Patents Examined by Jerrod Irvin Davis
  • Patent number: 11491998
    Abstract: A method for determining the values of parameters for a controller of a vehicle, wherein respective error measures are calculated for different sets of values and a set of values is selected based on the error measures.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: September 21, 2018
    Date of Patent: November 8, 2022
    Assignee: CONTINENTAL TEVES AG & CO. OHG
    Inventor: Ulrich Stählin
  • Patent number: 11492041
    Abstract: Technical solutions described herein include a method of controlling, in an electric power steering system, a steering angle according to a target steering angle by computing an initial value of an integral control term in a proportional integral derivative (PID) control loop used to calculate a control output signal, such as a motor torque command. The initial value of the integral control term is computed as a negative of the initial value of the feedforward term minus the initial value of the feedback term. The initial value of the integral control term corresponds to an initial value of a control output. Accordingly, the technical solutions described herein facilitate handling non-zero initial condition in Electric Power Steering angle control.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: December 20, 2019
    Date of Patent: November 8, 2022
    Assignee: Steering Solutions IP Holding Corporation
    Inventors: Xingye Zhang, Anthony Champagne
  • Patent number: 11485372
    Abstract: Disclosed herein is an apparatus for controlling standalone-type rear wheel steering (RWS), which includes a vehicle speed detection unit for detecting a vehicle speed by communicating with a sensor installed in a vehicle or an Electronic Control Unit (ECU); a steering angle and steering angular velocity detection unit for detecting steering angles and steering angular velocities of front and rear wheels by communicating with a sensor installed in the vehicle or the ECU; a master cylinder pressure detection unit for detecting a master cylinder pressure by communicating with a sensor installed in the vehicle or the ECU; and a controller for determining braking or turning of the vehicle using the information detected using the sensors or received from the ECU, calculating the amount of toe-in when the vehicle is braking or calculating a rear wheel steering angle when the vehicle is turning, and controlling the RWS based thereon.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: April 11, 2019
    Date of Patent: November 1, 2022
    Assignee: HYUNDAI MOBIS CO., LTD.
    Inventor: Moon Cheon Choi
  • Patent number: 11465683
    Abstract: A steering angle detection device is provided with a plurality of rotation angle sensors and a plurality of control units. The rotation angle sensors are capable of at least continuously calculating a rotation speed while an ignition switch of a vehicle is turned off, and are provided so as to correspond to steering angle calculation units which calculate steering angle based on the rotation speed and a rotation angle acquired from the rotation angle sensors and midpoint information related to the neutral position of a steering member. Power supplies are provided on a per-system basis. The rotation angle sensors or the control units are capable of holding the midpoint information while the ignition switch is turned off. If a power supply abnormality resulting in power supply failure occurs in some of the systems, the control unit of the abnormal system acquires the midpoint information and the rotation speed from the control unit of a normal system when the ignition switch is turned on.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: October 16, 2019
    Date of Patent: October 11, 2022
    Assignee: DENSO CORPORATION
    Inventors: Takaharu Kozawa, Shuji Kuramitsu, Koichi Nakamura, Yuki Watanabe, Atsuko Oka, Toshihiro Fujita, Shuhei Miyachi, Masaya Taki, Toshimitsu Sakai, Katsuhiko Hayashi
  • Patent number: 11459026
    Abstract: Systems and methods for controlling an electric power steering system. The system includes an electric motor configured to provide a torque to a steering mechanism of a vehicle, a torsion bar torque sensor, a vehicle speed sensor, and a steering angle sensor. The system also includes an electronic controller configured to determine a failure of the torsion bar torque sensor, receive a vehicle speed from the vehicle speed sensor and a steering angle from the steering angle sensor, calculate a steering assistance torque based on the vehicle speed and the steering angle, calculate a hysteresis torque based on the steering angle, sum the steering assistance torque and the hysteresis torque to determine a turning torque, calculate a return torque and sum the turning torque and return torque to obtain an output torque, and generate a command for the electric motor to provide the output torque to the steering mechanism.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: May 21, 2020
    Date of Patent: October 4, 2022
    Assignee: ROBERT BOSCH GMBH
    Inventors: Zheng Zhao, Duanxiang Zhang, Arnulf Heilig
  • Patent number: 11426874
    Abstract: Methods and systems for insertion mounting workpieces are provided. In one embodiment, a method is provided that includes acquiring a position of the second fitting part of the receiving component, moving the first fitting part of the workpiece towards the second fitting part of the receiving component until the workpiece is in contact with the receiving component, and rotating the workpiece while pressing the workpiece towards the receiving component. The implementation of the present disclosure may be applied for various types of workpieces and receiving components and may overcome minor deviations of positions between the workpiece and the receiving component during the insertion operation, thereby improving the efficiency of the insertion operation.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: April 30, 2019
    Date of Patent: August 30, 2022
    Assignee: FLEXIV LTD.
