KR102581825B1 - Sensor arrangement for determining the position of an actuator in a vehicle and a method for operating the sensor arrangement - Google Patents

Abstract

The present invention relates to a sensor arrangement for determining the position of an actuator in a motor vehicle, wherein the sensor arrangement comprises a voltage source in the motor vehicle that supplies an electrical operating voltage even when the ignition is deactivated, where the sensor arrangement comprises: at least one multi-turn sensor suitable for detecting the number of revolutions of a permanent magnet, wherein the actuator is connected to a first circuit supplied with an operating voltage only when the ignition is activated, wherein the multi-turn sensor comprises: It is connected to a second circuit which is supplied with electrical operating voltage even when the ignition is deactivated.

Description

Sensor arrangement for determining the position of an actuator in a vehicle and a method for operating the sensor arrangement

The present invention relates to a sensor arrangement for determining the position of an actuator (or an actuating unit of the actuator) in a motor vehicle and a method for actuating the sensor arrangement. In particular, a sensor arrangement is provided to determine the position of the clutch actuator. Clutch actuators are particularly provided for actuating clutches in automobiles, such as friction clutches. In particular, the actuator has a slip-free gear arrangement, more particularly comprising, for example, a spindle drive.

The position of the actuator can be determined with reference to the number of rotations of the permanent magnets arranged in the spindle drive, for example by a multi-turn sensor. A more accurate determination of the position of the actuator is possible through an additional rotor position sensor. An additional rotor position sensor detects the angular position of the permanent magnet within one revolution of the permanent magnet. The permanent magnets are arranged in particular to be rotatable relative to the fixed sensor.

As the spindle drive includes, for example, a rotor of an electric motor fixedly connected to rotate in unity with a permanent magnet, the rotational speed of the rotor can consequently be determined via a multi-turn sensor. Through the number of revolutions of the rotor, the position of the actuating unit of the axially displaceable actuator can be determined, in particular along the axial direction.

An automobile typically includes one voltage source and multiple circuits. The first circuit is supplied with the operating voltage of the voltage source only when, for example, the ignition of the car is activated. Accordingly, the voltage source is prevented from being discharged within a short period of time when the car is stopped. Therefore, the first circuit is connected to the so-called terminal 15.

The second circuit is connected to the so-called terminal 30. Terminal 30 (also referred to as permanent plus or B+) refers to the terminal to which the battery voltage is permanently applied within the electric board voltage network of the vehicle. If the battery is installed and connected, power is available from this branch of the cable harness even when the ignition is deactivated and the ignition key is removed (e.g. hazard warning lights).

The actuator is normally connected to terminal 15, more specifically, the actuator is supplied with current only when the ignition is activated. For this reason, reference has been made so far to the procedure of the actuator after each “ignition”, i.e. the starting position is moved, with the result that the multi-turn sensor can determine the position of the actuator starting from said starting position. In addition, a reference is also carried out, for example, in case of an undershooting of the operating voltage. References like this are time consuming.

The task of the present invention, starting from the above background, is to solve at least partially the problems known in the prior art. In particular, the sensor arrangement and the method for actuating the sensor arrangement must be specified, in which case the actuator must be displaced into a state ready for operation in the shortest possible period.

The above problem is solved according to the invention by a sensor arrangement with the features of claim 1 and by the method according to claim 5. Further preferred embodiments of the invention are specified in the dependent claims. Features individually recited in dependent claims can be combined with each other in a technically feasible way and define further embodiments of the invention. Furthermore, the features specified in these claims are elucidated and explained in more detail in the detailed description section, wherein further preferred embodiments of the invention are described.

A sensor arrangement is proposed for determining the position of an actuator in a vehicle, in this case the sensor arrangement comprising a voltage source of the vehicle that supplies an electrical operating voltage even when the ignition is deactivated. The sensor arrangement comprises one or more multi-turn sensors suitable for detecting the rotation speed of a permanent magnet, wherein the actuator is connected to a first circuit supplied with an operating voltage only when the ignition is activated, in which case the multi-turn The turn sensor is connected to a second circuit that is supplied with electrical operating voltage even when the ignition is deactivated.

