JP2010120499A - Vehicle behavior control device - Google Patents

Abstract

<P>PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide a vehicle behavior control device allowing a fail-safe operation when a door is opened during travel. <P>SOLUTION: The vehicle behavior control device includes a detecting means 7B for detecting opening and closing of the door 6 of a vehicle, behavior devices 4L, 4R for generating a yaw rate, and a control means 8 for controlling the behavior devices 4L, 4R, to generate an inertia force along a direction opposite to a door 6 opening direction in the vehicle, when the detecting means 7B detects the opening of the door 6. <P>COPYRIGHT: (C)2010,JPO&INPIT

Description

  The present invention relates to a vehicle behavior control device.

  Conventionally, various four-wheel steering devices for controlling the toe angle of the rear wheels have been proposed for the purpose of improving the turning performance of the vehicle. For example, when traveling at low speeds, the toe angle of the front and rear wheels can be reversed to reduce the minimum turning radius, and at high speeds, the toe angle of the front and rear wheels can be set to the same phase when changing lanes, etc. Maneuverability can be improved. In addition, as a technique for independently controlling the toe angles of the left and right rear wheels, a technique using an actuator by a hydraulic mechanism and a technique using an actuator by a feed screw mechanism instead of the hydraulic mechanism have been proposed.

  In addition, vehicle doors (including slide doors) rarely open during travel. For example, when the door is intended to be closed and then opened by some vibration. If the door opens unexpectedly in this way, the load onboard may fall from the vehicle.

  In view of this, a technique has been proposed that warns that the door is not closed in advance for such an unexpected opening of the door. Moreover, the technique which suppresses opening and closing of the door during driving | running | working is also proposed (refer patent document 1).

JP 2003-206774 A

  However, a technique for suppressing the opening and closing of the door during traveling has been proposed against the unexpected opening of the door as described above. However, it is desirable that the fail-safe operation is still possible. .

  Then, this invention makes it a subject to provide the vehicle behavior control apparatus which can perform a fail safe operation | movement, when a door opens during driving | running | working.

  As means for solving the problems, the present invention provides a detection means for detecting opening / closing of a door of a vehicle, a behavior device for generating a yaw rate, and the vehicle when the detection means detects opening of the door. And a control means for controlling the behavior device so that an inertial force in a direction opposite to the door opening direction is generated.

  According to such a vehicle behavior control device, the control means controls the behavior device so that an inertial force in the direction opposite to the door opening direction is generated in the vehicle when the detecting means detects the door opening. To do. By controlling the behavior device in this manner, a fail-safe operation is performed when the door is opened during traveling.

  The behavior device may be any one of a driving force distribution device, a braking force distribution device, a rear wheel steering device, and a device that controls front wheel steering.

  According to such a vehicle behavior control device, the behavior device is any one of a driving force distribution device, a braking force distribution device, a rear wheel steering device, and a device that controls front wheel steering. Can be generated.

  According to the present invention, it is possible to provide a vehicle behavior control device capable of fail-safe operation when a door is opened during traveling.

<< First Embodiment >>
A first embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to FIGS.
FIG. 1 is an overall conceptual diagram of a four-wheeled vehicle including a vehicle behavior control device according to a first embodiment.

≪Configuration of vehicle behavior control device≫
As shown in FIG. 1, the vehicle behavior control device 1 </ b> A detects opening / closing of toe angle changing devices 4 </ b> L, 4 </ b> R, a vehicle speed sensor 5, and a door 6 that change the toe angles of the rear wheels 2 </ b> L, 2 </ b> R independently by the actuator 3. The door sensor 7A is configured to include an ECU (Electronic Control Unit) 8 that electronically controls them, and the like.

<Toe angle changing device>
Next, the configuration of the toe angle changing device will be described with reference to FIGS.
2 is a plan view of the toe angle changing device on the left rear wheel side, and FIG. 3 is a schematic cross-sectional view showing the structure of the actuator of the toe angle changing device.
The toe angle changing devices 4L and 4R are respectively attached to the left and right rear wheels 2L and 2R of the vehicle. FIG. 2 shows the toe angle changing device 4L taking the left rear wheel 2L as an example. The toe angle changing device 4L includes an actuator 3 and a drive device (drive means) 9.
Note that FIG. 2 shows only the left rear wheel 2L, but the right rear wheel 2R is attached in the same manner (symmetrical).