    Inventors: Shuyun Chung, Shiquan Wang
  • Patent number: 11427253
    Abstract: The present invention relates to a method for collision avoidance for a host vehicle, the method comprising: detecting a target in the vicinity of the vehicle; determining that the host vehicle is travelling on a collision course with the target; detecting a user initiated steering action for steering the vehicle towards one side of the target; determining a degree of understeering of the host vehicle; when the degree of understeering exceeds a first understeering threshold, controlling a steering control system of the vehicle to counteract the user initiated steering action to thereby reduce the degree of understeering. The invention further relates to an evasive steering system.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: September 16, 2019
    Date of Patent: August 30, 2022
    Assignee: Volvo Car Corporation
    Inventors: Mikael Riikonen, Derong Yang, Martin Idegren, Mats Jonasson, Rickard Nilsson
  • Patent number: 11427209
    Abstract: Methods and systems are provided for updating a relevant vehicle parameter in a vehicle so as to improve accuracy of a vehicle velocity determination. In one example, a method comprises integrating signals of a longitudinal acceleration sensor to obtain a first vehicle velocity and obtaining a second vehicle velocity from a wheel speed sensor between a first and a second reference point, and updating the relevant vehicle parameter as a function of a difference between a slope associated with the first vehicle velocity and another slope associated with the second vehicle velocity. In this way, accuracy of vehicle speed determination via one or more wheel speed sensors may be improved.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: April 30, 2020
    Date of Patent: August 30, 2022
    Assignee: Ford Global Technologies, LLC
    Inventors: John Eric Rollinger, Tyler Kelly, Scott S. Thompson
  • Patent number: 11415995
    Abstract: A control device includes an electronic control unit executes steering control for avoiding a collision with an object that has a possibility of colliding with a host vehicle. The electronic control unit sets a timing when the host vehicle is predicted to pass the object as an end timing of the steering control when the steering control is performed. The electronic control unit determines whether or not a deviation possibility is present when the electronic control unit assumes that the steering control ends at the end timing. The deviation possibility is a possibility of the host vehicle deviating from a current traveling lane accompanying an end of the steering control. The electronic control unit performs reduction processing that reduces the deviation possibility when the electronic control unit determines that the deviation possibility is present.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: April 9, 2020
    Date of Patent: August 16, 2022
    Assignee: TOYOTA JIDOSHA KABUSHIKI KAISHA
    Inventors: Jun Ozawa, Minami Sato, Shinichi Nagata, Hiroshi Izumi
  • Patent number: 11407412
    Abstract: An automatic driving assist apparatus for a vehicle includes: a map information storage unit; an own vehicle position estimator; a route information input unit; a traveling route setting unit; a target path setting unit configured to set a target path to a center of a traveling lane; a road condition acquirer; and an automatic driving controller. The automatic driving controller further includes a branch lane determiner and a target path lateral position change amount calculator. The target path setting unit corrects the target path with a lateral position change amount calculated by the target path lateral position change amount calculator, to set a new target path.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: May 20, 2020
    Date of Patent: August 9, 2022
    Assignee: SUBARU CORPORATION
    Inventor: Masato Mizoguchi
  • Patent number: 11400970
    Abstract: A steering system includes a mechanism configured to turn a steer wheel of a vehicle, a motor configured to generate driving force that is applied to the mechanism, and a controller configured to control the motor according to a steering status. The controller includes a limiting control circuit configured to limit a current that is supplied to the motor to a limiting value, a determining circuit configured to determine whether the steer wheel is in contact with an obstacle by using at least a comparison between a value of the current that is supplied to the motor and a threshold, and a threshold computing circuit configured to compute the threshold that is used by the determining circuit, the threshold computing circuit being configured to compute a value less than the limiting value according to the limiting value as the threshold.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: February 19, 2020
    Date of Patent: August 2, 2022
    Assignees: JTEKT CORPORATION, TOYOTA JIDOSHA KABUSHIKI KAISHA
    Inventors: Isao Namikawa, Koji Anraku, Yusuke Kakimoto, Yoshio Kudo
  • Patent number: 11390318
