JPH03189276A - Rear wing control device for automobile - Google Patents

Abstract

PURPOSE:To improve turning property and travel stability of an automobile by providing a pair of left and right rear wings at the rear part of the automobile, and independently controlling the tilted angle of each rear wing according to the predicted value of lateral acceleration acting on the automobile and the direction of the lateral acceleration at the initial period of steering. CONSTITUTION:A pair of left and right rear wings 1 and front wings 7 oscillated with air cylinders 4L, 4R, 10L, and 10R are provided at the rear edge of the trunk lid and the front lower part of an automobile respectively. An inlet valve 15 is provided on each of branch supply lines 13L, 13R, 14L, and 14R connected to each of wings 1 and 7, and an exhaust valve 18 is mounted on each of branch return lines 16L, 16R, 17L, and 17R branched from each of branch supply lines 13L, 13R, 14L, and 14R on the downstream side from the inlet valve 15. These inlet and exhaust valves 15 and 18 are controlled according to a lateral acceleration and its direction predicted from steered quantity and a steering direction until given time elapses after steering operation starts, and the tilted angle of each wing 1 and 7 is made variable.

Description

[Detailed Description of the Invention] (Industrial Application Field) This invention relates to a left-right split type rear wing attached to the rear of an automobile, and in particular, to a system for controlling and moving the left and right rear wings independently. This invention relates to a rear wing control device for an automobile.

(Prior Art) This type of rear wing not only greatly reduces the coefficient of lift at the rear of the vehicle body when driving at high speeds, but also has the advantage of enhancing the aesthetic appearance of the vehicle body.

Therefore, in recent years, rear wings are being adopted even in ordinary passenger cars.

The lift coefficient reduction effect of the rear wing changes depending on the inclination of the vehicle relative to the direction of travel, so recently, the rear wing has been mounted rotatably relative to the vehicle body.
There are also known vehicles in which the inclination of the rear wing can be varied depending on the speed of the vehicle.

(Problem to be Solved by the Invention) However, for example, when a car is subjected to a crosswind or when the car turns at high speed, the running and steering stability of the car will be impaired. In this regard, as described above, the above-mentioned problems cannot be effectively solved with a rear wing that simply moves according to the vehicle speed.

Therefore, it is conceivable to provide the automobile with a lateral acceleration sensor that detects the lateral acceleration of the vehicle, and to control the inclination of the left and right rear wings based on the signal from the lateral acceleration sensor. However, in this case, even if the left and right rear wings are controlled after actually detecting the lateral acceleration and its direction with the lateral acceleration sensor, there will be a delay in the operation of these rear wings, and the functions of these rear wings will be delayed. cannot be used effectively.

This invention was made based on the above-mentioned circumstances, and
The purpose of this invention is to provide a rear wing control device for an automobile that can sufficiently ensure steering stability of the automobile even when subjected to crosswinds or when turning.

(Means for Solving the Problems) A rear wing control device for an automobile according to the present invention controls left and right rear wings rotatably attached to the rear of an automobile. a pair of driving means for driving the rear wing and varying the inclination angle of the rear wing with respect to the traveling direction of the automobile; and an acceleration detecting means for detecting the lateral acceleration of the automobile in the left and right direction as well as the direction. , a prediction means for predicting the lateral acceleration and its direction from the amount and direction of steering operation of the automobile, and a prediction means for predicting the lateral acceleration and its direction obtained by the prediction means until a predetermined time has elapsed since the steering wheel was operated. , the tilt of the left and right rear wings can be varied in consideration of the lateral acceleration and direction obtained by the acceleration detection means (and a control circuit that controls the operation of the drive means).

(Function) The above-mentioned rear wing control device has left and right rear wings, and since these rear wings are movable by respective driving means, the lateral acceleration applied to the vehicle and its left and right directions can be predicted. When obtained by the means and acceleration detection means, based on this lateral acceleration and its direction,
The control circuit allows the tilt of the left and right rear wings to be controlled independently. Moreover, until a predetermined period of time has elapsed after the steering wheel of the car was operated, the lateral acceleration and its direction obtained by the prediction means are given priority and adopted to control the left and right rear wings. There is no delay in operation.