As shown in FIG. 2, the vehicle width direction end portion of the cross member 12 extending substantially in the vehicle width direction is elastically supported by the rear side frame 11 of the vehicle body. The front end of the trailing arm 13 extending substantially in the vehicle longitudinal direction is supported near the vehicle width direction end of the cross member 12. A rear wheel 2L is fixed to the trailing end of the trailing arm 13.
The trailing arm 13 is configured by connecting a vehicle body side arm 13a attached to the cross member 12 and a wheel side arm 13b fixed to the rear wheel 2L via a substantially vertical rotation shaft 13c. Yes. Thereby, the trailing arm 13 can be displaced in the vehicle width direction.

  One end of the actuator 3 is attached to the front end of the wheel side arm 13b on the front side of the rotating shaft 13c via the ball joint 16, and the other end is attached to the cross member 12 via the ball joint 17.

As shown in FIG. 3, the actuator 3 includes an electric motor 31, a speed reduction mechanism 33, a feed screw portion 35, and the like.
The electric motor 31 is configured by a brush motor, a brushless motor, or the like that can rotate in both forward and reverse directions.
The speed reduction mechanism 33 is configured by combining, for example, a two-stage planetary gear (not shown).

The feed screw portion 35 is engaged with the rod 35a formed in a cylindrical shape, a nut 35c inserted into the rod 35a to have a cylindrical shape, and a screw groove 35b formed on the inner peripheral side, and the screw groove 35b. The screw shaft 35d supports the rod 35a so as to be movable in the axial direction.
The feed screw portion 35 is housed in an elongated, substantially cylindrical case body 34 together with the electric motor 31 and the speed reduction mechanism 33. A boot 36 is attached to the feed screw 35 side of the case body 34 so as to cover between the end of the case body 34 and the end of the rod 35a, and is exposed from the end of the case body 34. Dust and foreign matter adhere to the outer peripheral surface of the rod 35a, and dust, foreign matter and water do not enter the case main body 34 from the outside.

  One end of the speed reduction mechanism 33 is connected to the output shaft of the electric motor 31, and the other end is connected to the screw shaft 35d. The power from the electric motor 31 is transmitted to the screw shaft 35d via the speed reduction mechanism 33, and the screw shaft 35d rotates, so that the rod 35a can be extended and retracted in the horizontal direction (axial direction) in the figure with respect to the case body 34. It is supposed to be. The toe angle of the rear wheel is kept constant even when the motor 31 is not energized and driven by the frictional force of engagement between the screw shaft 35d and the screw groove 35b of the nut 35c.

  Further, the actuator 3 is provided with a stroke sensor 38 for detecting the position (expansion / contraction amount) of the rod 35a. The stroke sensor 38 includes, for example, a magnet and can detect the position using magnetism. Thus, by detecting the position using the stroke sensor 38, the rear wheels 2L, 2R toe-in and toe-out rudder angles (toe angles) can be individually detected with high accuracy.

  In the actuator 3 configured as described above, the ball joint 16 provided at the distal end of the rod 35a is rotatably connected to the wheel side arm 13b (see FIG. 2) of the trailing arm 13, and the base end of the case main body 34 is provided. A ball joint 17 provided on the right end in FIG. 3 is rotatably connected to the cross member 12 (see FIG. 2). When the screw shaft 35d is rotated by the power of the electric motor 31 and the rod 35a extends (left direction in FIG. 3), the wheel side arm 13b is pressed outward in the vehicle width direction (left direction in FIG. 2), and the rear wheel 2L When the left side turns and the rod 35a contracts (right direction in FIG. 3), the wheel side arm 13b is pulled inward in the vehicle width direction (right direction in FIG. 2), and the rear wheel 2L turns rightward. .

The place where the ball joint 16 of the actuator 3 is attached is not limited to the wheel side arm 13b as long as the toe angle of the rear wheel 2L such as a knuckle can be changed. In the first embodiment, the toe angle changing devices 4L and 4R are shown as examples applied to a semi-trailing arm type independent suspension type suspension, but the invention is not limited thereto, and other suspension type It can also be applied to suspensions.
For example, it can be realized by incorporating the actuator 3 into a side rod of a double wishbone suspension or a side rod of a strut suspension.