    Abstract: A motor controller for controlling a motor includes first and second angle sensors detecting motor rotation, and first and second detection circuits detecting rotation number information based on sensor output from the angle sensors. Further, the motor controller includes a steer angle information obtainer obtaining steer angle information involving steering of a vehicle from an external sensor, which is different from the angle sensors, and an abnormality determiner determining abnormality of information that has a matching degree of lower than a preset value when post-conversion information, or value measured by the same characteristics. This information is compared with each other after conversion from the rotation number information and from the steer angle information, and is used by a control amount calculator to calculate a control amount of the motor based on the information determined as having no abnormality by the abnormality determiner.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: December 12, 2019
    Date of Patent: July 19, 2022
    Assignee: DENSO CORPORATION
    Inventors: Koichi Nakamura, Nobuyori Nakajima, Go Endoh, Yosuke Ogi, Atsuko Oka, Shuji Kuramitsu, Takashi Suzuki, Haruo Suzuki
  • Patent number: 11370477
    Abstract: A calculator or an electronic control unit (ECU) calculates an instruction value of a column assist torque and a rack assist torque output from a column actuator, or a column motor, and a rack actuator, or a rack motor, based at least on a torsion torque. The calculator includes a base assist controller, a stabilization controller, and an adder. The base assist controller individually or commonly calculates a base assist torque based on the torsion torque. The stabilization controller individually or commonly calculates a stabilization torque for stabilizing a steering system. The adder performs addition of the base assist torque and the stabilization torque.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: December 3, 2019
    Date of Patent: June 28, 2022
    Assignees: DENSO CORPORATION, NAGOYA INSTITUTE OF TECHNOLOGY
    Inventors: Shuji Kuramitsu, Hiroyasu Otake, Ryo Kano, Yoshifumi Morita, Hironao Watanabe, Takayuki Kato
  • Patent number: 11370479
    Abstract: Disclosed are an apparatus for and a method of compensating for a steering error in an advanced driving assistance system, and the apparatus includes a command steering angle correction module that corrects a command steering angle according to whether or not the command steering angle input from the advanced driving assistance system satisfies a preset error compensation condition; and a motor control unit that controls a motor of a motor-driven power steering system according to the command steering angle corrected by the command steering angle correction module.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: March 12, 2020
    Date of Patent: June 28, 2022
    Assignee: HYUNDAI MOBIS CO., LTD.
    Inventor: Tae Hong Kim
  • Patent number: 11338857
    Abstract: An apparatus and a method are configured for estimating a slope angle of a road. The slope angle of a road is estimated based on a longitudinal slope angle of the road which is calculated based on a Kinematic model, an effective weight corresponding to a control amount of a driver and a filter constant to estimate the slope angle of the road with higher precision in the case of a U-turn, rapid acceleration, or rapid deceleration in which a longitudinal acceleration of the vehicle is remarkably increased. The apparatus includes a controller to estimate the slope angle of the road, based on a longitudinal slope angle of the road which is calculated based on a Kinematic model, an effective weight corresponding to a control amount of a driver and a filter constant, and an output device to output the estimated slope angle of the road.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: April 21, 2020
    Date of Patent: May 24, 2022
    Assignees: HYUNDAI MOTOR COMPANY, KIA MOTORS CORPORATION
    Inventors: Sang Heon Lee, Wan Ki Cho
  • Patent number: 11305813
    Abstract: An emergency steering apparatus of an MDPS (Motor Driven Power Steering) system may include: a steering angle sensor configured to sense a steering angle of a steering wheel; a vehicle speed sensor configured to sense a vehicle speed; an assist rack force detector configured to detect an assist rack force of the MDPS system using the steering angle sensed by the steering angle sensor and the vehicle speed sensed by the vehicle speed sensor; and a command current detector configured to detect a command current of a motor using the assist rack force detected by the assist rack force detector
    Type: Grant
    Filed: June 21, 2019
    Date of Patent: April 19, 2022
    Assignee: HYUNDAI MOBIS CO., LTD.
    Inventor: Tae Hong Kim
  • Patent number: 11247679
    Abstract: A method for the provisional determination of the mass of a motor vehicle, for controlling a starting operation when the motor vehicle is at rest. The method determines the mass of the motor vehicle as a function of inclination information about the motor vehicle or the road on which the motor vehicle is located, and as a function of a force required for releasing an engaged parking lock while the motor vehicle is at rest.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: November 17, 2017
    Date of Patent: February 15, 2022
    Assignee: ZF Friedrichshafen AG
    Inventors: Axel Bloching, Horst Leichsenring