JP2575741Y2 - Throttle device for autonomous driving - Google Patents

Description

[Detailed description of the invention]

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to a throttle device mounted on a vehicle for speed control and the like, and more particularly, to a throttle device for autonomous traveling which can perform autonomous traveling without operating an accelerator pedal.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art In recent years, an autonomous vehicle in which a throttle valve is operated without operating an accelerator pedal to autonomously travel is in an experimental stage, and various autonomous traveling systems have been proposed. As an example, a plurality of cameras for monitoring the front of the vehicle, a controller for processing the image of the camera to perform data acceleration and deceleration commands, and opening and closing the throttle valve in response to a command signal from the controller. A motor having a driven motor is known.

[0003] In addition, as a throttle device for autonomous traveling capable of coping with such an autonomous traveling system, a drive-by-wire system in which one throttle valve is directly driven by a motor or one of two throttle valves arranged in series is used. A tandem type in which the traction control is performed by controlling the traction control in a closing direction (see Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 1-212623) is conventionally generally known. A cruise control system that performs automatic constant-speed traveling by operating an accelerator pedal with an actuator is also conventionally known.

[0004]

In the drive-by-wire system, if the motor fails, the throttle valve may not return to the closed position. There was a problem with safety in terms of falling. Also, the tandem type
There is a problem that the throttle valve always operates only in the closing direction, and it is not possible to control the throttle valve according to the driver's intention and drive normally. Further, the cruise control system has a problem that the throttle valve cannot be controlled below the throttle opening set by the position of the accelerator pedal, and traction control cannot be performed.

[0005] As described above, the conventional throttle devices for autonomous traveling each have advantages and disadvantages, and it has not yet reached a stage where both autonomous traveling and normal traveling can be achieved and safety during autonomous traveling can be ensured. is there.

Accordingly, the present invention makes it possible to simultaneously achieve both normal running by operating the accelerator pedal and autonomous running by motor drive. In autonomous running, rapid acceleration or abnormal operation occurs within the range of the throttle valve opening when the autonomous running is set. It is an object of the present invention to provide a throttle device for autonomous traveling which can prevent a high speed traveling.

[0007]

In order to achieve this object, an autonomous driving throttle device according to the present invention is driven directly by a first traction control motor to control a first direction from a fully open state to a first direction. A throttle valve, a throttle opening / closing lever that selectively engages with a throttle gear that rotates by being driven by an accelerator cam or a second motor for autonomous driving that rotates in conjunction with an accelerator pedal, Open / close control via the open / close lever,
A throttle device for autonomous traveling comprising a second throttle valve arranged in series with the first throttle valve, a normally closed limit switch capable of shutting off a drive circuit of the second motor, and a coaxial with the throttle gear. It is pivotally supported by and is spring-supported to keep the tip at a fixed position,
A limit switch operating lever for turning off the limit switch and shutting off the drive circuit by turning the limit switch off by turning the tip portion more than the predetermined position in the opening direction of the second throttle valve, and the throttle gear is connected to the throttle opening / closing lever. A controller that detects the engagement and outputs a command signal, and an electromagnetic clutch that operates according to the command signal of the controller and integrates the limit switch operating lever and the throttle gear is provided. And

[0008]

In the throttle device for autonomous traveling employing such means, the first throttle valve is normally fully opened, and the second throttle valve in series therewith has an idling opening. When the accelerator pedal is operated, the accelerator cam rotates, and the throttle opening / closing lever engages with the accelerator cam to rotate, thereby controlling the opening and closing of the second throttle valve. Further, in the set state of autonomous traveling, the throttle gear is rotated by being driven by the second motor, and the throttle opening / closing lever is engaged with and rotated by this, whereby the second throttle valve is controlled to open and close. As described above, the throttle opening / closing lever is selectively engaged with the accelerator cam or the throttle gear to control the opening / closing of the two throttle valves, so that the normal traveling by operating the accelerator pedal and the autonomous traveling by driving the second motor are simultaneously compatible. .

