Patents by Inventor Helmut Wolff

Helmut Wolff 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: 11772618
    Abstract: A method for operating a parking brake system includes establishing a parking brake request for a first automated parking brake constructed on a first wheel located on a first side of an axle of a motor vehicle, producing a braking force at the first wheel by activating, in response to the establishing of the parking brake request, the first automated parking brake, and activating a compensation device connecting the first wheel and a second wheel located on a second side of the axle to apply a braking force to the second wheel via the first wheel.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: March 26, 2020
    Date of Patent: October 3, 2023
    Assignee: Robert Bosch GmbH
    Inventors: Helmut Wolff, Frank Baehrle-Miller, Hubertus Wienken
  • Patent number: 11639159
    Abstract: Disclosed is a method for operating an automated parking brake for a motor vehicle comprising at least one braking mechanism with a brake piston. In said method, the parking brake moves the brake piston by means of an actuator between an idle position, in which the brake piston applies no braking moment, and a braking position, in which the brake piston applies a braking moment, in relation to a brake disk, and during a disengagement process of the parking brake, a reference point is determined in which the brake piston is located in a position in which it applies substantially no braking moment and which is between its idle position and its braking position. The method according to the disclosure is characterized in that the reference point is estimated taking into account an extrapolation of a variable describing the disengagement process.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: May 28, 2018
    Date of Patent: May 2, 2023
    Assignee: Robert Bosch GmbH
    Inventors: Helmut Wolff, Edith Mannherz
  • Patent number: 10981550
    Abstract: A method for operating a hydraulic brake system of a motor vehicle includes enabling a parking brake function by actuating a pressure generator and an actuator such that the pressure generator and the actuator together generate a total clamping force at a wheel brake, and actuating the pressure generator based on a movement of an actuator element and/or a brake piston, the movement generated by the actuator. The brake system includes the wheel brake having the brake piston, a brake pedal device, the pressure generator configured to actuate the wheel brake, the actuator assigned to the wheel brake and having the actuator element configured to actuate the wheel brake. A force that displaces the brake piston in order to actuate the wheel brake is generated by the pressure generator and/or the actuator.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: November 28, 2017
    Date of Patent: April 20, 2021
    Assignee: Robert Bosch GmbH
    Inventors: Frank Baehrle-Miller, Helmut Wolff
  • Publication number: 20200353907
    Abstract: A method for operating a parking brake system includes establishing a parking brake request for a first automated parking brake constructed on a first wheel located on a first side of an axle of a motor vehicle, producing a braking force at the first wheel by activating, in response to the establishing of the parking brake request, the first automated parking brake, and activating a compensation device connecting the first wheel and a second wheel located on a second side of the axle to apply a braking force to the second wheel via the first wheel.
    Type: Application
    Filed: March 26, 2020
    Publication date: November 12, 2020
    Inventors: Helmut Wolff, Frank Baehrle-Miller, Hubertus Wienken
  • Patent number: 10780869
    Abstract: A method for providing a brake force in a vehicle includes actuating an electric brake motor, which overrides an idling function, generating a hydraulic braking power, and re-actuating the electric brake motor.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: February 9, 2017
    Date of Patent: September 22, 2020
    Assignee: Robert Bosch GmbH
    Inventors: Frank Baehrle-Miller, Dieter Blattert, Helmut Wolff, Edith Mannherz
  • Patent number: 10710564
    Abstract: A method for adjusting the brake pedal counter force in a vehicle with a hydraulic vehicle brake and an electromechanical brake device includes modulating the brake pressure during the simultaneous operation of the hydraulic vehicle brake and the electromechanical brake device such that the brake pedal counter force follows a predetermined target profile.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: December 6, 2016
    Date of Patent: July 14, 2020
    Assignee: Robert Bosch GmbH
    Inventors: Dieter Blattert, Helmut Wolff
  • Patent number: 10632980
    Abstract: A method for releasing a first electric motor-actuated brake device for a vehicle includes actuating a second brake device for the vehicle in a clamping direction with a first brake device in a clamped state in order to produce a predetermined clamping force on a brake piston that is associated with the first brake device and the second brake device in common. The method further includes actuating the first brake device in a release direction before the second brake device reaches the predetermined clamping force.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: November 7, 2016
    Date of Patent: April 28, 2020
    Assignee: Robert Bosch GmbH
    Inventors: Helmut Wolff, Andreas Englert
  • Publication number: 20200086834
    Abstract: Disclosed is a method for operating an automated parking brake for a motor vehicle comprising at least one braking mechanism with a brake piston. In said method, the parking brake moves the brake piston by means of an actuator between an idle position, in which the brake piston applies no braking moment, and a braking position, in which the brake piston applies a braking moment, in relation to a brake disk, and during a disengagement process of the parking brake, a reference point is determined in which the brake piston is located in a position in which it applies substantially no braking moment and which is between its idle position and its braking position. The method according to the disclosure is characterized in that the reference point is estimated taking into account an extrapolation of a variable describing the disengagement process.