A driving device 9 is integrally attached to the actuator 3. The driving device 9 is fixed to the case body 34 of the actuator 3 and is connected to the stroke sensor 38 via a connector (not shown). Further, the left and right drive devices 9, 9 and the drive devices 9, 9 and the ECU 8 are connected by a communication line.
The drive device 9 is supplied with electric power from a power source such as a battery (not shown) mounted on the vehicle. The ECU 8 is also supplied with power from a power source such as a battery in a separate system from the above.

FIG. 4 is a block diagram of the drive device of the toe angle changing device.
As shown in FIG. 4, the drive device 9 includes an actuator control unit (hereinafter abbreviated as ACT control unit) 21 and a driver 22.

The ACT control unit 21 includes a CPU (Central Processing Unit) and the like, and includes a target current calculation unit (target current calculation unit) 21a, a correction current setting unit 21b, and the like.
The target current calculation unit 21 a calculates a target current signal (target current) based on a signal input from the ECU 8 and outputs it to the driver 22. The target current signal is a current signal necessary for setting the actuator 3 to a desired operation amount (a telescopic amount that makes the rear wheel 2L a desired toe angle). The correction current setting unit 21b outputs a correction current signal for correcting the target current signal based on the position information input from the stroke sensor 38 to the target current calculation unit 21a. Further, the target current calculation unit 21 a adds or subtracts the correction current signal to the target current signal, and outputs the corrected target current signal to the driver 22.
The configuration of the ACT control unit 21 described above is an example, and the correction current setting unit 21b is included in the target current calculation unit 21a so that the processing of the correction current setting unit 21b is performed in the target current calculation unit 21a. Also good.

  The driver 22 includes an electric motor control signal generation unit 22a, an electric motor drive circuit 22b, and the like. The motor control signal generation unit 22a receives the target current signal from the ACT control unit 21 and outputs the motor control signal to the motor drive circuit 22b. This electric motor control signal is a signal including the current value supplied to the electric motor 31 and the direction in which the electric current flows. The motor drive circuit 22b is configured by a FET (Field Effect Transistor) bridge circuit or the like, and applies a motor voltage to the motor 31 based on a motor control signal.

<Vehicle speed sensor>
The vehicle speed sensor 5 is a sensor that detects the vehicle speed of the vehicle, and is provided at an appropriate position of the vehicle. The vehicle speed sensor 5 is connected to the ECU 8, and the ECU 8 detects the vehicle speed of the vehicle.

<Door sensor>
The door sensor 7A detects opening and closing of the door 6. Specifically, in the first embodiment, the door sensor 7A is a sensor that detects a half door, and is provided at an appropriate position of the vehicle. The door sensor 7A is connected to the ECU 8, and the ECU 8 detects that the vehicle door 6 is in a closed state or a half-door state. A plurality of door sensors 7A are provided according to the number of doors 6.

<ECU>
The ECU 8 has a function of instructing the operation amount of the actuator 3 and is connected to a drive device 9 provided in the actuator 3 via a communication line. The ECU 8 includes a CPU and the like, and is housed in a box (not shown) or the like provided in another place (for example, near the trunk room) away from the actuator 3.

Further, the ECU 8 outputs a signal for setting the actuator 3 to a desired operation amount (a telescopic amount for setting the toe angle of the rear wheel 2L to a desired angle) to the ACT control unit 21 of the drive device 9. The ECU 8 is connected to the vehicle speed sensor 5 and the door sensor 7A so that the vehicle speed sensor 5 detects the vehicle speed and the door sensor 7A detects the open / close state of the vehicle door 6.
Further, based on the open / closed state of the door 6 obtained from the door sensor 7A, the left and right rear wheels 2L, 2R are controlled so that an inertial force (yaw rate, gravity) opposite to the door 6 opening direction is generated in the vehicle. The toe angle can be controlled independently at a desired angle.