Here, when the vehicle is set to the autonomous running mode from the normal running mode by operating the accelerator pedal, the electromagnetic clutch is engaged when the throttle gear is engaged with the throttle opening / closing lever at the turning position corresponding to the opening of the second throttle valve. Is activated by the command signal of the controller, and the limit switch operating lever is integrated with the throttle gear. Therefore,
When the throttle gear rotates further in the opening direction of the second throttle valve, the tip of the limit switch operating lever operates to turn off the limit switch, thereby cutting off the drive circuit of the second motor. Therefore, the autonomous traveling by the driving of the second motor is performed in a range equal to or less than the opening of the second throttle valve at the time of the autonomous traveling set.

[0010]

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS An embodiment of the present invention will now be described in detail with reference to the accompanying drawings. 1 and 2 showing a schematic structure of one embodiment,
Reference numeral 1 denotes a throttle body, 2 denotes a first traction control throttle valve installed in an intake passage 1a of the throttle body 1, and 3 denotes an intake passage 1a downstream of the first throttle valve 2. The second throttle valve is shown.

The first throttle valve 2 has a valve shaft 2a directly connected to a rotary shaft 4a of a traction control first motor 4 attached to the throttle body 1. The first throttle valve 2 has a command signal of a controller to be described later. The rotation of the first motor 4 is controlled in accordance with the slip state of the front and rear wheels, so that the intake passage 1a is closed by a required angle from the fully opened state. The opening of the first throttle valve 2 is detected by a first throttle opening sensor 5 attached to the throttle body 1 and fed back to the controller.

The second throttle valve 3 is for normal running and autonomous running, and its valve shaft 3a has
A throttle opening / closing lever 6 having an engaging portion 6a which is bent in an L shape and extends along the axial direction of the valve shaft 3a is fixed. In response to the rotation of the throttle opening / closing lever 6, the second throttle valve 3 moves the intake passage 1a.
Is opened and closed, and the opening is detected by a second throttle opening sensor 7 attached to the throttle body 1 and fed back to the controller. In addition,
The throttle opening / closing lever 6 is returned to its original position by a return spring 8 to close the second throttle valve 3.

A fan-shaped accelerator cam 9 and a throttle gear 10 are rotatably supported on a valve shaft 3a of the second throttle valve 3 by return springs 11 and 12, respectively. It rotates in the same direction as the opening / closing lever 6 and returns to the original position.

The accelerator cam 9 is connected to an accelerator pedal 14 via an accelerator cable 13 and rotates against the return spring 11 when the accelerator pedal 14 is depressed. The second throttle valve 3 is opened by engaging the engaging portion 6 a of the opening / closing lever 6 to rotate the throttle opening / closing lever 6.

A pinion gear 16 fixed to a rotating shaft 15a of a second motor 15 for autonomous traveling meshes with the throttle gear 10, and the rotation of the second motor 15 is controlled by a command signal from a controller. As a result, the throttle gear 10 rotates against the return spring 12, and at this time, the engagement portion 6a of the throttle opening / closing lever 6
To open the second throttle valve 3 by rotating the throttle opening / closing lever 6. The second motor 15 is supported by an engine body or the like (not shown).

As shown in FIG. 3, a limit switch operating lever 18 is coaxially connected to the throttle gear 10 via an electromagnetic clutch 17, and when the electromagnetic clutch 17 is connected by a command signal from the controller, the limit switch is turned on. The switch operation lever 18 is integrated with the throttle gear 10. The distal end portion 18a of the limit switch operation lever 18 is supported in a balanced state by left and right coil springs 20, 20 stretched between support pins 19, 19 fixed to an engine body or the like. It is designed to keep a certain position when shutting off.

On the other hand, a limit switch 21 capable of cutting off a drive circuit of the second motor 15 is provided to be supported by the throttle body 1 or the like. This limit switch 2
Reference numeral 1 designates a normally closed contact portion 21a facing the distal end portion 18a of the limit switch operating lever 18, and the distal end portion 18a of the limit switch operating lever 18 is throttled together with the throttle gear 10 by the connection of the electromagnetic clutch 17. When the opening / closing lever 6 rotates toward the engaging portion 6a, the contact portion 21a is opened by engaging with the lever.

FIG. 4 shows a block configuration of the autonomous traveling system. The first motor 4, the second motor 15 and the electromagnetic clutch 17 are connected to the output side of the controller 22, respectively. The input side of the controller 22 is connected to the first throttle opening sensor 5, the second throttle opening sensor 7, and the limit switch 21, respectively. Further, on the input side of the controller 22, an image data processing unit 24 for inputting an image signal from the camera 23 and an autonomous traveling switch 25 are connected.