The arrangement of the multi-turn sensor in the second circuit adjacent to the terminal 30 allows, on the one hand, the multi-turn sensor to continuously detect the movement of the permanent magnet, and, on the other hand, to the multi-turn sensor. Allows the value for the number of rotations detected by the device to be stored.

In this case, the power consumption of the multi-turn sensor is very low, since the sensor only needs to detect the movement of the permanent magnet. For this reason, the connection of the multi-turn sensor to the second circuit poses no problems with regard to a possible discharge of the voltage source, even if the ignition remains deactivated.

A continuous check of the position of the permanent magnet by means of a multi-turn sensor is necessary during the ignition inactivity phase, since the actuator may be displaced, for example due to vibrations of the vehicle or due to elastic forces present in the actuator or in the system connected to the actuator. .

In particular, the multi-turn sensor is connected to one or more capacitors in parallel, and in this case, the multi-turn sensor and the capacitor are connected to the second circuit in series through a diode.

Via the capacitor, sufficient operating voltage and sufficient current can be supplied to the multi-turn sensor even if, for example, the voltage supply of the voltage source is interrupted (for a short period of time). Such interruptions in the voltage supply can be observed, for example, in hybrid vehicles. The cause of this may be, for example, a short-term connection of electric user devices (eg an electric drive unit that provides a large torque for driving the vehicle in a short time).

In particular, the capacitor has a capacity of 1 to 100 microfarads, preferably 20 to 50 microfarads.

The diode prevents the energy stored in the capacitor from leaking out, for example via other user devices arranged in the second circuit.

In particular, measurements from multi-turn sensors can also be checked for their validity. In particular, for this purpose, the voltage applied to each second circuit can be checked. For this purpose, the voltage (U _SK2 ) applied to each of the second circuits should always correspond at least to the sum of the required operating voltage (U _MT ) and the diode voltage (U _D ) of the multi-turn sensor. More specifically, U _SK2 ≥ It should be U _MT + U _D. If such a condition does not exist, in this case at least it can be further checked whether the energy stored in the capacitor is sufficient, and as a result, the voltage (U _C ) supplied to the multi-turn sensor by the capacitor is at least that of the multi-turn sensor. It corresponds to the required operating voltage (U _MT ), more specifically, Uc ≥ U _MT .

Correspondingly, if U _SK2 < U _MT + U _D and Uc < U _MT , the measurements of the multi-turn sensor will not be valid.

If measurements are determined to be invalid, reference is required. Since this condition occurs very rarely, the reference here may require a longer time. Accordingly, the movement of the actuator can be made much slower, and consequently the mechanical stopper within the actuator can be designed to be less robust.

According to a preferred refinement of the sensor arrangement, the sensor arrangement comprises a rotor position sensor suitable for detecting the angular position of the permanent magnet within one revolution of the permanent magnet, wherein the rotor position sensor comprises a voltage regulator. It is connected to the second circuit through.

In principle, a rotor position sensor is only needed if the information about the position of the actuator provided by the multi-turn sensor is considered insufficiently accurate.

The rotor position sensor can now still be arranged in the first circuit (as is known), with the result that the voltage supply only takes place when the ignition is activated. However, here it is also proposed to arrange the rotor position sensor in the second circuit. In this case, the rotor position sensor is not supplied with an operating voltage, but rather only when movement of the permanent magnets is detected, for example via a multi-turn sensor. The operating voltage of the rotor position sensor can be adjusted through a voltage regulator assigned to the rotor position sensor. In some cases, the capacitors are arranged in parallel with the rotor position sensor, so that the required electrical energy can be reliably supplied depending on the situation.

Also, in sensor arrangement

- at least a multi-turn sensor or

- Additional rotor position sensor

An additional connection to the first circuit is also proposed.