(Example) An embodiment of the present invention will be described below with reference to the drawings.

Referring to FIG. 1, a pneumatic control circuit for a rear wing control device according to one embodiment is shown.

Here, this pneumatic control circuit is for controlling a pair of rear wings, and these rear wings IL, I
As shown in FIG. 2, R are arranged side by side at the rear of the automobile, that is, at the rear edge of the trunk lid. Here, the rear wings LL and IR have a shape similar to an upside-down main wing of an airplane, and their central portions are rotatably attached to the support leg 2 via a rotation shaft. .

The rear wing IL is rotated about a rotation axis 3 by a drive means, and in this embodiment, the drive means is arranged horizontally as shown in FIG. It is configured with an air cylinder 4L. The air cylinder 4L is a single-acting air cylinder with a built-in return spring, and the tip of its piston rod is connected to the rotating shaft 3 via a pair of links 5 and 6. Therefore, when the air cylinder 4L is expanded or contracted, the rear wing IL is rotated about the rotation axis 3, and thereby, relative to the traveling direction of the automobile. The slope will be changed. Furthermore, the drive means on the rear wing IR side is also
It is equipped with a driving means similar to that of the rear wing IL, and only its air cylinder 4R is shown in FIG.

Referring again to FIG. 2, left and right front wings 7L and 7R are arranged side by side at the lower front of the automobile so as to correspond to the left and right rear wings IL and IR. These front wings 7L, 7R have the same shape as the rear wings IL, IR, and are swingably supported on the vehicle body side via a pair of links. That is,
One link is a bent link 8 whose lower end is connected to the center of the front wing 7L and whose upper end is connected to the vehicle body, and the other link is a bent link 8 whose lower end is connected to the rear of the front wing 7L. , the upper end thereof is a drive link 9 similarly connected to the vehicle body side. And the first
As shown in the figure, a piston rod of an air cylinder IOL is connected to the drive link 9 as a driving means for the front wing 7L.
As the OL expands and contracts, the front wing 7L is rotated while changing its inclination with respect to the traveling direction. At this time, the front wing 7L is rotated while being displaced in the front-rear direction.

The other front wing 7R can also be driven via the same support structure and drive means as the front wing 7L, and only the air cylinder IOR of the drive means is shown in FIG. There is.

The above-described pneumatic control circuit includes a high-pressure tank 11 that supplies compressed air to each air cylinder 4.10. For example, compressed air of 10 kg/c++f is stored in this high-pressure tank II. From the high pressure tank 11, the first
A supply conduit 12 extends from the first supply conduit 12 to a branch supply conduit 13L.

13R, 14L, and 14R are branched, and each branch supply pipe is connected to a corresponding air cylinder 4L.

Connected to 4R, IOL, and IOR.

An air supply valve 15 consisting of a solenoid valve is inserted into each branch supply pipe, and an air supply valve I5 of each branch supply pipe
From the downstream part, branch return pipes 16L and 16R
, 17L, and 17R extend, respectively. Exhaust valves 18 made of electromagnetic valves are inserted into these branch return pipes, and each branch return pipe is connected to a return pipe 19.

A low pressure tank 20 is connected to the return pipe 19,
This low pressure tank 20 is connected to the above-mentioned high pressure tank 11 via a connecting pipe line 21.

The pressure inside the low pressure tank 20 is approximately atmospheric pressure.

A pneumatic pump 22 is inserted into the connecting pipe line 21 .

In the first supply pipe line 12, a second supply pipe line 23 is branched from a portion upstream of each branch supply pipe line, and this second supply pipe line 23 is further connected to a branch supply pipe line. 24.25
It is branched into. An air supply valve 26 made of a solenoid valve is inserted into the second supply pipe line 23, located upstream of the branch supply pipe lines 24 and 25. Additionally, a branch supply line 24.
25 is a pair of re-branching pipes 27L, 27R, 28L, 2
8R, and a re-branched pipeline 27L.
.