The plurality of cameras 23 monitor the front of the vehicle. The image data processing unit 24, which receives image signals from these cameras 23, determines the inter-vehicle distance to a preceding vehicle traveling in front of the vehicle. The change is detected and a detection signal is output to the controller 22. In addition, the autonomous traveling switch 25 outputs a signal for starting the opening / closing control of the second throttle valve 3 by the second motor 15 to the controller 22. The controller 22 that has received the signal from the autonomous traveling switch 25 outputs an acceleration or deceleration command signal to the second motor 15 according to the detection signal from the image data processing unit 24.

Next, the operation of the throttle device for autonomous traveling constructed as described above according to one embodiment will be described together with the operating state of the vehicle. First, in the throttle device for autonomous traveling, the first throttle valve 2 is fully opened to open the intake passage 1a in an initial state. At this time, as shown in FIG. 5A, the throttle opening / closing lever 6, the accelerator cam 9, and the throttle gear 10 are returned to their original positions by the return springs 8, 11, and 12, respectively, so that the second throttle The valve 3 is maintained at the idling opening.

Then, when the accelerator pedal 14 is depressed,
The accelerator cam 9 rotates via the accelerator cable 13 against the return spring 11, and at this time, FIG.
As shown in FIG.
a to rotate the throttle opening / closing lever 6. By the rotation of the throttle opening / closing lever 6, the second throttle valve 3 opens the intake passage 1a in accordance with the depression amount of the accelerator pedal 14, and the vehicle normally travels in response to the operation of the accelerator pedal 14.

Here, when the autonomous traveling switch 25 is turned on at a predetermined speed during normal traveling by operating the accelerator pedal 14, the autonomous traveling of the vehicle is started. FIG. 6 shows a control procedure of the controller 22 when shifting to the autonomous traveling. When the autonomous traveling switch 25 is turned on (S
1) The controller 22 sends an acceleration or deceleration command signal according to the detection signal from the image data processing unit 24 to the second
By outputting to the motor 15, the second motor 15 is driven (S2). Then, the controller 22 controls the second motor 1
5 is checked (S3), and when the current value sharply increases (S4), a command signal is output to the electromagnetic clutch 17 and connected thereto (S5).

On the other hand, in the operation system of the second throttle valve 3, the pinion gear 1 is driven by the driving of the second motor 15.
The throttle gear 10 is rotated via 6. The throttle gear 10 comes into contact with and engages with the engaging portion 6a of the throttle opening / closing lever 6 at a rotation position corresponding to the opening of the second throttle valve 3, as shown in FIG. 5C. Even if the accelerator pedal 14 is released, the second
The opening and closing of the second throttle valve 3 is controlled in accordance with the driving of the motor 15, and thus the autonomous traveling of the vehicle is started.

Here, as described above, the throttle gear 10
Is rotated to engage with the engagement portion 6a of the throttle opening / closing lever 6, the load of the return spring 8 is applied to the second motor 15 via the throttle opening / closing lever 6, so that the current value of the second motor 15 Increase rapidly. Then, the electromagnetic clutch 17 is connected by a command signal of the controller 22, and thereafter the limit switch operating lever 18 is integrated with the throttle gear 10 via the electromagnetic clutch 17. For this reason, when the second motor 15 rotates the throttle gear 10 further in the opening direction of the second throttle valve 3, the tip 18 a of the limit switch operating lever 18
Open the contact portion 21a of the limit switch 21 to cut off the drive circuit of the second motor 15,
The autonomous traveling by the driving of the fifth driving is performed within a range equal to or less than the opening of the second throttle valve 3 at the start of the autonomous traveling.

As described above, in the throttle device for autonomous traveling according to the embodiment, the accelerator cam 9 or the throttle gear 10 is selectively engaged with the engagement portion 6a of the throttle opening / closing lever 6 to control the opening and closing of the second throttle valve 3. That is, the normal running by the operation of the accelerator pedal 14 and the second motor 1
5, and the autonomous traveling by driving of 5. In either case of the normal running or the autonomous running, when the front and rear wheels of the vehicle slip, the rotation of the first motor 4 is controlled by the command signal of the controller 22 according to the slip state. The throttle valve 2 closes the intake passage 1a by a required angle from the fully opened state to lower the engine output, and thus traction control is performed.

