JP2008001206A - Steering device for ship - Google Patents

Abstract

<P>PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide a steering device for a ship having no uncomfortable feeling for steering in the ship with a steer-by-wire system. <P>SOLUTION: A steered mechanism 5 for turning an outboard motor 4 as a steering member is not mechanically connected with a steering member 3 such as a steering wheel or the like. A target steering reaction force calculation part 33 calculates the target steering reaction force by adding a yaw rate corresponding component calculated according to the detected yaw rate γ and a lateral acceleration corresponding component calculated according to a detected lateral acceleration Gy to a steering angle corresponding component calculated according to the detected steering angle θ. <P>COPYRIGHT: (C)2008,JPO&INPIT

Description

  The present invention relates to a marine steering apparatus.

There are outboard motors and inboard motors as ship propulsion devices.
In an inboard motor, a power device and a steering device for providing a propulsive force to the ship are provided inside the hull. The power device and the steering device may be provided integrally, or may be provided separately and connected to each other via a power transmission device.
In an outboard motor, a power unit is provided in an outboard motor body externally attached to the hull. Taking a small vessel such as a motor boat as an example, an independent rudder is not provided, and a steering mechanism is provided in the outboard motor itself. Specifically, steering is performed by changing the direction of the outboard motor main body.

In particular, in the case of a small motor boat, a driver directly steers through a handle bar attached to the outboard motor main body. In addition, the rotation of a steering member such as a steering wheel provided in the driver's seat may be transmitted by a rope, a pulley, a push-pull cable, or the like to steer the outboard motor body (see Patent Documents 1 and 2).
In the marine steering system disclosed in Patent Document 1, the outboard motor is steered by driving an electric motor provided in the outboard motor according to the operation of the steering member.

In the marine steering apparatus disclosed in Patent Document 2, the outboard motor is steered through a link mechanism by a hydraulic cylinder driven in accordance with an operation of a steering member.
In recent years, a so-called steer-by-wire marine steering apparatus has been proposed in which a steering member such as a steering wheel of a driver's seat and an outboard motor are not mechanically coupled to each other (see, for example, Patent Document 3).

In the marine steering apparatus of Patent Document 3, the steering force of the outboard motor is generated by an electric motor controlled based on the steering angle of a steering member such as a steering wheel.
Japanese Patent No. 2509015 JP 2004-249791 A Japanese Patent No. 2959044

However, in the steer-by-wire system, it is very difficult for the operator to grasp the state of the ship through the steering member. That is, when compared with a conventional steering device in which the steering member and the steered member are mechanically connected, the operator feels uncomfortable with the steering.
The present invention has been made in view of the above problems, and an object of the present invention is to provide a marine steering apparatus that does not feel uncomfortable in a steer-by-wire type ship.

  In order to solve the above problems, the present invention provides a steering member, a steering mechanism that is not mechanically connected to the steering member, steering angle detection means that detects a steering angle of the steering member, and a behavior amount of the hull. Detected by a hull behavior amount detecting means to be detected, a reaction force actuator for applying a reaction force to the steering member according to a target steering reaction force, and a steering angle and a hull behavior amount detecting means detected by the steering angle detecting means. And a target steering reaction force calculating means for calculating a target steering reaction force based on the hull behavior amount.

In the present invention, since the behavior of the hull is reflected in the reaction force applied from the reaction force actuator to the steering member, the operator who operates the steering member can grasp the state of the ship. Therefore, the steering feeling similar to that of the conventional steering device in which the steering member and the steering mechanism are mechanically connected can be given to the operator, and as a result, the operator does not feel uncomfortable in steering.
The target steering reaction force is calculated based on the steering angle corresponding component calculated according to the steering angle detected by the steering angle detecting means and the hull behavior amount calculated according to the hull behavior amount detected by the hull behavior amount detecting means. It may be calculated by adding a corresponding component (claim 2).

  The hull behavior amount detecting means includes a yaw rate detecting means for detecting a yaw rate of the hull and a lateral acceleration detecting means for detecting a lateral acceleration of the hull, and the hull behavior amount corresponding component is detected by the yaw rate detecting means. In some cases, the yaw rate corresponding component calculated in accordance with the yaw rate and the lateral acceleration corresponding component calculated in accordance with the lateral acceleration detected by the lateral acceleration detecting means may be used. In this case, since the two parameters relating to the hull behavior such as the yaw rate and the lateral acceleration are reflected in the target steering reaction force, the operator who operates the steering member can grasp the state of the ship more reliably.

