Patents by Inventor Michael Lee Zierolf

Michael Lee Zierolf has filed for patents to protect the following inventions. This listing includes patent applications that are pending as well as patents that have already been granted by the United States Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO).

  • Patent number: 7104616
    Abstract: A brake gain based torque controller utilizes commanded torque, measured torque and measured pressure in order to provide brake control for a vehicle, such as an aircraft. According to one particular aspect of the invention, the brake gain-based torque controller is provided for controlling a braking operation of a wheel of a vehicle based on a computed brake gain calculated in real-time. Under normal breaking conditions, command torque is multiplied by the calculated computed brake gain to produce a pressure signal to control the pressure to be applied to the brake.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: July 2, 2003
    Date of Patent: September 12, 2006
    Assignee: Goodrich Corporation
    Inventor: Michael Lee Zierolf
  • Patent number: 6711488
    Abstract: An antiskid brake controller utilizes measured wheel speed to provide brake control for a vehicles, such as an aircraft. The antiskid brake controller controls a braking operation of a wheel of a vehicle based on a wheel speed signal provided by a wheel speed sensor coupled to the wheel. The antiskid brake controller includes a deceleration threshold generator that selects a deceleration threshold based on the ability of the wheel to hold a pilot commanded brake pressure without excessive skidding. The deceleration threshold is a function of a wheel speed reference signal &ohgr;ref.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: May 22, 2002
    Date of Patent: March 23, 2004
    Assignee: Goodrich Corporation
    Inventor: Michael Lee Zierolf
  • Publication number: 20030220731
    Abstract: An antiskid brake controller utilizes measured wheel speed in order to provide brake control for a vehicle, such as an aircraft. According to one particular aspect of the invention, an antiskid brake controller is provided for controlling a braking operation of a wheel of a vehicle based on a wheel speed signal provided by a wheel speed sensor coupled to the wheel. The antiskid brake controller includes a deceleration threshold generator that selects a deceleration threshold based on the ability of the wheel to hold a pilot commanded brake pressure without excessive skidding. The deceleration threshold is a function of a wheel speed reference signal &ohgr;ref.
    Type: Application
    Filed: May 22, 2002
    Publication date: November 27, 2003
    Inventor: Michael Lee Zierolf
  • Patent number: 6178370
    Abstract: An antiskid brake controller which utilizes measured wheel speed in order to provide brake control for a vehicle such as an aircraft. The measured wheel speed is differentiated to determine the deceleration of the wheel, and the controller then compares the deceleration to a predefined deceleration threshold. If the wheel decelerates faster than the deceleration threshold, the controller reduces the command pressure provided to the brakes by a scaling factor. Full command pressure may eventually be applied otherwise. The controller is capable of operating based only on measured wheel speed.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: February 12, 1998
    Date of Patent: January 23, 2001
    Assignee: The B. F. Goodrich Company
    Inventor: Michael Lee Zierolf
  • Patent number: 6125318
    Abstract: An antiskid brake controller utilizes measured wheel speed in order to provide brake control for a vehicle such as an aircraft. The controller estimates the speed of the vehicle via approximation based on the measured wheel speed and a model of the mu-slip ratio curve representing the wheel to running surface friction characteristics. The controller then predicts the slip ratio based on the measured wheel speed and estimated vehicle speed. The difference between the predicted slip ratio and a predefined desired slip ratio is used to drive a modified integral controller segment to achieve maximum obtainable friction. In another embodiment, the controller measures and integrates the applied braking torque in order to estimate the vehicle speed. The estimated vehicle speed is again combined with the measured wheel speed to determine an estimated slip ratio. The controller compares the estimated slip ratio with a predefined desired slip ratio which again drives a modified integral controller.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: February 12, 1998
    Date of Patent: September 26, 2000
    Assignee: The B. F. Goodrich Company
    Inventor: Michael Lee Zierolf