    Type: Application
    Filed: May 28, 2018
    Publication date: March 19, 2020
    Inventors: Helmut Wolff, Edith Mannherz
  • Patent number: 10576958
    Abstract: A method for determining a leakage in a hydraulic brake system in a vehicle includes evaluating a suspected leakage in the hydraulic brake system and taking into account an actuation of an automated hand brake during the evaluation of the suspected leakage. The hydraulic brake system has a hydraulic footbrake and the automated hand brake has an electromechanical actuator. The hydraulic footbrake and the automated hand brake are configured to act on the same brake piston.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: August 2, 2017
    Date of Patent: March 3, 2020
    Assignee: Robert Bosch GmbH
    Inventors: Helmut Wolff, Dieter Blattert, Edith Mannherz
  • Patent number: 10493960
    Abstract: A method for operating a hill hold controller of a motor vehicle including at least one parking brake. The parking brake is disengaged according to an actuation of a gas pedal of the motor vehicle. The disengagement of the parking brake is released according to a variable representing a road gradient. The release to disengage the parking brake is granted, independently of the variable and/or the availability of the variable, when the gas pedal of the motor vehicle reaches or exceeds a predefinable release position by way of the actuation thereof.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: November 28, 2017
    Date of Patent: December 3, 2019
    Assignee: Robert Bosch GmbH
    Inventors: Frank Baehrle-Miller, Helmut Wolff
  • Patent number: 10486660
    Abstract: The disclosure relates to a method for operating at least one parking brake of a motor vehicle, which parking brake can be activated and deactivated in an automated manner, wherein, for the purpose of automated operation of the parking brake, state values of the motor vehicle are monitored and compared with prespecifiable conditions, and wherein the parking brake is activated when a first group of the conditions is met and is deactivated when a second group of the conditions is met. It is provided that the parking brake is activated only when all of the conditions of the second group can be successfully checked for compliance or non-compliance with the respective condition.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: November 28, 2017
    Date of Patent: November 26, 2019
    Assignee: Robert Bosch GmbH
    Inventors: Edith Mannherz, Helmut Wolff
  • Patent number: 10442421
    Abstract: A method for determining the functional capability of a brake system with a wheel brake and a movable brake piston includes setting first and second braking forces on the brake piston with a hydraulic pressure generator and an electromechanical actuator, respectively, to set a parking brake force at the wheel brake. The method further includes actuating the actuator to set a third braking force on the brake piston with a value lower than the first and second braking forces. The hydraulic pressure generator is then actuated to set the first braking force after the third braking force is set. The actuator is then actuated to set the second braking force after the first braking force is set. The functional capability of the brake system is determined when the operating current during application of the second braking force temporarily corresponds to an open-circuit current of the actuator.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: July 31, 2017
    Date of Patent: October 15, 2019
    Assignee: Robert Bosch GmbH
    Inventors: Edith Mannherz, Helmut Wolff
  • Patent number: 10427659
    Abstract: A method for operating a braking system of a motor vehicle with at least one hydraulically actuable wheel brake, a brake actuation device for hydraulically actuating the wheel brake, an electric brake booster for setting a predefinable hydraulic braking boost, and at least one parking brake assembly includes monitoring the motor vehicle to detect standstill and monitoring the parking brake assembly to detect activation thereof. The method further includes reducing a braking boost set by the brake booster if standstill of the motor vehicle has been detected and an activation of the parking brake assembly has been detected.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: September 8, 2017
    Date of Patent: October 1, 2019
    Assignee: Robert Bosch GmbH
    Inventors: Dieter Blattert, Edith Mannherz, Helmut Wolff
  • Patent number: 10399552
