Patents Examined by Kevin R Steckbauer
  • Patent number: 12221087
    Abstract: A method and device for determining a possible deceleration variable of a brake system of a vehicle, wherein the brake system has at least one brake, includes providing a possible control variable value that corresponds to an actual control variable value that can be set by the brake system, wherein the at least one brake is designed to generate a deceleration variable in response to a control variable of said actual control variable value; providing a brake system model that is designed to determine a deceleration variable of the at least one brake from an input control variable value; inputting the possible control variable value into the brake system model; and determining a possible deceleration variable of the at least one brake that corresponds to the possible control variable value by way of the brake system model.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: August 5, 2022
    Date of Patent: February 11, 2025
    Assignee: KNORR-BREMSE Systeme fuer Nutzfahrzeuge GmbH
    Inventors: Daniel Geis-Esser, Tobias Schoefberger
  • Patent number: 12221156
    Abstract: A vehicle parking control device includes a data collection module that collects vehicle data, and at least one processor electrically connected to the data collection module, wherein the at least one processor may obtain the vehicle data through the data collection module, determine whether a vehicle satisfies a first parking condition based on location information of the vehicle included in the vehicle data, determine whether the vehicle satisfies a second parking condition, based on state information of the vehicle included in the vehicle data when the vehicle satisfies the first parking condition, activate a parking mode when the vehicle satisfies the second parking condition, and control the vehicle according to the parking mode. It is possible to prevent accidents and enhance the driver's convenience by controlling the behavior of the vehicle during parking.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: November 1, 2022
    Date of Patent: February 11, 2025
    Assignees: Hyundai Motor Company, Kia Corporation
    Inventor: Seung Hun Noh
  • Patent number: 12214831
    Abstract: A turning control device includes a precursor detection circuit configured to detect a precursor of an abnormality by which a smooth operation of a turning device is impaired. The precursor detection circuit is configured to start measurement of a total running time of a vehicle when the precursor is detected, and is configured to execute a process of reporting the precursor, based on the measured total running time. The precursor detection circuit is configured to perform the measurement of the total running time regardless of whether the precursor is detected again, when a vehicle electric power source is switched off and then is switched on again after the precursor is detected once.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: January 24, 2023
    Date of Patent: February 4, 2025
    Assignees: JTEKT CORPORATION, TOYOTA JIDOSHA KABUSHIKI KAISHA
    Inventors: Takashi Koudai, Yuji Fujita, Yugo Nagashima, Kazuma Hasegawa, Yuuta Kajisawa, Masaharu Yamashita, Yosuke Yamashita, Kazuaki Iida, Shintaro Takayama
  • Patent number: 12208792
    Abstract: The present disclosure relates to a steering control apparatus and a method. More specifically, the steering control apparatus according to the present disclosure includes: a receiver that receives first vehicle traveling information and first vehicle vicinity information of a host vehicle from a plurality of sensors and a navigator; and a controller that sets a monitoring range (a region of interest (ROI)) on a traveling path on which the host vehicle is predicted to travel based on the first vehicle traveling information and the first vehicle vicinity information, determines a possibility of a collision between the host vehicle and an object in a case where the object is detected inside the monitoring range, and generates a control signal used for avoiding a collision with the object in a case where the possibility of the collision is a threshold point or higher.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: August 18, 2022
    Date of Patent: January 28, 2025
    Assignee: HL KLEMOVE CORP.
    Inventor: DongWoong Lee
  • Patent number: 12209004
    Abstract: An initial setting method of an unmanned forklift is an initial setting method when the unmanned forklift is introduced in a facility including a rack structure, which includes placing a palette for adjustment on a palette placing part of the rack structure using the unmanned forklift on the basis of a preset operation program, acquiring relative position information between the palette for adjustment and the rack structure using a position information acquisition part included in the palette for adjustment, and calculating the shift amount of the palette for adjustment placed on the rack structure with respect to the palette placing part on the basis of the relative position information.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: October 25, 2022
    Date of Patent: January 28, 2025
    Assignee: MITSUBISHI LOGISNEXT CO., LTD.
