APPARATUS FOR ESTIMATING VEHICLE MASS USING TIRE AIR PRESSURE AND METHOD THEREOF

• US 20160153827A1
• Filed: 11/25/2015
• Published: 06/02/2016
• Est. Priority Date: 11/27/2014
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Hyundai AutoEver Corp. (Hyundai Mobis Co., Ltd.)
• Original Assignee: Hyundai Autron Co., Ltd. (Hyundai Mobis Co., Ltd.)
• Inventors: HAM, Seung-Geun, SHIN, Seung-Hwan
• Granted Patent: US 10,352,758 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• CPC Class Codes: G01G 19/08 for incorporation in vehicles
• CPC Class Codes: G01G 5/006 with pneumatic means

Abstract

Provided are an apparatus for estimating vehicle mass using tire air pressure and a method thereof, the apparatus for estimating the vehicle mass including: an air pressure determining unit; a speed measuring unit; a data storing unit; an error calculating unit; and a mass calculating unit.

Claims

1. An apparatus for estimating vehicle mass using tire air pressure, the apparatus comprising:

an air pressure determining unit configured to acquire a vehicle speed and tire air pressure of front wheels and rear wheels of a vehicle and determine whether the acquired tire air pressure is included in a predetermined air pressure range;

a speed measuring unit configured to measure wheel speeds of the front wheels and the rear wheels of the vehicle when the tire air pressure is in the predetermined air pressure range, respectively;

a data storing unit configured to store a predetermined air pressure range, a wheel speed difference map for each vehicle tire characteristic, and a mass map for each vehicle speed;

an error calculating unit configured to calculate a wheel speed difference of the front wheel and the rear wheel measured in the speed measuring unit and calculate an error by comparing the calculated wheel speed difference of the front wheel and the rear wheel with a wheel speed difference according to a wheel speed difference map for each vehicle tire characteristic pre-stored in the data storing unit; and

a mass calculating unit configured to calculate vehicle mass corresponding to the error between the calculated wheel speed differences by using a mass map for each vehicle speed pre-stored in the data storing unit.

2. The apparatus of claim 1, wherein the air pressure determining unit determines that the acquired tire air pressure is included in the predetermined air pressure range when the acquired air pressure belongs to the predetermined air pressure range and a difference between a maximum and a minimum of the acquired air pressure is within the predetermined air pressure.

3. The apparatus of claim 1, wherein the error calculating unit calculates average speeds of the front wheels and the rear wheels, respectively, and calculates a difference between the calculated average speeds of the front wheels and the rear wheels.

4. The apparatus of claim 1, wherein the error calculating unit calculates a wheel speed difference between the front wheel and the rear wheel of the vehicle corresponding to the acquired vehicle speed by using a wheel speed difference map for each vehicle tire pre-stored in the data storing unit and calculates an error by comparing the calculated wheel speed difference of the front wheel and the rear wheel with the wheel speed difference between the front wheel and the rear wheel of the vehicle calculated by using the wheel speed difference map for each vehicle tire.

5. The apparatus of claim 1, wherein the data storing unit stores the wheel speed difference map for each vehicle speed in which the vehicle speed according to a vehicle tire characteristic and the wheel speed difference between the front wheel and the rear wheel of the vehicle are mapped.

6. The apparatus of claim 1, wherein the data storing unit stores a mass map for each vehicle speed in which the error between the wheel speed differences according to the vehicle speed and the vehicle mass are mapped.

7. The apparatus of claim 1, wherein the vehicle tire characteristic is a tire characteristic in which one or more characteristics of a tire type, a tire size, a tire mass, a tire use, and tire manufacturing information are combined.

8. A method for estimating vehicle mass using tire air pressure, the method comprising:

acquiring a vehicle speed and tire air pressure of front wheels and rear wheels of a vehicle;

determining whether the acquired tire air pressure is included in a predetermined air pressure range;

measuring wheel speeds of the front wheels and the rear wheels of the vehicle when the tire air pressure is in the predetermined air pressure range, respectively;

calculating the measured wheel speed difference between the front wheel and the rear wheel;

calculating an error by comparing the calculated wheel speed difference of the front wheel and the rear wheel with a wheel speed difference according to a pre-stored wheel speed difference map for each vehicle tire characteristic; and

calculating vehicle mass corresponding to the error between the calculated wheel speed differences by using a pre-stored mass map for each vehicle speed.

9. The method of claim 8, wherein in the determining of whether the acquired tire air pressure is in the predetermined normal air pressure range, it is determined that the acquired tire air pressure is included in the predetermined air pressure range when the acquired air pressure belongs to the predetermined air pressure range and a difference between a maximum and a minimum of the acquired air pressure is within the predetermined air pressure.

10. The method of claim 8, wherein in the calculating of the wheel speed difference, average speeds of the front wheels and the rear wheels are calculated, respectively, and a difference between the calculated average speeds of the front wheels and the rear wheels is calculated.

11. The method of claim 8, wherein the calculating of the error includes:

calculating a wheel speed difference between the front wheel and the rear wheel of the vehicle corresponding to the acquired vehicle speed by using the pre-stored wheel speed difference map for each vehicle tire; and

calculating an error by comparing the calculated wheel speed difference of the front wheel and the rear wheel with the wheel speed difference between the front wheel and the rear wheel of the vehicle calculated by using the wheel speed difference map for each vehicle tire.

12. The method of claim 8, wherein in the pre-stored wheel speed difference map for each vehicle speed, the vehicle speed according to a vehicle tire characteristic and the wheel speed difference between the front wheel and the rear wheel of the vehicle are mapped.

13. The method of claim 8, wherein in the pre-stored mass map for each vehicle speed, the error between the wheel speed differences according to the vehicle speed and the vehicle mass are mapped.