Thus, the voltage supply can be ensured even if, for example, a fuse in the second circuit blows and thus a loss of information about the position of the actuator is expected due to insufficient voltage supply in the second circuit.

In particular, a method is proposed for operating a sensor arrangement as described above, wherein the sensor arrangement comprises a voltage source of the vehicle that supplies an electrical operating voltage even when the ignition is deactivated. The sensor arrangement comprises one or more multi-turn sensors suitable for detecting the rotation speed of a permanent magnet, wherein the actuator is connected to a first circuit supplied with an operating voltage only when the ignition is activated, in which case the multi-turn The turn sensor is connected to a second circuit that is supplied with electrical operating voltage even when the ignition is deactivated. In this method, a multi-turn sensor checks the position of the permanent magnet even when the ignition is disabled.

The description of sensor arrangement applies equally to the method proposed here.

In particular, multi-turn sensors check the position of the actuator at preset time intervals (discontinuous testing). Preferably, for this, the required electrical energy is supplied at a time interval of at least 100 milliseconds and/or at most 500 milliseconds. In particular, these time intervals are selected so that a complete rotation of the permanent magnet is not expected within one time interval. Therefore, one rotation can be reliably confirmed.

Additionally, it is proposed that when the rotational speed of the permanent magnet is detected, continuous inspection of the position of the permanent magnet is performed by a multi-turn sensor. This continuous inspection can then be converted to a discontinuous inspection again after another presettable time interval during which the rotational speed of the permanent magnet is not detected.

In particular, the sensor arrangement includes a rotor position sensor suitable for detecting the angular position of the permanent magnet within one revolution of the permanent magnet, wherein the rotor position sensor is connected to a second circuit through a voltage regulator, , in this case the rotor position sensor checks the position of the permanent magnet only when the ignition is activated, or only if the rotational speed of the permanent magnet was immediately confirmed by the multi-turn sensor.

Preferably, the sensor arrangement comprises a rotor position sensor suitable for detecting the angular position of the permanent magnet within one revolution of the permanent magnet, wherein the rotor position sensor is connected to a second circuit via a voltage regulator. In this case, the measurements of the multi-turn sensor are compared with the measurements of the rotor position sensor within the control unit of the sensor arrangement. By comparing measurements, it is possible to reduce a rotor position sensor normally designed as a dual die to a single die.

It should be noted that the description of sensor arrangement also applies to the method described here and vice versa.

It should be noted, as a precaution, that the numbers used here ("first", "second", ...) are intended, among other things, to distinguish (but only) multiple objects, variables or processes of the same type. To be more specific, the dependency and/or order of these objects, variables or processes on each other is not necessarily specified. Where dependencies and/or ordering are required, such dependencies and/or orderings are either explicitly stated in this application or become apparent to those skilled in the art upon studying the specifically described embodiments.

The present invention and technical environment will be described in more detail below with reference to the respective drawings. It should be noted that the invention should not be limited by the illustrated embodiments. In particular, unless explicitly stated otherwise, it is also possible to derive partial aspects from the facts described in the respective drawings and combine them with other components and knowledge originating from the specification and/or the drawings. . In particular, it should be noted that the respective drawings and in particular the scale ratios shown are only schematic. Since the same reference numerals refer to the same objects, the descriptions of other drawings may be used supplementarily when necessary. In the drawing department,
1 shows a first circuit diagram of the sensor arrangement, and
Figure 2 shows a second circuit diagram of the sensor arrangement.

Figure 1 shows a first circuit diagram of the sensor arrangement 1. The sensor arrangement (1) comprises the vehicle's voltage source (2) which supplies the electrical operating voltage (3) even when the ignition is deactivated. The sensor arrangement (1) has a multi-turn sensor (4) suitable for detecting the number of revolutions of the permanent magnet (5), in which case the actuator is supplied with an operating voltage (3) only when the ignition is activated. connected, for example to terminal 15, to a first circuit 6, in which case the multi-turn sensor 4 is connected to a second circuit to which the electrical operating voltage 3 (volts) is supplied even when the ignition is deactivated. It is connected to circuit 7 (i.e., terminal 30).

