Patents Assigned to Ford Global Technologies, LLC
  • Stowable steering wheel
    Patent number: 10759474
    Abstract: A system includes a processor and a memory storing program instructions executable by the processor to determine that a steering wheel is one of engaged and disengaged with a steering based on a detected deflection of a steering torsion bar. The memory stores instructions to actuate the steering based on the determination.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: April 9, 2018
    Date of Patent: September 1, 2020
    Assignee: FORD GLOBAL TECHNOLOGIES, LLC
    Inventor: Jens Christiansen
  • Method for operating a drive unit comprising an internal combustion engine and an electric machine and drive unit for carrying out such a method
    Patent number: 10759266
    Abstract: The description relates to a method for operating a drive unit comprising an internal combustion engine, which is at least drive-connectable to an electric machine which delivers power to a drive train or receives power, and comprising at least one automatically actuable clutch, wherein the electric machine is at least drive-connectable to a manually shiftable transmission of the drive train, the manually shiftable transmission is shiftable without actuation of a clutch.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: August 28, 2018
    Date of Patent: September 1, 2020
    Assignee: Ford Global Technologies, LLC
    Inventors: Harald Stoffels, Christian Hofmann, Stefan Quiring, Moritz Klaus Springer
  • Systems and methods for cylinder exhaust valve diagnostics
    Patent number: 10760517
    Abstract: Methods and systems are provided for diagnosing degradation of an exhaust valve coupled to an engine cylinder. In one example, a method may include, routing compressed air from an electric booster into a cylinder with the intake valve of the cylinder open and the exhaust valve closed, and indicating degradation of the exhaust valve based on an exhaust airflow relative to a baseline airflow.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: January 5, 2018
    Date of Patent: September 1, 2020
    Assignee: Ford Global Technologies, LLC
    Inventor: Aed M. Dudar
  • Vehicle airbag
    Patent number: 10759376
    Abstract: A vehicle includes a seat having a seat bottom and defining a seat-forward direction. The vehicle includes an interior component. The vehicle includes an airbag supported by the interior component and inflatable to an inflated position having a main body elongated along a vehicle-longitudinal axis and an extension extending from the main body transverse to the vehicle-longitudinal axis in front of the seat bottom relative to the seat-forward direction.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: August 6, 2018
    Date of Patent: September 1, 2020
    Assignee: FORD GLOBAL TECHNOLOGIES, LLC
    Inventors: Pardeep Kumar Jindal, Rahul Makwana, Dinkar Sadashiv Karanth
  • Rear camera lane detection
    Patent number: 10762358
    Abstract: A method for determining lane information includes receiving perception data from at least two sensors, the at least two sensors including a rear facing camera of a vehicle. The method includes determining, based on the perception data, a number of lanes on a roadway within a field of view captured by the perception data using a neural network. The method includes providing an indication of the number of lanes to an automated driving system or driving assistance system.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: July 20, 2016
    Date of Patent: September 1, 2020
    Assignee: FORD GLOBAL TECHNOLOGIES, LLC
    Inventors: Scott Vincent Myers, Alexandru Mihai Gurghian, Ashley Elizabeth Micks, Alexandro Walsh
  • Methods and system for operating an engine
    Patent number: 10760514
    Abstract: Systems and methods for operating an engine that includes a compression ratio linkage for adjusting engine compression ratio are described. The systems and methods provide different ways of diagnosing the presence or absence of engine misfire in response to engine operating regions that may be more or less prone to torsional engine crankshaft vibration. In one example, engine misfire may be determined responsive to force applied to an engine compression ratio changing linkage.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: December 7, 2017
    Date of Patent: September 1, 2020
    Assignee: Ford Global Technologies, LLC
    Inventors: Christopher Paul Glugla, Gopichandra Surnilla, Imtiaz Ali, Lyth Alobiedat
  • Vehicle seat belt retractor
    Patent number: 10759381
    Abstract: A seat belt retractor includes a core having an outer surface, a cover having an inner surface facing the outer surface. and a plurality of tubes between the cover and the core. The plurality of tubes is deformable relative to at least one of the core and the cover. Each tube has an outer periphery. The entire periphery of each tube is movable relative to the outer surface and the inner surface.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: August 20, 2018
    Date of Patent: September 1, 2020
    Assignee: FORD GLOBAL TECHNOLOGIES, LLC
    Inventors: Dean M. Jaradi, Mohammad Omar Faruque, S. M. Iskander Farooq
  • Input signal management for vehicle park-assist
