Angular velocity sensor unit and angular velocity sensor diagnosing device

• US 7,677,076 B2
• Filed: 10/06/2005
• Issued: 03/16/2010
• Est. Priority Date: 10/07/2004
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Mosaid Technologies Incorporated (MOSAID Technologies Inc. (f/k/a Conversant Intellectual Property Management))
• Original Assignee: Panasonic Corporation (Panasonic Holdings Corporation)
• Inventors: Takeno, Shoichi
• Primary Examiner(s): CHAPMAN JR, JOHN E
• Application Number:
  US11/664,683
• Publication Number:
  US 20080110259A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,622 Days
• Field of Search: 73/13.7, 73/17.7, 735/041.2, 735/041.6, 701/34
• US Class Current: 73/1.37
• CPC Class Codes: G01C 19/5607 using vibrating tuning forks double-ended tuning forks using planar vibrating masses suspended at opposite ends G01C19/5719

Abstract

An angular velocity sensor unit judging whether there is a failure in both of two angular velocity sensors. The angular velocity sensor unit includes a first angular velocity sensor (12) and a second angular velocity sensor (13), each including an oscillator having a shaft portion and an oscillatory portion. Each of the angular velocity sensors (12, 13) is arranged such that its shaft portion is not in parallel with an XY-plane defined by an X-axis and a Y-axis of three orthogonal axes. The failure of the second angular velocity sensor is judged based on whether or not a detection value of an angular velocity about a Z-axis lies outside a tolerance range of a detection value of the angular velocity about the Z-axis by the other angular velocity sensor, and the failure of the first angular velocity sensor is judged by comparison with a pseudo-calculated angular velocity.

Claims

1. An angular velocity sensor diagnosing device for use in a movable body, the angular velocity sensor diagnosing device comprising:

an angular velocity sensor unit including two angular velocity sensors, each of the two angular velocity sensors including a respective oscillator having a shaft portion and an oscillatory portion, the two angular velocity sensors being arranged such that the shaft portion of each respective oscillator is not in parallel with an XY-plane defined by an X-axis and a Y-axis of three orthogonal axes;

a first failure judging circuit for judging a failure of one angular velocity sensor of the two angular velocity sensors the judgment of the failure of the one angular velocity sensor depending on whether or not a detection value of an angular velocity about a Z-axis detected by the one angular velocity sensor is outside a tolerance range of a detection value of an angular velocity about the Z-axis detected by another angular velocity sensor of the two angular velocity sensors; and

a second failure judging circuit for judging a failure of the another angular velocity sensor by comparing the detection value of the angular velocity detected by the another angular velocity sensor with an angular velocity calculated by a sensor that is mounted in the movable body and derives the calculated angular velocity from (i) a speed of the movable body, (ii) a steering angle of the movable body, and (iii) acceleration of the movable body.

2. The angular velocity sensor diagnosing device according to claim 1, wherein the two angular velocity sensors are arranged such that the shaft portion of each respective oscillator lies in an XZ-plane defined by the X-axis and the Z-axis.

3. The angular velocity sensor diagnosing device according to claim 2, wherein the two angular velocity sensors are arranged such that extensions of the shaft portions of the respective oscillators are orthogonal to one another.

4. The angular velocity sensor diagnosing device according to claim 3, wherein the two angular velocity sensors are arranged such that the shaft portions of the respective oscillators are symmetrically inclined by 45°

with respect to the Z-axis.

5. The angular velocity sensor diagnosing device according to claim 1, wherein the Z-axis is a yaw axis of the movable body, the X-axis is a roll axis of the movable body, and the Y-axis is a pitch axis of the movable body.

6. The angular velocity sensor diagnosing device according to claim 5,

wherein the two angular velocity sensors are respectively arranged in a plane defined by the yaw axis and the roll axis,

wherein a first angular velocity sensor of the two angular velocity sensors is arranged oblique to the roll axis, and

wherein a second angular velocity sensor of the two angular velocity sensors is arranged in parallel with the yaw axis.

7. The angular velocity sensor diagnosing device according to claim 5, wherein the angular velocity sensor unit is mounted on a vehicle.