27R is connected to strut-type left and right front air suspensions 29L and 29R.

On the other hand, the re-branching pipes 28L and 28R have the same strut type left and right rear air suspensions 30L.

Connected to 30R.

In the branch supply pipe 24, the re-branch pipe 27L,
A vehicle height control valve 31 made of a solenoid valve is inserted upstream of 27R, and similarly, in the branch supply pipe 25, the re-branch pipe 28L.

A vehicle height control valve 32 made of a solenoid valve is inserted upstream of 28R.

The air suspensions 29 and 30 described above are capable of adjusting the height of the vehicle depending on the amount of compressed air supplied, and are equipped with shock absorbers whose damping force can be varied. Therefore, each air suspension 29.
30 incorporates a damping force switching actuator 33 for switching the damping force of the shock absorber.

In the branch supply pipe 25, an exhaust pipe 34 is branched from a portion upstream of the vehicle height control valve 32, and this exhaust pipe 34 is exposed to the atmosphere via an air cleaner 35. It's liberated. A check valve 36, a dryer, and an exhaust valve 38 consisting of a solenoid valve are inserted in the exhaust pipe line 34 in this order from the upstream side.

Further, the exhaust pipe line 34 is provided with a bypass pipe line 39 that bypasses the exhaust valve 38.
9, a near compressor 40 is inserted.

On the other hand, the dryer 37 is connected to the high pressure tank 11 via a supply line 41, and a check valve 42 is inserted into this supply line 41.

As shown in FIG. 1, the rear wing control device of the present invention includes a control unit 43 including a microcomputer and the like to control its operation.

Therefore, signals from various sensors are manually input to the control unit 43.
The sensors included in the rear wing control device will be explained.

First, the high pressure tank 11 and the low pressure tank 20 are equipped with pressure sensors 44 and 45. The pressure sensor 44 detects when the pressure inside the high pressure tank 11 becomes below a predetermined pressure.
Supplying the signal to the control unit 43,
The controller unit 43 then drives the pneumatic pump 2 to supply compressed air from the low pressure tank 20 to the high pressure tank 11 to maintain the pressure in the high pressure tank 11 at a predetermined pressure or higher. On the other hand, when the pressure in the low pressure tank 20 becomes lower than a predetermined pressure, the pressure sensor 45 supplies the signal to the control unit 43, and the control unit 43 drives the pneumatic pump 2.
Compressed air is supplied from the low pressure tank 20 to the high pressure tank 11 to maintain the pressure inside the low pressure tank 20 below a predetermined pressure.

Therefore, the air pressure necessary to drive the above-mentioned air cylinder is always stored in the high-pressure tank 11, while the pressure in the low-pressure tank 20 is such that the exhaust gas from the air cylinder is returned through the return pipe. The pressure is so low that it can be reliably returned to the low pressure tank 20 via the tank 19.

Note that, regardless of the driving of the pneumatic pump 22, when the pressure inside the high-pressure tank 11 cannot be maintained at a predetermined pressure or higher, the near compressor 40 is driven based on a command from the control unit 43, and thereby the air cleaner is removed from the outside air. 35. Near compressor 40. Compressed air is supplied to the high pressure tank 11 via the dryer 37 and the check valve 42.

The automobile is equipped with a pair of vehicle height sensors 46 and 47. One vehicle height sensor 46 has the tip of its sensor link connected to the front lower arm 48 on the right side, while the other vehicle height sensor 47 has the tip of its sensor link connected to the left side of the lateral rod 49. is connected to.

That is, the vehicle height sensors 46 and 47 are arranged approximately diagonally on the vehicle body.

Signals from the vehicle height sensors 46 and 47 are input to the control unit 43, and based on these signals,
The control unit 43 controls the air supply valve 26. Controls the operation of vehicle height control valves 31, 32 and exhaust valve 38. for example,
If the vehicle height at the front of the vehicle body is too low than a predetermined value, first the air supply valve 26 is opened based on a signal from the vehicle height sensor 46, and then the vehicle height control valve 31 is opened. become. Therefore, the compressed air from the high pressure tank 11 is transferred to the second supply pipe 23, the branch supply pipe 24, and further to the sub-branch pipe 27L.
, 27R, front air suspension 29
The fuel is supplied to L and 29R, and the vehicle height at the front of the vehicle body is raised to a predetermined value.