    Patent number: 10759417
    Abstract: Method and apparatus are disclosed for input signal management for vehicle park-assist. An example vehicle includes an autonomy unit for remote parking, a communication module, a sensor, and a controller. The controller is to designate a mobile device responsive to determining the remote parking is inactive and receiving an activation request from the mobile device. When the mobile device is designated, the controller also is to process remote parking signals of the mobile device, stop the remote parking when the sensor detects engagement of a door handle, and prevent processing of other nonemergency requests.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: April 9, 2018
    Date of Patent: September 1, 2020
    Assignee: Ford Global Technologies, LLC
    Inventors: Erick Michael Lavoie, Ali Hassani, Alyssa Chatten, John Robert Van Wiemeersch
  • Vehicle seating assembly
    Patent number: 10759305
    Abstract: A vehicle seating assembly includes an actuation carriage coupled to an underside thereof, a plurality of anchors extending from the actuation carriage, each of the anchors being rotatable about a fixed vertical axis, and a plurality of rollers rotatably coupled to each of the anchors by an axle.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: November 29, 2018
    Date of Patent: September 1, 2020
    Assignee: Ford Global Technologies, LLC
    Inventors: Alan George Dry, Daniel Ferretti, Johnathan Andrew Line
  • Using deep video frame prediction for training a controller of an autonomous vehicle
    Patent number: 10762399
    Abstract: An image predictor is trained to produce a predicted image based on N preceding images captured by a vehicle camera and vehicle controls. A discriminator is trained to distinguish between an image following P preceding images in an image stream and one that is not a subsequent image. A control generator generates estimated controls based on a set of N images and the estimated controls and set of N images are input to the image predictor. A predicted image and the set of N images are input to the image predictor which outputs a value indicating whether the predicted image is accurate. A loss function based on this value and a difference between the vehicle controls and the estimated controls for the set of N images is used as feedback for training the control generator.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: December 18, 2017
    Date of Patent: September 1, 2020
    Assignee: FORD GLOBAL TECHNOLOGIES, LLC
    Inventor: Andrew Wagenmaker
  • Dual use vehicular AC generator
    Patent number: 10763660
    Abstract: A vehicle includes an Alternating Current (AC) source, a receptacle, and a switch. The AC source has a line and neutral potential. The receptacle is carried by a body of the vehicle and includes line, neutral, and ground conductors, and a ground fault interrupter (GFI) circuit. The switch is coupled between the AC source and the GFI circuit configured to selectively short the neutral and ground conductors.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: November 14, 2017
    Date of Patent: September 1, 2020
    Assignee: Ford Global Technologies, LLC
    Inventors: Chih-Lun Wang, Tianbo Xu
  • Integrated power module and capacitor module thermal and packaging design
    Patent number: 10765042
    Abstract: An integrated capacitor and power module include a power module, an intermediate cold plate, and a capacitor module. The intermediate cold plate has a first side attached to the power module and a second side opposite the first side. The capacitor module is attached to a second side of the intermediate cold plate. The capacitor module includes a plurality of metalized film capacitor cells supported by a metal plate and a base cold plate with a layer of thermal interface material between the metal plate and the base cold plate. A fluid circulation system is operatively connected to the intermediate cold plate to circulate a fluid through the cold plate. The capacitor module includes a housing, a plurality of capacitor cells and first and second busbars. Alternating cell arrays have a P-end and an N-end that are inverted relative to each other.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: February 22, 2019
    Date of Patent: September 1, 2020
    Assignee: FORD GLOBAL TECHNOLOGIES, LLC
    Inventors: Fan Wang, Lihua Chen, Joseph Sherman Kimmel
  • Vehicle escape
    Patent number: 10759433
    Abstract: A map, including potential obstacles, can be generated by a computing device in a vehicle. An estimated coefficient of friction between the vehicle wheels and a roadway surrounding a stuck vehicle can be generated based on sensor data. A path can be determined based on the map, and the stuck vehicle can be operated based on the path and a determined slip ratio based on the vehicle wheels to unstick the stuck vehicle.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: May 14, 2018
    Date of Patent: September 1, 2020
    Assignee: Ford Global Technologies, LLC
    Inventors: William Falconer, Zachary Konchan, Leonard Eber Carrier, Erick Michael Lavoie
  • Systems and methods for diagnosing ejector system degradation for dual-path purge engine systems
    Patent number: 10760532
