Patents Examined by Helal A Algahaim
  • Patent number: 9296399
    Abstract: A method controls a compressed-air braking device of a rail vehicle in the case of automatic, quick, or emergency braking, said compressed-air braking device having a controlled electropneumatic braking device having brake pressure control, an uncontrolled brake pressure control device for producing an uncontrolled brake pressure, and at least one pneumatic brake actuator. In response to a signal to trigger automatic, quick, or emergency braking, the controlled electropneumatic braking device and the uncontrolled brake pressure control device are activated simultaneously and a first value for the brake pressure produced by the controlled electropneumatic braking device or a first value for a pilot control pressure representing the brake pressure and a second value for the brake pressure produced by the uncontrolled brake pressure control device or a second value for a pilot control pressure representing the brake pressure are compared with each other.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: May 24, 2013
    Date of Patent: March 29, 2016
    Assignee: KNORR-BREMSE SYSTEME FUR SCHIENENFAHRZEUGE GMBH
    Inventors: Stefan Aurich, Torsten Grunwald, Alexander Seidenschwang
  • Patent number: 9298575
    Abstract: A system for drive event capturing based on geolocation comprises an interface and a processor. The interface receives driving data from one or more onboard sensors of a vehicle, and the processor is configured to capturing a drive event based on a geolocation of the vehicle. The capturing of the drive event includes causing storage of driving data associated with the drive event.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: October 12, 2011
    Date of Patent: March 29, 2016
    Assignee: Lytx, Inc.
    Inventors: Roni Tamari, Joshua Donald Botnen
  • Patent number: 9296417
    Abstract: The invention relates to a method of operating a motor vehicle, in which, when at least one predefined driving situation is present, an assigned steering intervention is carried out by a driver assistance system. In advance of such steering interventions, predictions relating to the occurrence of the at least one predefined driving situation are produced as a function of at least one predefined criterion and, as a function of the prediction, at least one operating parameter of the motor vehicle, which is relevant for the steering intervention, is set, before the steering intervention takes place, to a predefined value which is necessary for carrying out the steering intervention. This ensures that when the driving situation takes place, the motor vehicle is in an operating state in which the steering intervention can be executed without interference.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: May 8, 2012
    Date of Patent: March 29, 2016
    Assignee: AUDI AG
    Inventors: André Wesenberg, Michael Redeker
  • Patent number: 9291462
    Abstract: A method for position determination for a motor vehicle includes the acts of: satellite based determination of a geographical position of the motor vehicle, providing digital road map data, which include at least information about road segments in the surroundings of the geographical position; carrying out a first determining step for determining at least a first road segment, on which the motor vehicle is located with high probability, wherein the first determining step is based on a matching of the geographical position with the digital road map data; retrieval of traffic lane data, regarding at least the number of traffic lanes for the first road segment, from the road map database; determining the traffic lane, in which the motor vehicle is currently traveling, by use of at least the traffic lane data; and carrying out a second determining step for determining a second road segment, on which the motor vehicle is located with high probability, wherein the second determining step is based on a matching of t
    Type: Grant
    Filed: February 4, 2011
    Date of Patent: March 22, 2016
    Assignee: Bayerische Motoren Werke Aktiengesellschaft
    Inventors: Axel Jansen, Robert Hein, Roland Bader, Carsten Isert
  • Patent number: 9291471
    Abstract: An in-vehicle information processing device capable of efficiently processing information by extracting an event that exists outside of a travel route but can possibly reach the travel route. The in-vehicle information processing device includes a map database, a traffic information database, a vehicle position determination mechanism, a driving assist information extraction mechanism for extracting driving assist information, and a driving assist information database for storing the driving assist information. An aid information extraction mechanism includes a travel route determination mechanism for determining a vehicle travel route based on a vehicle position. The driving assist information extraction mechanism extracts the driving assist information from map information and traffic information on the travel route.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: November 25, 2010
    Date of Patent: March 22, 2016
    Assignee: Mitsubishi Electric Corporation
    Inventors: Masahiko Ikawa, Yuji Igarashi, Yuko Ota, Takashi Irie
  • Patent number: 9288938
    Abstract: An autonomous vehicle platform system and method configured to perform various in-season management tasks, including selectively applying fertilizer, mapping growth zones and seeding cover crop within an agricultural field, while self-navigating between rows of planted crops and beneath the canopy of the planted crops on the uneven terrain of an agricultural field, allowing for an ideal in-season application of fertilizer to occur once the planted crop is well established and growing rapidly, in an effort to limit the loss of fertilizer.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: March 15, 2013
    Date of Patent: March 22, 2016
    Assignee: ROWBOT SYSTEMS LLC
    Inventors: Kent Cavender-Bares, Charles C. Bares
  • Patent number: 9284044
    Abstract: The invention concerns a device for the active control of a force feedback for a control device, comprising a calculator, a position sensor (3) configured to provide the calculator with an effective position signal (Pm) of the control device, and an actuator (2) ensuring the displacement of the control device at the command of the calculator, the calculator being configured to use the effective position signal and modulate a setpoint current (lc) delivered to the actuator to ensure the position feedback of the displacement of the control device, characterized in that the calculator is further configured to create at least one saturation terminal (Bsat+, Bsat?) according to a predetermined function of the value of the effective position signal of the position/force law kind, and to saturate the setpoint current using the at least one saturation terminal.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: April 15, 2013
    Date of Patent: March 15, 2016
    Assignee: SAGEM DEFENSE SECURITE
    Inventors: Geoffrey Beggiora, Jerome Piaton, Guillaume Mercier, Yann Vendenbaviere
  • Patent number: 9285230
    Abstract: Methods and systems for detecting road curbs are described herein. A vehicle's computing system may receive point clouds collected in an incremental order as the vehicle navigates a path. The point clouds may include data points representative of the vehicle's environment at a given timepoint and include associated position information indicative of the vehicle's position at the timepoint. Based on the associated position information in the point clouds, the computing system may process the point clouds into a dense point cloud representation and may determine features of the representation. The computing system may provide the features to a classification system that is configured to output an estimate of whether the features are representative of a road curb. Based on the output of the classification system, the computing system may determine whether the given data points represent one or more road curbs in the vehicle's environment.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: December 20, 2013
    Date of Patent: March 15, 2016
    Assignee: Google Inc.