Conversely, if the vehicle height at the front of the vehicle body is too high than the predetermined value, the exhaust valve 38 is opened and then the vehicle height control valve 31 is opened based on the signal from the vehicle height sensor 46. Side air suspension 29L.

The compressed air in 29R is exhausted, and as a result, the vehicle height at the front of the vehicle body is lowered to a predetermined value. Note that the above-described operation regarding vehicle height adjustment is the same for the rear air suspensions 30L and 30R.

The control unit 43 also includes an accelerator opening sensor 50. Brake switch 51. Also, alternator and parking brake switch.

Various sensors 52 such as door switches and shift switches
The signal is input from the Furthermore, a suspension control switch 53 is arranged in the driver's seat of the automobile.
This signal is also supplied to the control unit 43. Suspension control switch 5
The function 3 is provided to adjust the vehicle height step by step using the air suspension according to the driver's preference, and to vary the magnitude of the damping force of the shock absorber using the damping force switching actuator 33. ing.

The control device of the present invention has the above-mentioned left and right (7)
Sensors are also provided to control the operation, that is, the rotation of the IL, IR1, and left and right front wings 7L, 7R.

First, the sensors include tilt angle sensors 54L and 54R for detecting the tilt of the rear wings IL and IR. These tilt angle sensors 54L, 54R are, for example,
It consists of a linear potentiometer that detects the amount of expansion and contraction of the piston rod in the corresponding air cylinder 4. On the other hand, the inclination angle sensors 55L and 55R for detecting the inclination of the front wings 7L and 7R are also constituted by linear potentiometers that detect the amount of expansion and contraction of the piston rod in the corresponding air cylinder 10. Therefore, when the signals from these tilt angle sensors 54 and 55 are supplied to the control unit 43, the control unit 43 controls each wing 1. 7 inclination angles can be calculated.

A lateral acceleration sensor, a so-called lateral G sensor 56, which detects lateral acceleration applied to the vehicle body and its direction is arranged in front of the center of gravity of the vehicle body. The signal is also input to the control unit 43. Furthermore, signals from a vehicle speed sensor 57 and a steering angular velocity sensor 58 that detects the operation angular velocity of the steering wheel and its direction when the steering wheel is operated are also input to the control unit 43. . Although the vehicle speed sensor 57 is shown as a speedometer in FIG. 1, it actually determines the vehicle speed from the number of rotations of the propeller shaft of the vehicle.

In order to simplify the drawing, the signal lines from the control unit to each actuator are omitted in FIG. 1.

Next, the operation of the rear wings IL and IR will be explained with reference to FIGS. 3 to 7.

3 and 4 are flowcharts showing the operating procedure of the control unit 43 regarding the control of the rear wing 1. In this flowchart, initialization is first performed in step Sl. In this initialization,
The memory inclination angle θM of the rear wing 1 and the target inclination angle θ0 of the rear wing I stored in the memory in the control unit 43 are set to (θ), and the inclination angle holding flag θF and the timer TM are set to Each value is 0
is set to

Here, the memorized inclination angle θM and the target inclination angle θ0 represent the inclination angles of the rear wings IL and IR, regardless of whether they are left or right. In the case of this embodiment, (.theta.) is determined from the inclination angle setting map shown in FIGS. 5 and 6. In FIG. 5, the area for determining the inclination angle of the rear wing 1 is divided into five areas A to E based on the steering angular velocity α relative to the vehicle speed V, and the values of the inclination angle in these areas A to E are , ■(θ) to ■(θ), respectively. For example, in this example, ■(θ) to ■(
θ) are set to 0°, 5°, 10°, 15°, and 25°, respectively.