    Inventors: Naoto Kawauchi, Kensuke Futahashi, Noriyuki Hasegawa, Masayuki Ishikawa, Atsushi Minobe, Masafumi Monchi, Kenji Nakayama, Kazuaki Okai
  • Patent number: 12210362
    Abstract: The invention relates to a method for confirming an execution of a command for reducing electrical power consumption of at least one passenger transport vehicle. The method may include sending a consumption reduction command signal to the regulation system of each vehicle. The command signal may be modulated by a reference signal. The method also may include obtaining a signal of the power consumed by the air conditioning system(s) of the set of vehicles in response to the reference signal, and confirming execution of the consumption reduction command according to characteristics of the signal of power consumed by the air conditioning system(s) of the set of vehicles.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: October 21, 2020
    Date of Patent: January 28, 2025
    Assignee: Wabtec Hauts-de-France
    Inventor: Philippe Aubin
  • Patent number: 12202558
    Abstract: In at least some implementations, a method of controlling assist in a power steering system, includes determining a rate of movement of a steering input over a period of time, determining a rate of vehicle speed over the period of time, and controlling an electric power steering assist actuator as a function of one or both of the rate of movement of the steering input and the rate of vehicle speed. The rate of movement of the steering input is determined using a higher number of output signals from a steering angle sensor when one or both of the rate of vehicle speed is lower and the rate of movement of the steering input is lower, than when one or both of the rate of vehicle speed is greater and the rate of movement of the steering input is greater.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: December 21, 2022
    Date of Patent: January 21, 2025
    Assignee: FCA US LLC
    Inventors: Patrick L Frahm, Prathmesh S Jambhale
  • Patent number: 12179854
    Abstract: According to the disclosure, the steering control device and method may enhance the driver's steering feeling by correcting the steering torque due to a difference in linear distance despite a difference in the linear distance from the rotation axis according to the position of the pressure applied to the steering wheel shaped so that the linear distance from the rotation axis increases/decreases.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: June 2, 2022
    Date of Patent: December 31, 2024
    Assignee: HL MANDO CORPORATION
    Inventor: SeungWoo Cheon
  • Patent number: 12180047
    Abstract: A forklift truck includes a main controller, a driving motor, a drive controller, and an object detector. The drive controller controls the driving motor. The object detector detects the position of an object being present in the backward direction of the forklift truck. The main controller derives an expected trajectory of the forklift truck. The main controller imposes a speed limit on the forklift truck by setting a vehicle speed upper limit when the object detected by the object detector is located within the expected trajectory and the forklift truck is traveling in the direction of approaching the object. The main controller gives commands to the drive controller to prevent the vehicle speed of the forklift truck from exceeding the vehicle speed upper limit.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: November 12, 2020
    Date of Patent: December 31, 2024
    Assignee: KABUSHIKI KAISHA TOYOTA JIDOSHOKKI
    Inventors: Takehiro Kubotani, Taku Mizuki, Tomoya Igarashi
  • Patent number: 12179856
    Abstract: Methods and apparatus to determine rack force are disclosed. An example apparatus includes a rack to couple to a steering knuckle of a vehicle, a ball nut engaged with the rack, a first ring gear coupled to the ball nut, a first pinion fixed to a motor, the first pinion engaged with the first ring gear, the motor to rotate the ball nut to move the rack, a motor encoder to detect a rotation of the first pinion, a second ring gear coupled to the ball nut, and a sensor fixed to a second pinion, the second pinion engaged with the second ring gear, the second pinion to rotate as the second ring gear rotates, the sensor to detect a rotation of the second pinion, the rotation of the second pinion and the rotation of the first pinion corresponding to a force on the rack.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: November 22, 2023
    Date of Patent: December 31, 2024
    Assignee: Ford Global Technologies, LLC
    Inventor: Joseph Washnock
  • Patent number: 12179588
    Abstract: Disclosed are a drunk driving prevention system and a drunk driving prevention method using the system that includes a sensor module measuring the alcohol content in exhaled breath of a driver at the time of breath-checking of the driver and a control module configured to check an intoxication state of the driver based on the alcohol content measured by the sensor module to determine whether or not a breath-checking is complete and block an engine start when the breath-checking fails, wherein the control module includes a bypass control unit switching a vehicle into a drivable state when the breath-checking fails.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: July 29, 2022
    Date of Patent: December 31, 2024
    Assignee: HYUNDAI MOBIS CO., LTD.
    Inventors: Yu Jin Jung, Chang Won Lee, June Seung Lee, Yeon Su Kim
  • Patent number: 12180905
    Abstract: A vehicle including an air intake system including an air snorkel that is configured to provide air to the engine, a brake duct configured for receipt of ambient air located exterior to the vehicle and to direct the ambient air to a brake assembly to cool the brake assembly, an auxiliary duct having a first end coupled to the brake duct and a second end coupled to the air snorkel, and a valve located between the auxiliary duct and the brake duct. The valve is configured to permit the ambient air to cool the brake assembly when the valve is in an open position, and the valve is configured to permit the ambient air to enter the auxiliary duct and travel to the air intake system when the valve is in the closed position.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: November 1, 2023
    Date of Patent: December 31, 2024
    Assignee: FCA US LLC
    Inventors: Sreekanth Surapaneni, Suresh Vemuri
  • Patent number: 12179736
    Abstract: A vehicle for agricultural use has wheel groups, an engine group, an engine control unit, auxiliary operating groups, a gearbox group, a power take-off group, and a detection system having an engine power detector for detecting an engine power value, an auxiliary power detector for detecting an auxiliary power value, a drive power detector for detecting a drive power value, and an operating unit operatively connected to the detectors to receive the engine power value, auxiliary power value, and drive power value and suitable for identifying a take-off power value corresponding to power used by the power take-off group. The operating unit checks the drive power value with respect to a drive threshold value and/or the power take-off power value with respect to a power take-off threshold value and is connected to the engine control unit to control supply of the engine group as a function of check results.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: March 9, 2022
    Date of Patent: December 31, 2024
    Assignee: Same Deutz-Fahr Italia S.P.A.