The arrangement of the multi-turn sensor 4 in the second circuit 7 in contact with the terminal 30 is such that, on the one hand, the multi-turn sensor 4 can continuously detect the movement of the permanent magnet 5. On the other hand, it allows the value for the number of rotations detected by the multi-turn sensor 4 to be stored.

In this case, the power consumption of the multi-turn sensor (4) is very low, since the sensor only has to detect the movement of the permanent magnet (5). For this reason, the connection of the multi-turn sensor 4 to the second circuit 7 poses no problems whatsoever with regard to a possible discharge of the voltage source 2, even if the ignition remains deactivated.

A continuous check of the position of the permanent magnet (5) by means of a multi-turn sensor (4) is necessary during the ignition inactivity phase, since the actuator may be subject to vibrations, for example due to vibrations of the vehicle or due to elasticities present in the actuator or in the system connected to the actuator. This is because it can be displaced.

Here, the multi-turn sensor 4 is connected to the capacitor 8 in parallel, and in this case, the multi-turn sensor 4 and the capacitor 8 are connected in series through the diode 9 to the second circuit 7. ) is connected to.

Via the capacitor 8 , a sufficient operating voltage 3 and sufficient current can be supplied to the multi-turn sensor 4 even if, for example, the voltage supply of the voltage source 2 is interrupted (for a short period of time). Such interruption of voltage supply can be observed, for example, in hybrid vehicles. The cause of this may be, for example, a short-term connection of electric user devices (eg an electric drive unit that provides a large torque for driving the vehicle in a short time).

The diode 9 prevents the energy stored in the capacitor 8 from leaking out, for example through other user devices arranged in the second circuit 7 .

The measured values of the multi-turn sensor 4 can be checked for their validity. To this end, the voltage applied to each of the second circuits 7 can be checked. To this end, the voltage (U _SK2 ) applied to each of the second circuits 7 will always correspond to at least the sum of the required operating voltage (U _MT ) and the diode voltage (U _D ) of the multi-turn sensor. To be more specific, U _SK2 ≥ U _MT + U _D. If this condition does not exist, in this case it can at least be further checked whether the energy stored in the capacitor 8 is sufficient, and as a result, the voltage supplied to the multi-turn sensor 4 by the capacitor 8 ( U _C ) corresponds at least to the required operating voltage (U _MT ) of the multi-turn sensor 4, more specifically, Uc ≥ U _MT .

Correspondingly, if U _SK2 < U _MT + U _D and Uc < U _MT , the measured value of the multi-turn sensor 4 will not be valid.

The sensor arrangement 1 further comprises a rotor position sensor 10 suitable for detecting the angular position of the permanent magnet 5 within one revolution of the permanent magnet 5, in this case the rotor position sensor (10) is connected to the second circuit (7) through the voltage regulator (11).

In principle, the rotor position sensor 10 is only needed if the information about the position of the actuator provided via the multi-turn sensor 4 is considered not sufficiently accurate.

The rotor position sensor can now still be arranged (as is known) in the first circuit 6, with the result that the voltage supply only takes place when the ignition is activated. However, here it is also proposed to arrange the rotor position sensor 10 in the second circuit 7. In this case, the operating voltage 3 is not supplied to the rotor position sensor 10, but rather the operating voltage is supplied only when the movement of the permanent magnet 5 is detected, for example, through the multi-turn sensor 4. The operating voltage of the rotor position sensor 10 is adjusted through the voltage regulator 11 assigned to the rotor position sensor 10. Furthermore, here too, the additional capacitor 13 is arranged in parallel connection with the rotor position sensor 10, so that the required electrical energy can be reliably supplied depending on the situation.

Figure 2 shows a second circuit diagram of the sensor arrangement. Reference is made to the description of Figure 1. Unlike FIG. 1 , an additional first circuit 6 is shown here connected to terminal 15 . In this case, in the sensor arrangement 1, the multi-turn sensor 4 and additionally the rotor position sensor 10 are additionally connected to the first circuit 6.