In addition, in FIG. 6, the ranges from 1 to 5 which determine the inclination angle of the rear wing 1 are divided from the lateral acceleration G with respect to the vehicle speed 2, and the value of the inclination angle I(θ ) to ■(θ) are as described above.

Therefore, in step S1, ■(θ) is substituted into the stored tilt angle θM and the target tilt angle θ0, respectively.

In the next step S2, the vehicle speed V is calculated, that is, read out, based on the signal from the vehicle speed sensor 57. Then, in step S3, based on the signal from the lateral G sensor 56, the value Yg of the lateral G acting on the vehicle body is read out along with its direction, that is, the value of Yg is read out with a sign, and the next step S4 Then, the angular velocity α of the steering angular velocity sensor 58 is read out with its sign.

In step S5, it is determined whether the product of Yg and α is positive. If the determination here is positive, it is assumed that the car is turning in either the left or right direction or will turn, and the process proceeds to step S. In step S6, the α-■ map shown in FIG. Based on the vehicle speed V and steering angular velocity α, the target inclination angle θO1 is read out, and in the next step S7, the target inclination angle θ
01 is larger than the memorized inclination angle θM. Here, if the determination in step S7 is positive, step S8 is bypassed and the process proceeds to step s9. In step S9, the aforementioned holding flag θF is set to 1, and the timer TM is O is set.

Then, in the next step SIO, the memorized inclination angle θM
The target inclination angle θO1 is substituted into .

In the next step Sll, after the value of the timer TM is incremented, the process advances to step S12, and this step Sll is incremented.
At step 12, the target inclination angle θ02 is read out based on the Yg-V map shown in FIG.

Then, the process advances to the next step S13, and this step S1
3, the magnitude relationship between the stored tilt angle θM and the target tilt angle θ02 is determined. In this step SI3,
If θM>θ02, the process proceeds to step S14, and in this step, the value of the stored inclination angle θM is substituted for the target inclination angle θ0. On the other hand, in step S13, θM θ0
In the case of 2, the process proceeds to step 315, and in this step, the value of the target inclination angle θo2 obtained in step S12 is substituted for the target inclination angle θ0.

In the next step S16, step S4. From the sign of α or Yg read out in S5, it is determined whether the direction is leftward or rightward, and if it is determined that the direction is leftward, the process advances to step S17.

In this step S17, the value of the target inclination angle θ0 is substituted into the target inclination angle θOL of the left rear wing LL, whereas the value of the target inclination angle θOR of the right rear wing IR is O0, that is, as shown in FIG. Value I(θ) of I area in Fig. 6
The same value is assigned.

On the other hand, when it is determined in step S16 that the direction of Yg is rightward, the process proceeds to step S18, and in this step, the target inclination angle θOR of the right rear wing IR is set to the target inclination angle θO. On the other hand, Oo is substituted for the target inclination angle θOL of the left rear wing IL.

And in this way, the rear wing IL.

Once the target inclination angles θOL and θOR of IR are set,
Proceeding to step S19, in this step S19, the actual elevation angles of the rear wings IL and IR are 1. That is, the actual inclination angle θ
L and θR are each read out. Here, these actual inclination angles θL and θR are determined by the inclination angle sensor 54 as described above.
It is calculated in the control unit 43 based on the signals from L and 54R.

After this, in step S20, the rear wing IL
, the magnitude relationship between the target inclination angle θOL and the actual inclination angle θL is determined.

Here, when θL<θ0L−k is satisfied, it is determined that the actual inclination angle θL of the rear wing IL is too small than its target inclination angle θOL, and the process proceeds to step S21, and when θL>θOL+k is satisfied, the rear wing IL is Wing I
It is determined that the actual inclination angle θL of L is too larger than the target inclination angle θOL, and the process proceeds to step S22. Then, if none of these conditions are satisfied, θOL+≧θL≧θOL
When the condition - is satisfied, it is determined that the actual inclination angle θL of the rear wing IL substantially matches the target inclination angle θOL, and the process proceeds to step S23.

Note that k is a constant, and is a dead zone for determination in step S20 when controlling the operation of the rear wing LL.
In other words, it shows the hysteresis width.