    Inventors: Simone Tremolada, Matteo Caruso
  • Patent number: 12173664
    Abstract: An adaptive, any-fuel reciprocating engine using sensor feedback integration of high-speed optical sensors with real-time control loops to adaptively manage the electronic actuation schemes over a range of engine loads and fuels. The engine uses one or more optical sensors to collect specific types of gas property data via a spectroscopic technique to adaptively control various components within the engine.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: April 17, 2023
    Date of Patent: December 24, 2024
    Assignee: THE REGENTS OF THE UNIVERSITY OF CALIFORNIA
    Inventors: Raymond Mitchell Spearrin, Tsu-Chin Tsao, Peter Sinsheimer
  • Patent number: 12172655
    Abstract: An apparatus and a method for controlling a vehicle includes a driveshaft that transmits a drive torque generated by a drive motor to a wheel, a sensor that obtains a speed of the vehicle, and a controller that monitors the drive torque to determine a change amount of the drive torque, determines a change in a torsion angle of the driveshaft based on the change amount of the drive torque, and determines whether wheel slip occurs based on an amount of speed change of the drive motor according to the change in the torsion angle of the driveshaft. Accordingly, it is possible to accurately determine wheel slip according to the friction of a road surface, providing safe driving to the driver.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: August 2, 2022
    Date of Patent: December 24, 2024
    Assignees: Hyundai Motor Company, Kia Corporation
    Inventors: Woo Cheol Cho, Kyung Han Min, Kyu Beom Ko, Hyo Jun Kwak
  • Patent number: 12172600
    Abstract: The vehicle control apparatus comprises one or more processors, one or more storage media storing a program to be executed by the one or more processors. The program includes one or more instructions. The one or more instructions cause the one or more processors to perform a brake control process in which, after a stroke of a predetermined amount or more is made to a brake pedal by a brake booster to apply brake fluid pressure to the brake mechanism to make the brake fluid pressure in a pressurized state in response to input of a predetermined signal corresponding to detection of theft of the vehicle, the stroke of the brake pedal by the brake booster is cancelled while a first valve disposed in a brake fluid pressure circuit is kept at a closed state to keep the pressurized state of the brake fluid pressure applied to the brake mechanism.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: December 7, 2022
    Date of Patent: December 24, 2024
    Assignee: SUBARU CORPORATION
    Inventor: Yusuke Ando
  • Patent number: 12168488
    Abstract: A steering holding determination device configured to determine whether a driver holds a steering member, the steering holding determination device including: a predicted value calculation unit configured to sequentially calculate a predicted value of a state quantity with reference to a steering torque and an actual measured value of the state quantity, the state quantity being related to a turning angle of a wheel; and a steering holding determination unit configured to determine whether the driver holds the steering member with reference to the predicted value calculated by the predicted value calculation unit and an actual measured value corresponding to the predicted value.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: May 19, 2022
    Date of Patent: December 17, 2024
    Assignee: Hitachi Astemo, Ltd.
    Inventors: Hirokazu Fujimoto, Tatsuru Niihara, Yoshinori Kohno, Hiroki Sato, Shigeharu Shibahata, Daisuke Tsuga
  • Patent number: 12168433
    Abstract: A material processing apparatus has as a power supply system comprising an electrical power supply and a hydraulic power supply. The electrical power supply comprises a battery pack and an electrical generator. The power supply system is operable in different power supply modes in which said at least one battery and/or said electrical generator supply electrical power to the electrically powered components of the system.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: October 27, 2023
    Date of Patent: December 17, 2024
    Inventors: Ciaran Fanning, Barry McMenamin
  • Patent number: 12168486
    Abstract: A steering holding determination device configured to determine whether a driver holds a steering member, the steering holding determination device including: a predicted value calculation unit configured to calculate a predicted value of at least one of one or more state quantities related to steering of the steering member and one or more state quantities related to turning of a wheel; and a steering holding determination unit configured to determine whether the driver holds the steering member with reference to the predicted value calculated by the predicted value calculation unit and a variance of the predicted value.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: May 19, 2022
    Date of Patent: December 17, 2024
    Assignee: Hitachi Astemo, Ltd.
    Inventors: Hirokazu Fujimoto, Tatsuru Niihara, Yoshinori Kohno, Hiroki Sato, Shigeharu Shibahata, Daisuke Tsuga
  • Patent number: 12157456
    Abstract: To start an engine while a clutch start cancel switch is ON and a clutch is connected, an electric parking brake ECU releases an electric parking brake regardless of the accelerator position or the clutch stroke, providing that a shift lever is in a drive position, and an engine ECU allows the engine to start after the electric parking brake is released by the electric parking brake ECU.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: January 25, 2023
    Date of Patent: December 3, 2024
    Assignee: TOYOTA JIDOSHA KABUSHIKI KAISHA
    Inventors: Shinsuke Yamamoto, Satoru Tsurubuchi, Masanobu Horio, Masaya Akita, Tomohiko Naka