Thus, the voltage supply can be ensured even if, for example, the fuse in the second circuit 7 falls and thus a loss of information about the position of the actuator is expected due to insufficient voltage supply in the second circuit 7. there is.

1: Sensor arrangement
2: voltage source
3: Operating voltage
4: Multi-turn sensor
5: Permanent magnet
6: first circuit
7: Second circuit
8: capacitor
9: diode
10: rotor position sensor
11: voltage regulator
12: control unit
13: Additional capacitor

Claims (10)

It is a sensor arrangement (1) to determine the position of the actuator in the car,
The sensor arrangement (1) comprises a voltage source (2) of the vehicle which supplies the electrical operating voltage (3) even when the ignition is deactivated, and the sensor arrangement (1) is configured to detect the number of revolutions of the permanent magnet (5). comprising at least one multi-turn sensor (4) suitable for, the actuator being connected to a first circuit (6) supplied with an operating voltage (3) only when the ignition is activated, the multi-turn sensor (4) comprising: connected to a second circuit (7) which is supplied with an electrical operating voltage (3) even when the ignition is deactivated,
The sensor arrangement 1 includes a rotor position sensor 10 suitable for detecting the angular position of the permanent magnet 5 within one revolution of the permanent magnet 5, where the rotor position sensor 10 Sensor arrangement (1) connected to the second circuit (7) through a voltage regulator (11). The method of claim 1, wherein the multi-turn sensor (4) is connected in parallel with one or more capacitors (8), and the multi-turn sensor (4) and the capacitor (8) are connected in series through a diode (9). Sensor arrangement (1) connected to circuit (7). Sensor arrangement (1) according to claim 2, wherein the capacitor (8) has a capacity of 1 to 100 microfarads. delete According to paragraph 1,
- at least multi-turn sensor (4) or
- Additionally, the rotor position sensor (10)
Sensor arrangement (1) further connected to the first circuit (6). This is a method for operating the sensor arrangement (1) provided to determine the position of the actuator in the vehicle,
The sensor arrangement (1) comprises a voltage source (2) of the vehicle which supplies the electrical operating voltage (3) even when the ignition is deactivated, and the sensor arrangement (1) is configured to detect the number of revolutions of the permanent magnet (5). comprising at least one multi-turn sensor (4) suitable for, the actuator being connected to a first circuit (6) supplied with an operating voltage (3) only when the ignition is activated, the multi-turn sensor (4) comprising: connected to a second circuit (7) supplied with electrical operating voltage (3) even when the ignition is deactivated, the multi-turn sensor (4) checks the position of the permanent magnet (5) even when the ignition is deactivated;
The sensor arrangement 1 includes a rotor position sensor 10 suitable for detecting the angular position of the permanent magnet 5 within one revolution of the permanent magnet 5, where the rotor position sensor 10 A method of operating a sensor arrangement, wherein the rotor position sensor (10) is connected to a second circuit (7) via a voltage regulator (11) and checks the position of the permanent magnet (5) only when the ignition is activated. 7. Method according to claim 6, wherein the multi-turn sensor (4) checks its position at preset time intervals. The method of operating a sensor arrangement according to claim 7, wherein when the rotational speed of the permanent magnet (5) is detected, the position of the permanent magnet (5) is continuously checked by the multi-turn sensor (4). delete The sensor arrangement according to any one of claims 6 to 8, wherein the sensor arrangement (1) is a rotor position sensor suitable for detecting the angular position of the permanent magnet (5) within one revolution of the permanent magnet (5). 10), the rotor position sensor 10 is connected to the second circuit 7 through the voltage regulator 11, and the measurement of the multi-turn sensor 4 is performed by the control unit of the sensor arrangement 10 ( 12) Method of operation of the sensor arrangement, compared with the measurement of the rotor position sensor 10.

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