    Inventors: David Harrison Silver, David Ian Ferguson
  • Patent number: 9285029
    Abstract: A twin clutch controlling apparatus including a shift motor for carrying out a smooth changeover of a shift stage of a multi-speed transmission having a plurality of gear trains between a main shaft and a countershaft, a twin clutch configured from an odd number stage side clutch and an even number stage side clutch, a clutch actuator for controlling the twin clutch, and a manual operation clutch capacity arithmetic operation section for arithmetically operating, based on an operational amount of a clutch lever, a manual operation clutch capacity arithmetic operation value (tqc1tmt) corresponding to the manual operation. The twin clutch controlling apparatus further includes a manual operation clutch decision section for determining with a clutch capacity of which one of the odd number stage side clutch or the even number stage side clutch the manual operation clutch capacity arithmetic operation value (tqc1tmt) is to be interlocked.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: September 25, 2013
    Date of Patent: March 15, 2016
    Assignee: HONDA MOTOR CO., LTD.
    Inventors: Hiroyuki Kojima, Kazuhiko Nakamura, Kazuyuki Fukaya, Yoshiaki Nedachi, Yasuyuki Mori, Satoshi Honma
  • Patent number: 9278599
    Abstract: A suspension control apparatus includes a damping force adjustable shock absorber disposed between a vehicle body and a wheel of a vehicle and capable of adjusting a damping force to be generated, a vertical movement detection device configured to detect a state regarding a vertical movement of a vehicle, and a controller including: a target damping force calculation section configured to calculate a target damping force based on a detection result of the vertical movement detection device, a correction section configured to calculate a corrected damping force, which is acquired by reducing the target damping force when a relative speed is a low speed between a sprung side and an unsprung side of the damping force adjustable shock absorber, and a control signal output section configured to output the control signal corresponding to the corrected damping force to the damping force adjustable shock absorber.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: September 26, 2013
    Date of Patent: March 8, 2016
    Assignee: HITACHI AUTOMATIVE SYSTEMS, LTD.
    Inventor: Ryusuke Hirao
  • Patent number: 9272701
    Abstract: In an electric-mileage learning when a running mode of a plug-in hybrid vehicle is a CD mode, acquisition of information for the electric-mileage learning is not performed in the case where the running mode is changed from the CD mode to a CS mode during one trip even when the running mode is changed to the CD mode afterward. The electric-mileage learning is performed by calculating a trip electric mileage using only information acquired in the CD mode before a change to the CS mode for the first time. This avoids inclusion of an error caused by running on the uphill road in the CS mode in a learned electric mileage even when the running is performed. This enhances the accuracy of the learned electric mileage, thus accurately calculating a possible EV running distance.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: December 28, 2011
    Date of Patent: March 1, 2016
    Assignee: Toyota Jidosha Kabushiki Kaisha
    Inventors: Mikihisa Arai, Masaya Yamamoto
  • Patent number: 9273613
    Abstract: A method monitoring a servo-control loop, including: estimating monitoring parameters from operating data of the servo-control loop; obtaining indicators from the monitoring parameters; determining at least one signature from values of at least some of the indicators; and detecting and locating a degradation affecting the servo-control loop as a function of the at least one determined signature.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: October 21, 2011
    Date of Patent: March 1, 2016
    Assignee: SNECMA
    Inventors: Christian Aurousseau, Régis Michel Paul Deldalle, Xavier Flandrois, Jean-Rémi André Masse, Aziz Sif, Benjamin Pierre Lamoureux
  • Patent number: 9272888
    Abstract: A machine includes a machine body; a lifting arm assembly coupled to the machine body and carrying a pivotal mounting arrangement adapted to receive a working implement and being moveable between a raised and a lowered configuration; a compensation ram coupled between the machine body and the lifting arm assembly and configured to extend and retract; a tilt ram configured to move the pivotal mounting assembly between a crowd and a dump configuration, the tilt ram having a first and a second chamber; and a first sensor for sensing a hose burst signal, a second sensor for sensing a lift signal; a hose burst protection system such that fluid passes into the hose burst protection system, the hose burst protection system being configured to allow the passage of fluid from the second chamber when there is no hose burst signal.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: November 2, 2011
    Date of Patent: March 1, 2016
    Assignee: J.C. BAMFORD EXCAVATORS LIMITED
    Inventor: Edward Owston
  • Patent number: 9269271
    Abstract: Disclosed is a system and a method for preventing collision through substantial vehicle control while providing warning to a driver by determining collision danger using vehicle information and environment information and controlling vehicle speed with vehicle target speed computed through determination logic.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: November 29, 2012