When step S21 is executed, the air supply valve 15 on the rear wing IL side shown in FIG. 1 is opened. As a result, the piston rod of the air cylinder 4L is extended, so that the rear wing IL is adjusted so that its actual inclination angle θL matches the target inclination angle θOL, that is, the actual inclination angle θL
is rotated in the direction of increasing.

On the other hand, when step S22 is executed, the rear wing I
The L side exhaust valve 18 is opened. As a result, the piston port of the air cylinder 4L is contracted, so that the actual inclination angle θL of the rear wing IL becomes equal to the target inclination angle θOL.
In other words, it is rotated in a direction that makes the actual inclination angle θL smaller.

On the other hand, if steps 321 and 322 (and step 323 are executed), in this step S23,
The air supply valve 15 and the exhaust valve 18 are both closed, so that
The rotation of the rear wing IL is stopped, and the actual inclination angle θL of the rear wing IL is maintained at that value.

When the rotation of one rear wing IL starts to be controlled as described above, the process proceeds to step S24 in order to control the rotation of the other rear wing IR. The magnitude relationship between the target inclination angle θOR and the actual inclination angle θR regarding IR is determined.

Here, when θR<θ0R−k is satisfied, it is determined that the actual inclination angle θR of the rear wing IR is too small than its target inclination angle θOR, and the process proceeds to step S25, and when θR>θOR+k is satisfied, the rear wing IR Wing I
It is determined that the actual inclination angle θR of R is too larger than the target inclination angle θOR, and the process proceeds to step 826. Then, if none of these conditions are satisfied, θOR+≧θR≧θOR
When the condition - is satisfied, it is determined that the actual inclination angle θR of the rear wing IR substantially matches the target inclination angle θOR, and the process proceeds to step S27.

Note that k here also indicates a dead zone for determination in step S24 when controlling the operation of the rear wing IR, that is, a hysteresis width.

When step S25 is executed, the air supply valve 15 on the rear wing IR side shown in FIG. 1 is opened. As a result, the piston rod of the air cylinder 4R is extended, so that the rear wing IR is adjusted so that its actual inclination angle θR matches the target inclination angle θOR, that is, the actual inclination angle θR
is rotated in the direction of increasing.

On the other hand, when step S26 is executed, the rear wing I
The exhaust valve 18 on the R side is opened. As a result, by contracting the piston rod of the air cylinder 4R, the rear wing IR is rotated so that its actual inclination angle θR matches the target inclination angle θOR, that is, in a direction that reduces the actual inclination angle θR. That will happen.

On the other hand, when step S23 is executed, both the air supply valve 15 and the exhaust valve 18 are closed, and therefore the rotation of the rear wing IR is stopped and the actual inclination angle of the rear wing IR is θR will be held at that value.

As described above, left and right rear wing IL.

Rotation control of the IR is started, and the above-mentioned steps are repeated, so that the rear wing IL
, IR actual inclination angles θL, θR are its target inclination angle θOL
, θOR.

As is clear from the determination in step S5, the above explanation is for a case where the car is about to turn, and in this case, the actual inclination of the rear wing l on the same side as the direction of the lateral acceleration Yg acting on the car body. control is performed to increase the angle and, in contrast, to decrease the actual inclination angle of the other rear wing l. Therefore, in the rear part of the vehicle body on the side of the rear wing 1, where the actual inclination angle is greatly varied, the lift coefficient is reduced, so it is possible to ensure sufficient grip force at the rear wheel, which is the driving wheel. It is possible to improve the turning performance of the vehicle, the so-called turning performance of the vehicle.

In this case, the target inclination angle of the rear wing l whose actual inclination angle is largely varied is based on the maps shown in FIGS. Since it is determined from the size, the actual inclination angles of the rear wings IL and IR to be controlled can be optimally controlled according to the vehicle speed V of the automobile.

