract
A system and method of detecting a vehicle trailer. The method includes sensing a first vehicle condition that indicates a movement of the vehicle, and sensing a second vehicle condition that indicates an angle of the vehicle. The method also includes determining a disturbance from the movement and the angle of the vehicle, and detecting a trailer presence when the determined disturbance is above a threshold.
61 Citations
36 Claims
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1. A method of detecting a vehicle trailer adapted to be connected at a hitch of a towing vehicle, the method comprising:
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sensing a first vehicle condition indicative of a movement of the towing vehicle;
sensing a second vehicle condition indicative of an angle of the towing vehicle;
determining a disturbance at the hitch based on data including at least the movement of the vehicle and the angle of the vehicle; and
detecting a trailer presence when the determined disturbance at the hitch is above a threshold. - View Dependent Claims (2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10)
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11. A system for detecting a vehicle trailer adapted to be connected at a hitch of a towing vehicle, the system comprising:
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a plurality of sensors configured to sense respective vehicle conditions, the conditions including a movement and a speed of the towing vehicle;
an estimator configured to estimate a disturbance at the hitch based on data including at least the movement of the towing vehicle and the speed of the towing vehicle; and
a detector configured to detect a trailer presence when the estimated disturbance at the hitch is above a threshold. - View Dependent Claims (12, 13, 14, 15, 16, 17, 18, 19, 20)
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21. A method of detecting a vehicle trailer adapted to be connected at a hitch of a towing vehicle, the method comprising:
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modeling a plurality of dynamics of the towing vehicle;
determining a plurality of hitch force values from the modeled dynamics of the towing vehicle;
summing the determined hitch force values; and
detecting a trailer presence when the sum of the hitch force values exceeds a threshold. - View Dependent Claims (22, 23, 24, 25, 26, 27, 28)
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29. A system for detecting a vehicle trailer adapted to be connected at a hitch of a towing vehicle, the system comprising:
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means for modeling a plurality of dynamics of the towing vehicle;
means for determining a plurality of hitch force values based at least in part on the modeled dynamics;
means for determining a sum of the determined hitch force values; and
means for detecting a trailer presence when the sum exceeds a threshold. - View Dependent Claims (30, 31, 32, 33, 34, 35, 36)
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Specification