    Abstract: Methods and systems are provided for conducting an ejector system diagnostic under conditions where an engine of a vehicle is not combusting air and fuel. In one example, a method comprises directing a positive pressure to the ejector system while the engine is off in order to communicate a negative pressure with respect to atmospheric pressure on a fuel system and an evaporative emissions system of the vehicle, and indicating that the ejector system is degraded responsive to the negative pressure not reaching a vacuum build threshold. In this way, the ejector system may be diagnosed under conditions where boosted engine operation is infrequent and/or of durations insufficient for conducting such an ejector system diagnostic.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: March 14, 2019
    Date of Patent: September 1, 2020
    Assignee: Ford Global Technologies, LLC
    Inventor: Aed Dudar
  • Method and system for engine oil level sensing
    Patent number: 10760460
    Abstract: Methods and systems are provided for improving engine oil level sensing while a vehicle is moving. The output of a hot wire sensor partially immersed in an engine oil well is sampled during selected vehicle moving conditions when lateral and longitudinal acceleration is limited and the vehicle is driving in a straight line. A transfer function is used to correlate a rate of change in sensor output, sampled during the selected vehicle operating conditions, with engine oil level.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: June 12, 2019
    Date of Patent: September 1, 2020
    Assignee: Ford Global Technologies, LLC
    Inventors: John Eric Rollinger, Joshua Schumaker, Karen Willard, Allison Weir
  • Methods and system for reducing a possibility of spark plug fouling
    Patent number: 10760482
    Abstract: Systems and methods for operating a vehicle that includes an engine and an electric machine are described. In one example, operation of the engine may be adjusted to compensate for conditions when carbon deposits may build on one or more engine spark plugs. The engine adjustments may help to remove carbon deposits from the engine's spark plugs.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: June 18, 2019
    Date of Patent: September 1, 2020
    Assignee: Ford Global Technologies, LLC
    Inventors: Nicholas Herhusky, Scott Steadmon Thompson, John Eric Rollinger, David Lew
  • Water-assisted injection molded cross-car beam
    Patent number: 10759099
    Abstract: A method of forming a cross-car beam is provided. A composite is melted to form a viscous polymer. The polymer is injected into a mold. Pressurized fluid is injected into the mold to evacuate a portion of the viscous polymer from the mold and to form a channel therethrough. The remaining viscous polymer is cooled within the mold to form a cross-car beam.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: March 5, 2018
    Date of Patent: September 1, 2020
    Assignee: Ford Global Technologies, LLC
    Inventors: Dan Busuioc, Bernard Gerard Marchetti, Gary D. Mullen, Nicholas Andrew Mazzocchi
  • Coolant system pressure drop reduction
    Patent number: 10760672
    Abstract: A vehicle system is disclosed. The vehicle system includes an automatic transmission fluid cooling conduit. The automatic transmission fluid cooling conduit includes an inlet portion, an outlet portion, and an elbow portion connecting the inlet and outlet portions and having an inner surface defining a cavity in fluid communication with the inlet and outlet portions. The automatic transmission fluid cooling conduit also includes an oleophobic or hydrophobic coating on the inner surface. The oleophobic or hydrophobic coating is configured to reduce eddy currents in the cavity.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: March 29, 2017
    Date of Patent: September 1, 2020
    Assignee: FORD GLOBAL TECHNOLOGIES, LLC
    Inventors: Myung Ki Sung, Edward Chan-Jiun Jih, Michael W. Degner
  • Vehicle component operation
    Patent number: 10759466
    Abstract: A system includes a computer including a processor and a memory, the memory including instructions executable by the processor to detect a service controller connected to a vehicle, upon authenticating the service controller, receive an operation mode for a vehicle component from the service controller, and actuate the vehicle component within operating limits based on the operation mode.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: October 3, 2017
    Date of Patent: September 1, 2020
    Assignee: FORD GLOBAL TECHNOLOGIES, LLC
    Inventors: Joseph F. Stanek, Douglas Scott Rhode, Wassim Mahmoud Nahle, Michael Adel Awad Alla, Cheri Lyn Hansen
  • Vehicle fuel delivery
    Patent number: 10759652
    Abstract: Data are received indicating an amount of pumped fuel provided to a vehicle fuel tank. A vehicle fuel tank fuel volume is received. Upon determining that a difference between the pumped amount of fuel and a detected change in a fuel volume in the fuel tank exceeds a threshold, a fuel pump is deactivated.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: August 22, 2017
    Date of Patent: September 1, 2020
    Assignee: FORD GLOBAL TECHNOLOGIES, LLC
    Inventors: Aed M. Dudar, Kenneth James Miller, Thomas G. Leone