[0026]

As described above, according to the present invention, the accelerator cam is rotated by the operation of the accelerator pedal, and the throttle opening / closing lever is engaged with the accelerator cam to rotate, thereby controlling the opening and closing of the second throttle valve. Is done. Further, in the set state of autonomous traveling, the throttle gear is rotated by being driven by the second motor, and the throttle opening / closing lever is engaged with and rotated by this, whereby the second throttle valve is controlled to open and close. As described above, the throttle opening / closing lever selectively engages with the accelerator cam or the throttle gear to control the opening / closing of the two throttle valves, so that the normal traveling by operating the accelerator pedal and the autonomous traveling by driving the second motor are simultaneously compatible. Therefore, even when the second motor is out of order, normal traveling by the accelerator pedal can be performed.

Here, when the vehicle is set to the autonomous running mode from the normal running mode by operating the accelerator pedal, the electromagnetic clutch is engaged when the throttle gear is engaged with the throttle opening / closing lever at the turning position corresponding to the opening of the second throttle valve. Is activated by the command signal of the control unit, and the limit switch operating lever is integrated with the throttle gear.
Therefore, when the throttle gear further rotates in the opening direction of the second throttle valve, the tip of the limit switch operation lever turns off the limit switch, and shuts off the drive circuit of the second motor. Accordingly, the autonomous driving by the driving of the second motor is performed within a range equal to or less than the opening of the second throttle valve at the time of the autonomous driving setting, and safety is secured by preventing sudden acceleration or abnormal high speed driving. can do.

[Brief description of the drawings]

FIG. 1 is a perspective view showing an entire schematic structure of an embodiment of an autonomous traveling throttle device according to the present invention.

FIG. 2 is a sectional view showing an overall schematic structure of one embodiment.

FIG. 3 is a partial front view showing a main part structure of one embodiment.

FIG. 4 is a block diagram of an autonomous driving system according to one embodiment.

5 (a), 5 (b), and 5 (c) are partial front views of main parts showing the operation of one embodiment.

FIG. 6 is a flowchart showing the operation of one embodiment.

[Explanation of symbols]

 Reference Signs List 1 throttle body 2 first throttle valve 3 second throttle valve 4 first motor 5 first throttle opening sensor 6 throttle opening / closing lever 7 second throttle opening sensor 8 return spring 9 accelerator cam 10 throttle gear 11 return spring 12 return spring 13 accelerator cable 14 accelerator pedal 15 second motor 16 pinion gear 17 electromagnetic clutch 18 limit switch operating lever 19 support pin 20 coil spring 21 limit switch 22 controller 23 camera 24 image data processing unit 25 autonomous traveling switch

──────────────────────────────────────────────────の Continuation of front page (51) Int.Cl. ⁶ Identification code FI F02D 11/10 F02D 11/10 Q 29/02 301 29/02 301B 41/22 310 41/22 310E

Claims (1)

(57) [Scope of request for utility model registration] 1. A first throttle valve which is directly driven by a first motor for traction control and is controlled in a closing direction from a fully open state, an accelerator cam which rotates in connection with an accelerator pedal or a second throttle for autonomous traveling. A throttle opening / closing lever that selectively engages with a throttle gear that rotates by being driven by a motor, and a second opening / closing lever that is opened / closed via the throttle opening / closing lever and is arranged in series with the first throttle valve; A throttle device for autonomous traveling, comprising: a throttle valve; a normally-closed limit switch capable of shutting off a drive circuit of the second motor; and a tip end pivotally supported coaxially with the throttle gear.
The spring is supported to keep
2 Rotate the throttle valve in the opening direction above the certain position.
To turn off the limit switch and
The limit switch operating lever that cuts off the motion circuit and the throttle gear engage with the throttle opening / closing lever
Controller that outputs a command signal by detecting that
And operates in response to a command signal from the controller.
Switch operation lever and throttle gear
An autonomous traveling throttle device comprising: an electromagnetic clutch .