  In addition, the hull behavior amount corresponding component may be calculated as a linear sum of the yaw rate corresponding component and the lateral acceleration corresponding component. In general, the yaw rate has a relatively large value when navigating at a low speed, but almost no yaw rate occurs when navigating at a high speed. On the other hand, the lateral acceleration takes a relatively large value when sailing at a high boat speed, but almost no lateral acceleration occurs when sailing at a low boat speed. On the other hand, in the present invention, since the yaw rate resolution> the lateral acceleration resolution at low speed, a steering reaction force mainly corresponding to the yaw rate can be generated, and at the high speed, the lateral acceleration resolution> yaw rate resolution, so the lateral acceleration is increased. A steering reaction force corresponding to the main can be generated. Therefore, the contribution ratio of the yaw rate and the lateral acceleration to the steering reaction force can be changed automatically depending on the ship speed, compared with the case where only one of the lateral acceleration and the yaw rate is used, or the case where neither is used. A suitable steering reaction force is generated. Therefore, it is possible to ensure a good steering feeling by generating a suitable steering reaction force regardless of the ship speed.

  The present invention also provides a steering member, a steering mechanism that is not mechanically connected to the steering member, steering angle detection means that detects a steering angle of the steering member, and a hull behavior amount that detects a hull behavior amount. A detection means, a reaction force actuator for applying a reaction force to the steering member in accordance with the target steering reaction force, and a target steering reaction force for calculating a target steering reaction force based on the steering angle detected by the steering angle detection means There may be provided a calculation unit and a target steering reaction force correction unit that corrects the target steering reaction force calculated by the target steering reaction force calculation unit according to the hull behavior amount detected by the hull behavior amount detection means ( Claim 5). Also in this case, since the behavior of the hull is reflected in the reaction force applied from the reaction force actuator to the steering member, the operator who operates the steering member can grasp the state of the ship. Therefore, the operator does not feel uncomfortable in steering.

  There may be provided current output means for outputting a control current according to the target steering reaction force, and the reaction force actuator may include an electric motor that receives supply of the control current output from the current output means. 6). In this case, a steering reaction force can be applied to the steering member quickly and accurately.

Preferred embodiments of the present invention will be described with reference to the accompanying drawings.
FIG. 1 is a schematic view of a ship to which a marine steering apparatus 1 according to an embodiment of the present invention is applied. Referring to FIG. 1, a steering member 3 such as a steering wheel is attached to the front portion of the hull 2. Further, an outboard motor 4 as a propulsion unit that also serves as a steering member and a steering mechanism 5 for achieving steering by changing the direction of the outboard motor 4 are provided at the rear of the hull 2. ing. The outboard motor 4 includes a propeller 4a and an outboard motor main body 4c having an internal combustion engine 4b for driving the propeller 4a via a drive shaft (not shown).

  In the marine steering apparatus 1 according to the present embodiment, the mechanical coupling between the steering member 3 and the steering mechanism 5 is eliminated. The steered mechanism 5 includes a steered actuator 6 that is driven in accordance with an operation of the steering member 3 and is composed of, for example, an electric motor such as a brushless motor. The turning mechanism 5 turns by changing the direction of the outboard motor 4 using the driving force of the turning actuator 6. The first end bracket 7a and the second end 7b of the shaft 7 extending along the width direction W1 of the hull 2 (corresponding to the direction orthogonal to the center line C1 of the hull 2) correspond to the first mounting brackets respectively. 8 (first mounting member) and second mounting bracket 9 (second mounting member) are fixed to the hull 2, respectively.

  The shaft 7 is provided with a moving body 10 that incorporates the steering actuator 6 and is movable along the axial length direction of the shaft 7 (corresponding to the width direction W1 of the hull 2). The moving body 10 and the shaft 7 are connected to each other via a conversion mechanism 11 including a ball screw mechanism, for example. On the other hand, the outboard motor main body 4c is attached to the hull 2 so as to be rotatable around the turning center shaft 12, and the outboard motor main body 4c and the moving body 10 are connected via a link mechanism 13 as a transmission mechanism. Are connected to each other.

The link mechanism 13 has a first bracket 14 having one end fixed to the moving body 10 and one end (not shown) fixed to the outboard motor main body 4c. And a second bracket 15 that is freely rotatable around 12. The other end of the first bracket 14 and the other end of the second bracket 15 are rotatably connected via a connecting shaft 16.
When the steering actuator 6 is driven, the driving force of the steering actuator 6 is converted into a linear motion of the moving body 10 in the axial length direction of the shaft 7 via the conversion mechanism 11. Further, the linear motion of the moving body 10 is converted to rotation of the outboard motor 4 around the turning center axis 12 in the turning direction X1 via the link mechanism 13 so that turning is achieved. It has become.