If the determination in step S5 is negative, it means that the directions of action of the lateral acceleration Yg and the steering angular velocity α are different from each other, so in this case,
It is determined that the vehicle is experiencing a crosswind, and the process proceeds to step 328.
Proceed to. In this step 328, the stored inclination angle θM is
■The value of the area■(θ) is assigned, and the step S described above is
Steps after ll will be executed. In this case, since step S6 is not executed, the actual inclination angles of the rear wings LL and IR are controlled based on the target inclination angle θ02 determined from the map in FIG.

Furthermore, as described above, when the next control cycle is repeated after the steps after step $9 are executed once, the determination in step S7 is different from the case described above, and is negative. When it is determined that this means that the value of the memorized inclination angle θM (θ01) set in the previous control cycle is smaller than the target inclination angle θ01 obtained in step S6 in the next control cycle. ing. In this case, the process advances from step S7 to step S8.

In this step S8, it is determined whether or not the holding flag θF is 1. In this case, since the holding flag θF has already been set to 1 in the previous control cycle, the holding flag θF is The determination will be positive, and the process will proceed to the next step 329. In this step S29, it is determined whether the value of the timer TM executed in step Sll is larger than a predetermined value TH (for example, 0.1 sec). Here, the above-mentioned time T
If H has not been reached, the determination in step 329 is negative, and in this case, the process advances to step Sll, and the subsequent steps are repeated. On the other hand, if the determination in step S29 is positive, the holding flag θF and the timer TM are set in the next step S30.
After each O is set and sorted, the steps after step Sll are repeatedly executed.

Therefore, in the flowcharts of the rear wings LL and IR shown in FIGS. 3 and 4, first, the steering angular velocity α is determined earlier than the lateral acceleration Yg, and as described above, step S7 Even when the determination in step 3 is negative, steps 38 and 39 are executed during the above-mentioned time T)I, so that the value of the target inclination angle θ01 determined from the steering angular velocity α is the previous maximum value. will be held. Therefore, even if the lateral acceleration Yg has not yet been actually detected by the lateral G sensor 56 when the steering wheel is operated and the vehicle actually attempts to turn, the target inclination angle θO1 determined from the steering angular velocity α is Based on this, control of the actual inclination angles of the rear wings LL and IR can be started immediately, and it becomes possible to control these rear wings LL and IR quickly and reliably.

Note that after this, that is, after the elapse of time TH, the lateral acceleration Yg of the vehicle is actually detected, so the rear wings IL and IR are adjusted based on the target inclination angle θ02 obtained from this lateral acceleration Yg. The actual inclination angle can be controlled.

This point will become clearer if you refer to the time chart in FIG. That is, as shown in FIG.
When the car turns, the lateral acceleration Yg is the steering angular velocity α
Therefore, the target inclination angle θ01 determined from the steering angular velocity α is the same as the lateral acceleration Yg.
Compared to the target inclination angle θ02 obtained from These rear wing IL.

Delays in IR activation can be prevented, and these tilt angle controls can be optimally implemented.

Although the explanation of the control regarding the actual inclination angle of the front wings 7L, 7R will be omitted, the front wings 7L, 7R
Of course, in the case of 7H, control can be performed in the same manner as in the case of the rear wings IL and IR described above.

This invention is not limited to the one embodiment described above, but can be modified in various ways. For example, in the embodiment described above, the rear wings IL and IR of the present invention are combined with a car equipped with an air suspension, so the air cylinder 4L is also used to drive these rear wings IL and IR.

I decided to use 4R, but as shown in Figure 8,
When normal suspensions 60L, 60R161L, 61R consisting of coil springs and shock absorbers are used on both the front and rear sides, an electric motor is used as the drive source for the rear wings IL, IR and front wings 7L, 7R. You can also use In this case, when looking at the rear wing IL, the rotation of the output shaft of the electric motor 62L is converted into the rotation of a rotating plate 63, and this rotating plate 63 rotates the rear wing IL. It is rotated in a plane parallel to the moving plane. A drive arm 64 that rotates together with the rotary plate 63 protrudes from the periphery of the rotary plate 63, and the tip of the drive arm 64 is rotatably connected to the tip of the rear wing IL. . On the other hand, the rear part of the rear wing IL is supported with respect to the vehicle body via a rotatable support arm 65. Therefore, even with such a driving means, the actual inclination angle of the rear wing IL can be varied by driving the electric motor 62L. In addition, the other rear wing IR is also powered by an electric motor 62R.
is used and is driven by a similar mechanism.