    Abstract: A method for operating a hydraulic brake system of a motor vehicle includes checking a functional capability of the brake system by detecting a plurality of idle travel values of an actuator before the actuator generates a clamping force, and comparing the idle travel values with a plurality of expected idle travel values of the actuator that are determined as a function of an actuation of a pressure generator. The brake system includes a wheel brake having a brake piston, a brake pedal device, the pressure generator configured to generate a pressure generator force that moves the brake piston in order to active the wheel brake, and the actuator assigned to the wheel brake and configured to generate an actuator force that moves the brake piston in order to activate the wheel brake. The pressure generator and the actuator are actuated such that together they generate a total clamping force.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: November 28, 2017
    Date of Patent: September 3, 2019
    Assignee: Robert Bosch GmbH
    Inventors: Edith Mannherz, Helmut Wolff
  • Patent number: 10377363
    Abstract: A parking brake for a vehicle includes an electric brake motor, a transmission, and a brake piston. The transmission transfers a drive movement of the motor to the brake piston. The transmission has a transmission efficiency that steadily increases as a temperature in the transmission rises.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: April 26, 2016
    Date of Patent: August 13, 2019
    Assignee: Robert Bosch GmbH
    Inventors: Helmut Wolff, Simon Hauber
  • Patent number: 10377361
    Abstract: A method for braking a vehicle includes at least reducing a hydraulic brake pressure in at least one wheel brake device disposed on a vehicle axle in response to an at least partial failure of a brake boosting of a hydraulic brake with at least one first brake circuit and at least one second brake circuit. The method further includes operating an electric brake motor of an electromechanical braking device to produce a braking force on the at least one wheel brake device.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: April 4, 2017
    Date of Patent: August 13, 2019
    Assignee: Robert Bosch GmbH
    Inventors: Dieter Blattert, Edith Mannherz, Frank Baehrle-Miller, Helmut Wolff
  • Patent number: 10351113
    Abstract: A method for operating an automated parking brake in a motor vehicle with a hydraulic actuator for generating a hydraulic force component and an electromechanical actuator for generating an electromechanical force component, includes overlaying the hydraulic force component and the electromechanical force component to achieve a total clamping force for a parking brake process. The method further includes setting, on occurrence of a first condition, a first hydraulic pressure level, and setting, on occurrence of a second condition, a second hydraulic pressure level. The method also includes holding substantially constant the set first hydraulic pressure level with the hydraulic actuator until the occurrence of the second condition.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: July 21, 2017
    Date of Patent: July 16, 2019
    Assignee: Robert Bosch GmbH
    Inventors: Edith Mannherz, Helmut Wolff
  • Patent number: 10351119
    Abstract: An automated parking brake for a motor vehicle having at least one brake device is configured to adopt at least two states. In a first state, no clamping force is established by the parking brake, and in a second state, a clamping force is established by the parking brake. A transition point defines a transition between the two states. An identification of the transition point is carried out during a releasing process of the parking brake.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: May 20, 2016
    Date of Patent: July 16, 2019
    Assignee: Robert Bosch GmbH
    Inventors: Helmut Wolff, Andreas Englert, Tobias Putzer
  • Publication number: 20190135255
    Abstract: A method for operating an electromechanical brake device transmits the rotational motion of the electric brake motor to the brake piston by way of an axially movable transmitting element. In the instance that the brake piston lies at a distance relative to an associated brake pad, a hydraulic brake pressure is produced in a hydraulic vehicle brake.
    Type: Application
    Filed: April 24, 2017
    Publication date: May 9, 2019
    Inventors: Frank Baehrle-Miller, Helmut Wolff
  • Patent number: 10260582
    Abstract: A method for maintaining a brake system in a vehicle with a hydraulic vehicle brake and an electromechanical brake device with an electric brake motor includes preparing the brake system for maintenance operations by actuating the electric brake motor to displace a transmission member into a retracted position that is remote from a brake starting position in which a brake lining is located adjacent to a brake disk of the wheel brake device. The method further includes actuating the electric brake motor to displace the transmission member in the direction of the brake starting position after completion of the maintenance operations.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: June 23, 2017
    Date of Patent: April 16, 2019
    Assignee: Robert Bosch GmbH
    Inventors: Dieter Blattert, Edith Mannherz, Frank Baehrle-Miller, Helmut Wolff