    Date of Patent: February 23, 2016
    Assignee: Hyundai Motor Company
    Inventors: Hyok Jin Chong, Jin Ho Park
  • Patent number: 9266521
    Abstract: Method for CVT and powertrain control in a kinetic hybrid that integrates two constituent control strategies at the same time, one for the kinetic energy exchange between a vehicle and a flywheel to recover the vehicle's kinetic energy and to cancel the effect of the vehicle's inertia on changes in speed, and one for operating the kinetic hybrid's prime mover on its ideal operation line to optimize efficiency. Two different rates of change in the CVT ratio are computed in real time and are superimposed to realize both strategies. Using the combined rate of change in the CVT ratio derived by the present invention to control the powertrain, the primary power source need not expend a significant portion of its power to overcome the vehicle's inertia, and performance is not compromised.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: July 7, 2014
    Date of Patent: February 23, 2016
    Inventors: Hongping He, Jing He
  • Patent number: 9260107
    Abstract: Systems and methods for improving operation of a hybrid vehicle are presented. In one example, a driveline disconnect clutch transfer function may be adapted in response to engine operating conditions during closing of the driveline disconnect clutch.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: February 25, 2013
    Date of Patent: February 16, 2016
    Assignee: Ford Global Technologies, LLC
    Inventors: Jeffrey Allen Doering, Alex O'Connor Gibson, Dennis Craig Reed, Gregory Michael Pietron, Seung-Hoon Lee
  • Patent number: 9260104
    Abstract: An ECU executes a program including the steps of determining a first value as a detection error when such specific conditions that a most recent IG OFF time period is equal to or longer than a predetermined time period, that motor running has continued since start of running, that a time period of running is equal to or shorter than a predetermined time period, that a square value of a current during running is equal to or smaller than a predetermined value, that a temperature at the time of start of running is within a predetermined range, and that a temperature of an atmosphere is within a predetermined range are satisfied, determining a second value as a detection error when the specific conditions are not satisfied, estimating SOC by using the determined detection error, and controlling drive based on the estimated SOC.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: June 23, 2010
    Date of Patent: February 16, 2016
    Assignee: TOYOTA JIDOSHA KABUSHIKI KAISHA
    Inventor: Junta Izumi
  • Patent number: 9254833
    Abstract: Disclosed herein is a method and system for charging a battery of a hybrid electric vehicle driven with power of an engine and/or a motor, the method including detecting an accelerator pedal position by an accelerator position detector, detecting a brake pedal position by a brake position detector, determining, by a controller, when the vehicle is coasting based on manipulation of the accelerator pedal and the brake pedal; determining when a state of charge of the battery is a charged state having a value equal to or smaller than a set value; and maintaining the engine in a driving state and rotating the driving motor with engine power to charge the battery with generated power of the driving motor when the state of charge of the battery is the charged state having the value equal to or smaller than the set value and the hybrid electric vehicle is coasting.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: December 10, 2012
    Date of Patent: February 9, 2016
    Assignees: Hyundai Motor Company, Kia Motors Corporation
    Inventors: Dongjun Shin, Gum Jin Park, Yong Kak Choi
  • Patent number: 9254363
    Abstract: Structures and protocols are presented for configuring an unmanned aerial device to participate in the performance of tasks, for using data resulting from such a configuration or performance, or for facilitating other interactions with such devices.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: August 31, 2012
    Date of Patent: February 9, 2016
    Assignee: Elwha LLC
    Inventors: Royce A. Levien, Richard T. Lord, Robert W. Lord, Mark A. Malamud, John D. Rinaldo, Jr., Lowell L. Wood, Jr.
  • Patent number: 9254902
    Abstract: An underwater vehicle may include a buoyancy control system configured to use a dual-internal-reservoir configuration to enhance efficiency of changing buoyancy of the underwater vehicle. The buoyancy control system may utilize an incompressible fluid (e.g., oil or water) that is transferred between a first internal reservoir and an external chamber to affect buoyancy of the underwater vehicle. In exemplary implementations, a compressible fluid (e.g., air) may be used to inflate or deflate a second internal reservoir. The second internal reservoir may be disposed within the buoyancy control system so that it can act on the first internal reservoir by applying a compressive force or a tensive force on the first internal reservoir, depending on the pressure differences between the two reservoirs.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: February 11, 2014
    Date of Patent: February 9, 2016
    Assignee: MRV Systems, LLC
    Inventors: James Edward Dufour, Brian Kenneth Newville