In contrast to the rear wings IL and IR described above, the electric motor 66 is also used to drive the front wing 7.
A similar mechanism is employed, but in this case, the drive arm 64 and the drive link 9 described above are further connected via a connecting link 67.

In the case of the embodiment shown in FIG. 8, since an electric motor is used, the inclination angle sensors 68L and 68R that detect the actual inclination angles of the rear wings IL and IR are composed of rotary type potentiometers. Furthermore, the inclination angle sensor 69 on the front wing 7 side is also composed of a rotary type potentiometer. Although only one side of the front wing is shown in FIG. 8, it goes without saying that the front wing is provided in pairs, left and right.

In the case of the embodiment shown in FIG. 8, referring only to the rear wing IL with respect to the flowcharts shown in FIGS. 3 and 4, if the electric motor 62L is rotated forward in step S21, then in step S22 electric motor 62
L is reversed, and in step S23, the drive of the electric motor 62L is stopped.

Further, in one embodiment, the target inclination angle is determined from the steering angular velocity and the vehicle speed, but the present invention is not limited to this, and the target inclination angle may be determined from the steering angle S (see FIG. 7) and the vehicle speed. You can.

(Effects of the Invention) As explained above, according to the control device of the present invention, a pair of left and right rear wings are provided at the rear of the automobile, and
When controlling the inclination angle of these rear wings independently according to the lateral acceleration of the car and its direction, on the one hand,
The lateral acceleration and its direction are determined from the amount of steering operation of the vehicle by a prediction means, and the lateral acceleration is actually detected by the lateral acceleration means until a predetermined period of time has elapsed since the steering wheel was operated. The system uses the lateral acceleration and its direction obtained by the prediction means to control the inclination angle of the rear wing, so that when the car is about to turn, the rear wing is activated immediately. These rear wings can be used effectively, improving the turning performance of the automobile and increasing its driving stability.

[Brief explanation of drawings]

FIGS. 1 to 7 show one embodiment of the present invention.
The figure shows a pneumatic control circuit diagram including the rear wing control device.
FIG. 2 is a perspective view of an automobile equipped with left and right rear wings, FIGS. 3 and 4 are flowcharts for explaining the operation of the control device, and FIG. FIG. 6 is a diagram showing a target tilt angle setting region divided by vehicle speed and steering angular velocity, and FIG. 7 is a diagram showing a target tilt angle setting region divided by vehicle speed and steering angular velocity. 8 is a diagram showing the time difference between the target tilt angle determined from the steering angular velocity and the target tilt angle determined from the lateral acceleration when FIG. IL, IR...Rear wing, 4L, 4R...Air cylinder (driving means), 43...Control unit (control circuit), 56...Lateral acceleration sensor (detection means), 57...Vehicle speed Sensor, 58...Steering angular velocity sensor (detection means).

Claims (2)

[Claims] (1) In the left and right rear wings that are attached to the rear of the vehicle in parallel in the width direction of the vehicle and are rotatable independently of each other, provided corresponding to the left and right rear wings,
a pair of driving means for driving the rear wing to vary the inclination angle of the rear wing with respect to the traveling direction of the automobile;
an acceleration detecting means for detecting the lateral acceleration in the left and right direction of the automobile as well as its direction; a predicting means for predicting the lateral acceleration and its direction from the amount and direction of the steering operation of the automobile; Until the time elapses, the predicted lateral acceleration and its direction obtained by the prediction means are considered with priority over the lateral acceleration and direction obtained by the acceleration detection means, and the drive is operated in order to vary the inclination of the left and right rear wings. 1. A rear wing control device for an automobile, comprising a control circuit for controlling the operation of the means. (2) The rear wing control device for an automobile according to claim 1, wherein the prediction means includes a sensor that detects a steering angle or a steering angular velocity, and a steering direction.