In the vehicle behavior control apparatus 1A according to the first embodiment configured as described above, the ECU 8 outputs a command for setting the actuator 3 to a desired operation amount to the ACT control unit 21, whereby the ACT control unit 21 performs the target operation. The target current signal is calculated, and this target current signal is output to the driver 22. The driver 22 generates a drive signal for driving the motor 31 at a predetermined rotational speed in the forward direction or the reverse direction based on the received target current signal, and outputs the drive signal to the motor 31. As a result, the rod 35a of the actuator 3 expands and contracts by moving the trailing arm 13 outward or inward in the vehicle width direction, and the rear wheel 2L turns left or right.
The actual position information of the actuator 3 detected by the stroke sensor 38 is output to the ACT control unit 21 via the communication line. In the ACT control unit 21, the position of the motor 31 is corrected by adding or subtracting the correction current signal to or from the target current signal and sending the corrected target current signal to the motor 31 via the driver 22. As a specific example in which the left and right rear wheels 2L and 2R are independently controlled, it is possible to improve turning performance by toe-controlling only the outer wheel side when the vehicle is turning.

≪Operation of vehicle behavior control device≫
Next, the operation of the vehicle behavior control device 1A will be described with reference mainly to FIG. This operation is repeated every predetermined time (for example, 10 ms).

  In step S1, the vehicle speed of the vehicle is detected by the vehicle speed sensor 5.

In step S2, the ECU 8 determines whether or not the vehicle speed is equal to or higher than a predetermined value. The predetermined value here is an extremely low speed, for example, 5 km / h, and is an upper limit value of the vehicle speed that does not cause trouble such as a load not falling from the vehicle even if the door 6 suddenly opens during traveling. It is calculated | required by the test and simulation, and is previously memorize | stored in ECU8. Also, considering the fact that when the actuator is moved at a low vehicle speed, the road reaction force is large, a large load is applied to the system and the inertia force in the opposite direction as expected at a low vehicle speed cannot be obtained. Yes.
When the vehicle speed of the vehicle is equal to or higher than the predetermined value (S2 · Yes), the process of the ECU 8 proceeds to step S3. On the other hand, when the vehicle speed of the vehicle is smaller than the predetermined value (S2 · No), the process of the ECU 8 returns to the start via a return.

  In step S3, the door sensor 7A detects the state of the door 6, that is, the opening and closing of the door 6.

In step S4, the ECU 8 determines whether or not the door 6 is open. Specifically, in the first embodiment, since the door sensor 7A is a sensor that detects a half door, the door 6 of the vehicle is in a closed state based on the detection result of the door sensor 7A, or half It is determined whether the door is in the state. In the first embodiment, the half door is in an open state.
If the door 6 of the vehicle is open (S4 / Yes), the ECU 8 proceeds to step S5. On the other hand, when the door 6 of the vehicle is not opened (closed) (S4, No), the process of the ECU 8 returns to the start via a return.

In step S5, the ECU 8 independently controls the toe angles of the left and right rear wheels 2L, 2R at a desired angle so that an inertial force in a direction opposite to the opening direction of the door 6 is generated in the vehicle. That is, the actuator 3 is set to a desired operation amount.
Specifically, as shown in FIG. 6, when the right door 6 is a half door (the door 6 opens in the right direction), a normal alarm is issued.
In the first embodiment, by performing a fail-safe operation, a left inertial force that is opposite to the opening direction of the door 6 is generated in the vehicle in order to make the occupant notice that the door is a half door. The actuator 3 is set to a desired operation amount. That is, the operation amount of the actuator 3 is set so that the rear wheels 2L and 2R turn rightward.
The operation amount of the actuator 3 is based on the vehicle speed of the vehicle, the operation angle of the steering handle, etc., is obtained by a preliminary test or simulation, and is stored in the ECU 8 in advance.
Then, when a signal for setting the actuator 3 to a desired operation amount is input from the ECU 8 to the drive device 9, the toe angle changing device causes the rod 35a to contract (right direction in FIG. 3), and the wheel side arm. 13b is pulled inward in the vehicle width direction (right direction in FIG. 2), and the rear wheel 2L turns rightward.
Thereafter, the processing of the ECU 8 returns to the start via return.

<< Second Embodiment >>
Next, a second embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to FIGS.
The vehicle behavior control device 1B according to the second embodiment includes a door sensor 7B that detects a state of opening more than the half door, instead of the door sensor 7A that detects the half door. The door sensor 7B is provided at an appropriate position of the vehicle.

  The door sensor 7B is connected to the ECU 8, and the ECU 8 detects that the vehicle door 6 is in a closed state or a state in which it is more open than a half door.

