Abstract: A coupling structure for vehicle chassis members couples a ball joint member and an axle housing used for a vehicle to each other. The structure includes a socket that has a substantially columnar external shape, is provided in the ball joint member, and has a socket bolt groove throughout a circumference in an outer circumferential surface of the socket. The structure also includes a collar that has a substantially cylindrical shape and is disposed so as to surround an outer circumferential surface of the socket. The axle housing has a coupling hole having a substantially columnar internal shape into which the socket is inserted. The ball joint member and the axle housing are coupled to each other by disposing the socket in the coupling hole while the socket is surrounded by the collar.

Abstract: A steering apparatus includes: a pinion shaft coupled to a steering wheel and having a pinion; a rack shaft having a rack engaged with the pinion and a shaft back located on opposite side of the rack with an axial center of the rack shaft in between; a rack shaft housing that houses and slidably supports the rack shaft; and a rack shaft supporting mechanism having a pressure applying member that applies a pressure onto the shaft back toward the pinion. The shaft back includes a predetermined region provided across a midpoint of the rack which corresponds to a neutral position of the steering wheel. The predetermined region is a right-to-left steering wheel angle region having a height higher than a height of any other region of the shaft back.

Abstract: A steering apparatus includes: a pinion shaft coupled to a steering wheel and having a pinion; a rack shaft having a rack engaged with the pinion and a shaft back located on opposite side of the rack with an axial center of the rack shaft in between; a rack shaft housing that houses and slidably supports the rack shaft; and a rack shaft supporting mechanism having a pressure applying member that applies a pressure onto the shaft back toward the pinion. The shaft back includes a predetermined region provided across a midpoint of the rack which corresponds to a neutral position of the steering wheel. The predetermined region is a right-to-left steering wheel angle region having a height higher than a height of any other region of the shaft back.

Abstract: In a sub-frame module that is used to attach a set of left and right wheels in pair to a vehicle body, a sub-frame attached to the vehicle body and left and right hub carriers, to which the left and right wheels in pair are attached, are connected by left and right link arms to be capable of swinging. A stabilizer is laid across the left and right rear link arms, and a holder that holds the stabilizer is supported by an vehicle body side member that is provided in a bush attached to the vehicle body. The holder is fixed to the vehicle body by attaching the vehicle body side member to the vehicle body.

Abstract: A coupling structure for vehicle chassis members couples a ball joint member and an axle housing used for a vehicle to each other. The structure includes a socket that has a substantially columnar external shape, is provided in the ball joint member, and has a socket bolt groove throughout a circumference in an outer circumferential surface of the socket. The structure also includes a collar that has a substantially cylindrical shape and is disposed so as to surround an outer circumferential surface of the socket. The axle housing has a coupling hole having a substantially columnar internal shape into which the socket is inserted. The ball joint member and the axle housing are coupled to each other by disposing the socket in the coupling hole while the socket is surrounded by the collar.

Abstract: A suspension device has longitudinal force compliance steer properties to steer a rear wheel to toe-in or toe-out according to increase in longitudinal force applied to wheel treads of a rear wheel. The suspension device includes: a hub bearing housing; suspension links having both edges pivotally attached to a vehicle body and a hub bearing respectively, to support the hub bearing housing; a suspension spring generating reaction force corresponding to relative displacement amount in the longitudinal direction of the hub bearing housing as to the vehicle body; a damper generating damping force corresponding to relative speed in the longitudinal direction of the hub bearing housing as to the vehicle body; and a toe change generating unit generating toe change in a direction where toe change due to longitudinal force compliance properties is temporarily cancelled out or suppressed at an early stage of turning of the vehicle.

Abstract: In a sub-frame module that is used to attach a set of left and right wheels in pair to a vehicle body, a sub-frame attached to the vehicle body and left and right hub carriers, to which the left and right wheels in pair are attached, are connected by left and right link arms to be capable of swinging. A stabilizer is laid across the left and right rear link arms, and a holder that holds the stabilizer is supported by an vehicle body side member that is provided in a bush attached to the vehicle body. The holder is fixed to the vehicle body by attaching the vehicle body side member to the vehicle body.

Abstract: A suspension device has longitudinal force compliance steer properties to steer a rear wheel to toe-in or toe-out according to increase in longitudinal force applied to wheel treads of a rear wheel. The suspension device includes: a hub bearing housing; suspension links having both edges pivotally attached to a vehicle body and a hub bearing respectively, to support the hub bearing housing; a suspension spring generating reaction force corresponding to relative displacement amount in the longitudinal direction of the hub bearing housing as to the vehicle body; a damper generating damping force corresponding to relative speed in the longitudinal direction of the hub bearing housing as to the vehicle body; and a toe change generating unit generating toe change in a direction where toe change due to longitudinal force compliance properties is temporarily cancelled out or suppressed at an early stage of turning of the vehicle.

Abstract: A small-size, highly-reliable left-right independent steering device is provided without having to make significant modifications to existing vehicles or to develop dedicated vehicles. The device includes tie rods linked to left and right front wheels and axially expandable and contractible by means of small-size telescopic mechanism portions defined by ball-screw-type linear actuators. Each telescopic mechanism portion mainly includes a main body to which a tie-rod end of the corresponding tie rod is fixed, and an electric motor serving as an actuator attached substantially perpendicularly to the main body. The other end of the tie rod is coupled to a steering rod and functions as a piston rod that can advance or recede in the axial direction by means of the telescopic mechanism portion. Thus, the telescopic mechanism portions are mountable within tire wheels at positions free of, for example, suspension arms and stabilizers located near the tie rods.