Referring to FIG. 1, the steering member 3 is connected to one end of a rotating shaft 17 that is rotatably supported with respect to the hull 2. The rotary shaft 17 is provided with a reaction force actuator 18 for applying an operation reaction force to the steering member 3. The reaction force actuator 18 includes an electric motor such as a brushless motor having an output shaft integrated with the rotary shaft 17.
An elastic member 19 made of a spiral spring or the like is interposed between the other end of the rotating shaft 17 and the hull 2, and this elastic member 19 biases the steering member 3 to the neutral position via the rotating shaft 17. is doing. When the reaction force actuator 18 does not apply torque to the rotary shaft 17, the steering member 2 is returned to the neutral position (corresponding to the straight steering position) by the elastic force of the elastic member 19.

In order to detect an operation input value of the steering member 3, a steering angle sensor 20 is provided in association with the rotary shaft 17 as steering angle detection means for detecting the steering angle of the steering member 3.
Further, a turning angle sensor 22 for detecting a turning angle (the direction of the outboard motor 4) is provided in relation to the position of the moving body 10 on the shaft 7 included in the turning mechanism 5. ing. Further, a yaw rate sensor 23 as a yaw rate detection means for detecting the yaw rate (angular velocity, turning speed) of the hull 2 and a lateral acceleration sensor 24 as a lateral acceleration detection means for detecting the lateral acceleration of the hull 2 are provided. Yes. Further, a ship speed sensor 25 for detecting a navigation speed (ship speed) of the hull 2 is provided.

  Output signals from the steering angle sensor 20, the turning angle sensor 22, the yaw rate sensor 23, the lateral acceleration sensor 24, and the ship speed sensor 25 are input to the control unit 28 configured by an electronic control unit (ECU) including a microcomputer. Based on these signals, the control unit 28 appropriately controls the steering actuator 6 and the reaction force actuator 18 via the corresponding drive circuits 29 and 30.

FIG. 2 is a block diagram for explaining the contents of the main control. The control unit 28 includes a plurality of function processing units that are realized in software by a computer executing predetermined program processing.
That is, the control unit 28 is based on the target turning angle calculation unit 31 that calculates the target turning angle, and the target turning angle and the actual turning angle (the turning angle actually detected by the turning angle sensor 22). Based on the steering angle control unit 32 for controlling the steering actuator 6, the target steering reaction force calculation unit 33 as target steering reaction force calculation means for calculating the target steering reaction force, and the target steering reaction force A reaction force control unit 34 for controlling the reaction force actuator 18.

  The target turning angle calculation unit 31 inputs the steering angle detected by the steering angle sensor 20 and the ship speed detected by the ship speed sensor 25, and calculates the target turning angle based on the acquired information. The calculated target turning angle is given to the turning angle control unit 32. The turning angle control unit 32 feedback-controls the turning actuator 6 while referring to the detection result (actual turning angle) by the turning angle sensor 22 based on the acquired information.

The target steering reaction force calculation unit 33, for example, includes a steering angle corresponding component K1 · F1 corresponding to the steering angle θ detected by the steering angle sensor 20 and a yaw rate corresponding component K2 • corresponding to the yaw rate γ detected by the yaw rate sensor 23. The target steering reaction force F is calculated by adding F2 and the lateral acceleration corresponding components K3 and F3 corresponding to the lateral acceleration Gy detected by the lateral acceleration sensor 24. That is, the target steering reaction force F is
F = K1, F1 + K2, F2 + K3, F3 (1)
It is calculated using the following formula.

Here, F1 is a first steering reaction force calculated by substituting the detected steering angle θ into the following equation (2), and K1 is a coefficient corresponding to the first steering reaction force F1. .
F1 = Func1 (θ) (2)
As Func1 (θ), for example, a linear expression can be used. That is, F1 = a · θ (a is a coefficient, see FIG. 3A). The coefficient a may include a plurality of coefficients a1, a2,... Different for each range of the steering angle θ. For example, a relatively large change gradient may be obtained within a range of θ of −θ1 ≦ θ ≦ + θ1 (θ1 is positive) (see FIG. 3B).

F2 is a second steering reaction force calculated by substituting the detected yaw rate γ into the following equation (3), and K2 is a coefficient corresponding to the second steering reaction force F2.
F2 = Func2 (γ) (3)
As Func2 (γ), for example, a linear expression can be used. That is, F2 = b · γ (b is a coefficient). The coefficient b may include a plurality of coefficients b1, b2,... Different for each range of the yaw rate γ. For example, a relatively large change gradient may be obtained when γ is within a range of −γ1 ≦ θ ≦ + γ1 (γ1 is positive).