In the second embodiment, the ECU 8 independently controls the toe angles of the left and right rear wheels 2L, 2R at desired angles so that an inertial force in the direction opposite to the opening direction of the door 6 is generated in the vehicle. To do. That is, the actuator 3 is set to a desired operation amount.
Specifically, as shown in FIG. 8, when the right door 6 is opened more than the half door (the opening direction of the door 6 is the right direction), the load is prevented from falling from the vehicle. Therefore, the actuator 3 is set to a desired operation amount so that a leftward inertial force that is the direction opposite to the opening direction of the door 6 is generated in the vehicle. That is, the operation amount of the actuator 3 is set so that the rear wheels 2L and 2R turn rightward.
The operation amount of the actuator 3 is based on the vehicle speed of the vehicle, the operation angle of the steering handle, etc., is obtained by a preliminary test or simulation, and is stored in the ECU 8 in advance.

  According to such a vehicle behavior control device 1B, the ECU 8 detects the toe angle so that an inertial force in the direction opposite to the opening direction of the door 6 is generated in the vehicle when the door sensor 7B detects the opening of the door 6. The changing devices 4L and 4R are controlled. By controlling the toe angle changing devices 4L and 4R in this way, a fail-safe operation is performed when the door 6 is opened during traveling.

  Although one embodiment of the present invention has been described above, the present invention is not limited to the above-described embodiment, and can be modified, for example, as follows without departing from the spirit of the present invention. You may combine a structure suitably.

  In the above-described embodiment, the rear wheel steering device (toe angle changing devices 4L, 4R) has been described as an example of the behavior device that generates the yaw rate, but the present invention is not limited to this, and other behaviors are also provided. Devices such as a driving force distribution device, a braking force distribution device, and a device that controls front wheel steering may be used. By using any of these behavior devices, it is possible to generate an appropriate yaw rate for the vehicle.

  In the above-described embodiment, the door sensors 7A and 7B that detect a half door or a state in which the door is more open than the half door have been described as examples. However, the present invention is not limited to this example. A courtesy switch may be used to detect the state of opening more than the door for each stage (depending on the distance). Specifically, the courtesy switch is a door sensor that has a function of detecting a half-door in the first stage, and a function that detects a state of opening more than the half-door in the second stage according to the travel distance thereafter. It is a door sensor which has.

In the above-described embodiment, the actuator 3 is set to a desired operation amount so as to generate an inertial force for preventing the load from falling from the vehicle. However, the present invention is not limited to this, and the door 6 is opened. After that, the operation amount of the actuator 3 may be set so that an inertial force for closing the door 6 (locking) is generated. By setting the operation amount of the actuator 3 in this way, the door 6 can be locked.
Further, when the door 6 is a sliding door, in addition to generating an inertial force for preventing the load from falling from the vehicle, a deceleration gravity (G) is generated by the braking means to lock the door 6. It may be in a state (locked).

1 is an overall conceptual diagram of a four-wheeled vehicle including a vehicle behavior control device according to a first embodiment. It is a top view of the toe angle changing device on the left rear wheel side. It is a schematic sectional drawing which shows the structure of the actuator of a toe angle change apparatus. It is a block diagram of the drive device of a toe angle changing device. It is a flowchart which shows operation | movement of a vehicle behavior control apparatus. It is a schematic diagram which shows the state of the door and rear wheel which concern on 1st Embodiment. It is a whole conceptual diagram of the four-wheeled vehicle provided with the vehicle behavior control apparatus which concerns on 2nd Embodiment. It is a schematic diagram which shows the state of the door and rear wheel which concern on 2nd Embodiment.

Explanation of symbols

1A, 1B Vehicle behavior control system 2L, 2R Rear wheel 3 Actuator 4L, 4R Toe angle changing device 5 Vehicle speed sensor 6 Door 7A, 7B Door sensor 8 ECU
9 Drive unit

Claims (2)

Detecting means for detecting opening and closing of a vehicle door;
A behavioral device that generates yaw rate;
Control means for controlling the behavior device so that an inertial force in a direction opposite to the door opening direction is generated in the vehicle when the detecting means detects the door opening. A vehicle behavior control device. The vehicle behavior control device according to claim 1, wherein the behavior device is any one of a driving force distribution device, a braking force distribution device, a rear wheel steering device, and a device that controls front wheel steering.

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