Abstract: When a vehicle is turning, it is determined whether an inside turning wheel has sufficient grip force. If the inside wheel has sufficient grip force, left and right forces orthogonally input to the vehicle body are calculated based on longitudinal and lateral tire forces, and are checked if there is a difference in the left and right forces. If there is such a left-right force difference and the vehicle is not undergoing a braking operation, the turning angle of the inside wheel is corrected using a left-right independent steering device that independently controls the turning angles of left and right wheels, so that the difference becomes zero. Thus, the difference in left and right forces laterally input to the vehicle body is reduced to minimize a jack-up force. This improves the driving stability and achieves a good roll feel by means of a jack-down force, thereby achieving improved driving feel.

Abstract: A road-surface friction-coefficient estimating device compares a rack-thrust-force deviation value with a preliminarily set maximum-value-determination threshold value. If the rack-thrust-force deviation value is above the maximum-value-determination threshold value, the device determines that tires are slipping, and sets a front-wheel friction-circle utilization rate in that state as a road-surface friction coefficient. If the rack-thrust-force deviation value is below the maximum-value-determination threshold value, the device refers to a preliminarily set map to determine a restoring speed at which the road-surface friction coefficient is to be restored to 1.0 based on a vehicle speed and a front-wheel slip angle. While restoring the road-surface friction coefficient at the restoring speed, the device calculates and outputs the road-surface friction coefficient.

Abstract: A steering control section has a first steering angle correction amount calculating section, a second steering angle correction amount calculating section, and a motor rotational angle calculating section. The first correction amount calculating section calculates a first correction amount based on a vehicle speed and an actual steering wheel angle. The second correction amount calculating section calculates a second correction amount through multiplying a control gain corresponding to the vehicle speed with a value calculated by low-pass filtering a differential value of steering wheel angle. The motor rotational angle calculating section calculates a motor rotational angle corresponding to the value adding the first and second steering angle correction amount, and outputs it to a motor driving section so as to drive an electric motor for correcting the steering angle. Thereby, an unstable vehicle behavior due to a resonance of a yaw motion caused in the steering operation can be suppressed.

Abstract: A form of a travel path of an oncoming vehicle is recognized based on white-line data. A speed component of the oncoming vehicle with respect to the travel path (route) is calculated by weighting a lateral speed component orthogonal to the route and a lateral speed component following the route, with a speed correction coefficient which is set in accordance with a relative distance between a subject vehicle and the oncoming vehicle. A change in behavior of the oncoming vehicle is predicted, and a possibility of collision against the subject vehicle is determined. If it is determined that there is a possibility of collision, an alarm is output to alert a driver to the possibility of collision.

Abstract: The objective of the present invention is to provide a vehicle motion control device capable of controlling the driving force distribution to the wheels with superior stability and response while effectively utilizing the tire grip.

Abstract: A driving force control device includes an individual-wheel friction-circle limit-value calculating portion that calculates friction-circle limit-values of individual wheels, an individual-wheel requested-resultant-tire-force calculating portion that calculates requested resultant tire forces of the individual wheels, an individual-wheel resultant-tire-force calculating portion that calculates resultant tire forces of the individual wheels, an individual-wheel requested-excessive-tire-force calculating portion that calculates requested excessive tire forces of the individual wheels, an individual-wheel excessive-tire-force calculating portion that calculates excessive tire forces of the individual wheels, an excessive-tire-force calculating portion that calculates an excessive tire force, an over-torque calculating portion that calculates an over-torque, and a control-amount calculating portion that calculates a control amount that is output to an engine control unit.

Abstract: A steering control section has a first steering angle correction amount calculating section, a second steering angle correction amount calculating section, and a motor rotational angle calculating section. The first correction amount calculating section calculates a first correction amount based on a vehicle speed and an actual steering wheel angle. The second correction amount calculating section calculates a second correction amount through multiplying a control gain corresponding to the vehicle speed with a value calculated by low-pass filtering a differential value of steering wheel angle. The motor rotational angle calculating section calculates a motor rotational angle corresponding to the value adding the first and second steering angle correction amount, and outputs it to a motor driving section so as to drive an electric motor for correcting the steering angle. Thereby, an unstable vehicle behavior due to a resonance of a yaw motion caused in the steering operation can be suppressed.

Abstract: The objective of the present invention is to provide a vehicle motion control device capable of controlling the driving force distribution to the wheels with superior stability and response while effectively utilizing the tire grip.

Abstract: A steering control section has a first steering angle correction amount calculating section, a second steering angle correction amount calculating section, and a motor rotational angle calculating section. The first correction amount calculating section calculates a first correction amount based on a vehicle speed and an actual steering wheel angle. The second correction amount calculating section calculates a second correction amount through multiplying a control gain corresponding to the vehicle speed with a value calculated by low-pass filtering a differential value of steering wheel angle. The motor rotational angle calculating section calculates a motor rotational angle corresponding to the value adding the first and second steering angle correction amount, and outputs it to a motor driving section so as to drive an electric motor for correcting the steering angle. Thereby, an unstable vehicle behavior due to a resonance of a yaw motion caused in the steering operation can be suppressed.

Abstract: The objective of the present invention is to provide a vehicle motion control device capable of controlling the driving force distribution to the wheels with superior stability and response while effectively utilizing the tire grip.

Abstract: A control unit 5 calculates, by a statistical processing, the current front/rear-directional acceleration, the current front/rear-directional velocity, and the current front/rear-directional position of the three-dimensional object to be determined while considering an error caused by a camera. These values are used in the statistical processing so as to calculate the front/rear-directional acceleration after ?t seconds, the front/rear-directional velocity after ?t seconds, and the front/rear-directional position after ?t seconds, and so as to obtain a probability of contact after ?t seconds based on the front/rear-directional position after ?t seconds.