F3 is a third steering reaction force calculated by substituting the detected lateral acceleration Gy into the following equation (4), and K3 is a coefficient corresponding to the third steering reaction force F3.
F3 = Func3 (θ) (4)
As Func3 (Gy), for example, a linear expression can be used. That is, F3 = c · Gy (c is a coefficient). The coefficient c may include a plurality of coefficients c1, c2,... That are different for each range of the lateral acceleration Gy. For example, a relatively large change gradient may be obtained when Gy is within a range of −Gy1 ≦ Gy ≦ + Gy1 (Gy1 is positive).

  The target steering reaction force calculation unit 33 outputs a reaction force instruction signal corresponding to the calculated target steering reaction force F to the reaction force control unit 34. The reaction force control unit 34 determines a target current for the reaction force actuator 18 according to the target steering reaction force value output from the target steering reaction force calculation unit 33, and according to the target current. And an output current control unit 36 that controls a current output to the reaction force actuator 18. A current control signal from the output current control unit 36 is input to the drive circuit 30, and the drive circuit 30 drives the reaction force actuator 18 by, for example, PWM control. Further, feedback control of output current is performed between the drive circuit 30 and the output current control unit 36.

The reaction force actuator 18 driven in this way operates to apply a force (reaction force) in the direction opposite to the operation direction to the steering member 3.
According to the present embodiment, since the behavior of the hull 2 is reflected in the reaction force applied from the reaction force actuator 18 to the steering member 3, the operator who operates the steering member 3 grasps the state of the ship. can do. Therefore, the steering feeling similar to that of the conventional steering device in which the steering member and the steering mechanism are mechanically connected can be given to the operator, and as a result, the operator does not feel uncomfortable in steering.

In particular, since the two parameters relating to the hull behavior such as the yaw rate and the lateral acceleration are reflected in the steering reaction force, the operator who operates the steering member 3 can more reliably grasp the situation of the ship.
Further, since the hull behavior amount corresponding component (K2 · F2 + K3 · F3) of the steering reaction force F is calculated as a linear sum of the yaw rate corresponding component K2 · F2 and the lateral acceleration corresponding component K3 · F3, there are the following advantages.

  That is, since the yaw rate resolution> the lateral acceleration resolution at low speed, a steering reaction force mainly corresponding to the yaw rate can be generated, and at the high speed, the lateral reaction resolution> yaw rate resolution, so the steering reaction force mainly corresponding to the lateral acceleration. Can be generated. Therefore, the contribution ratio of the yaw rate and the lateral acceleration to the steering reaction force can be changed automatically depending on the ship speed, compared with the case where only one of the lateral acceleration and the yaw rate is used, or the case where neither is used. A suitable steering reaction force is generated. Therefore, it is possible to ensure a good steering feeling by generating a suitable steering reaction force regardless of the ship speed.

The coefficients K1, K2, and K3 corresponding to the first, second, and third steering reaction forces F1, F2, and F3 may use predetermined values, respectively, or may be detected by the ship speed sensor 25. It may be a value obtained using a predetermined map or a function formula according to the ship speed.
Next, FIG. 4 is a block diagram for illustrating the contents of control according to another embodiment of the present invention. With reference to FIG. 4, in the present embodiment, the control unit 28 calculates a target steering reaction force based on the steering angle detected by the steering angle sensor 20, and the yaw rate sensor 23. Calculated by the target steering reaction force correction amount calculation unit 38 for calculating the target steering reaction force correction amount according to the yaw rate detected by the lateral acceleration and the lateral acceleration detected by the lateral acceleration sensor 24, and the target steering reaction force calculation unit 37. A target steering reaction force correction unit 39 that corrects the target steering reaction force using the correction amount calculated by the target steering reaction force correction amount calculation unit 38;

The target steering reaction force calculation unit 37 calculates the target steering reaction force F using the following equation (5).
F = Func1 (θ) (5)
The target steering reaction force correction amount calculation unit 38 calculates the correction amount δ using the following equation (6).
δ = K4 · Func2 (γ) + K5 · Func3 (Gy) (6)
Here, K4 and K5 are coefficients. Further, as each functional expression Func1 (θ), Func2 (γ), Func3 (Gy), the same ones as used in the previous embodiment can be used.

In the target steering reaction force correction unit 39, the target steering reaction force F calculated by the target steering reaction force calculation unit 37 and the correction amount δ calculated by the target steering reaction force correction amount calculation unit 38 are expressed by the following equation (7). And the target steering reaction force F is corrected to obtain the corrected target steering reaction force Fa.
Fa = F + γ (7)
Also in the present embodiment, since the behavior of the hull 2 is reflected in the reaction force applied to the steering member 3 from the reaction force actuator 18, the operator who operates the steering member 3 grasps the state of the ship. be able to. Therefore, the operator does not feel uncomfortable in steering.

The coefficients K4 and K5 may each be a predetermined value, or may be a value obtained using a predetermined map or a function equation according to the ship speed detected by the ship speed sensor 25. There may be.
Further, the marine steering apparatus of the present invention may be applied to a ship that obtains a propulsive force by a so-called inboard motor. In addition, various changes can be made within the scope of the claims.

1 is a schematic view of a ship to which a marine steering system according to an embodiment of the present invention is applied. It is a block diagram of the principal part of the ship steering device. (A) And (b) is a graph which shows the relationship between the detected steering angle, and the steering reaction force based on this, respectively. It is a block diagram of the principal part of the ship steering device of another embodiment of this invention.

Explanation of symbols

  DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 ... Ship steering apparatus, 2 ... Hull, 3 ... Steering member, 4 ... Outboard motor (steering member), 5 ... Steering mechanism, 6 ... Steering actuator, 18 ... Reaction force actuator, 20 ... Steering angle sensor (Steering angle detection means), 23 ... yaw rate sensor (yaw rate detection means. Hull behavior amount detection means), 24 ... lateral acceleration sensor (lateral acceleration detection means. Hull behavior amount detection means), 28 ... turning angle control section, 33 ... target steering reaction force calculation section, 34 ... reaction force control section, 35 ... target current setting section, 36 ... output current control section (current output means), θ ... steering angle, γ ... yaw rate (hull behavior amount), Gy ... Lateral acceleration (hull behavior amount), F ... target steering reaction force, K1 / F1 ... steering angle corresponding component, K2 / F2 ... yaw rate corresponding component (hull behavior amount corresponding component), K3 / F3 ... lateral acceleration corresponding component (hull behavior) Quantity corresponding component), 37 ... target steering reaction force Calculation unit, 38 ... target steering reaction force correction amount calculation unit, 39 ... target steering reaction force correction unit, Fa ... corrected target steering reaction force, δ ... correction amount

Claims (6)

  A steering member, a steering mechanism that is not mechanically connected to the steering member, a steering angle detection unit that detects a steering angle of the steering member, a hull behavior amount detection unit that detects a behavior amount of the hull, and target steering A reaction force actuator for applying a reaction force to the steering member in accordance with the reaction force, a target steering reaction force based on the steering angle detected by the steering angle detection means and the hull behavior amount detected by the hull behavior detection means A marine steering apparatus comprising: a target steering reaction force calculation unit that calculates   The target steering reaction force according to claim 1, wherein the target steering reaction force is calculated according to the steering angle corresponding component calculated according to the steering angle detected by the steering angle detecting means and according to the hull behavior amount detected by the hull behavior amount detecting means. A ship steering apparatus characterized in that it is calculated by adding a hull behavior amount corresponding component. In Claim 2, the hull behavior amount detecting means includes a yaw rate detecting means for detecting a yaw rate of the hull, and a lateral acceleration detecting means for detecting a lateral acceleration of the hull.
The hull behavior amount corresponding component includes a yaw rate corresponding component calculated according to the yaw rate detected by the yaw rate detecting means and a lateral acceleration corresponding component calculated according to the lateral acceleration detected by the lateral acceleration detecting means. A marine steering device.   4. The ship steering apparatus according to claim 3, wherein the hull behavior amount corresponding component is calculated as a linear sum of the yaw rate corresponding component and the lateral acceleration corresponding component.   A steering member, a steering mechanism that is not mechanically connected to the steering member, a steering angle detection unit that detects a steering angle of the steering member, a hull behavior amount detection unit that detects a behavior amount of the hull, and target steering A reaction force actuator for applying a reaction force to the steering member according to the reaction force, a target steering reaction force calculation unit for calculating a target steering reaction force based on the steering angle detected by the steering angle detection means, and a target steering A marine steering apparatus comprising: a target steering reaction force correction unit that corrects the target steering reaction force calculated by the reaction force calculation unit according to the hull behavior amount detected by the hull behavior amount detection means.   6. The method according to claim 1, further comprising: current output means for outputting a control current corresponding to the target steering reaction force, wherein the reaction force actuator supplies the control current output from the current output means. A marine steering apparatus including an electric motor that receives the electric motor.

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