WO2005097521A1

WO2005097521A1 - Improved grip system for vehicle tires

Info

Publication number: WO2005097521A1
Application number: PCT/IT2005/000167
Authority: WO
Inventors: Nicola Solaroli; Chiara Solaroli
Original assignee: Nicola Solaroli; Chiara Solaroli
Priority date: 2004-04-08
Filing date: 2005-03-24
Publication date: 2005-10-20
Also published as: ITRA20040017A1

Abstract

Automatic system which works together with the vehicle’s braking control and regulation system, drive and stability and of which it uses most of the components, like for example: switchgears and sensors. It is made up of a tank which contains a non-slip liquid, a pipe which connects the tank to four solenoid valves and four nozzles located before the tyres, a pump operated by an electric motor and series of signaling devices of the liquid level, product indication and operation and electronic connections. In the case of emergency situations, the system increases the adherence between the tyres and the road pavement, by spraying the non-slip liquid on the tyre tread.

Description

IMPROVED GRIP SYSTEM FOR VEHICLE TIRES

TECHNICAL FIELD: This invention is referred to an automatic device which can be mounted on cars to improve breaking and road holding.

The device works along with electronic systems, to control and regulate braking, drive and stability of the car. BACKGROUND ART Motor vehicles are currently equipped with electronic systems controlling and regulating braking, drive and stability of the car. Electronic systems detect and analyse the car behaviour or of some of its mechanical parts, relating speed, car technical characteristics, type of path and eventually the driver behaviour.

When from the analysis of detected elements, dangerous situations are ascertained, they automatically intervene, to guarantee the vehicle driving gear regularity.

Electronic systems interventions for the control and regulation of braking, drive and car stability, even in their most complete and updated versions have a limit beyond which they cannot work, because their action would be useless or indeed damaging.

This limit is represented by THE ADHERENCE BETWEEN THE TYRE AND THE ROAD-BED DURING THEIR WORKING, and this PARTICULARLY SERIOUS because it is just this last passage to allow and condition the earth transmission of motor power, of braking system efficacy and directional organs .

Their intervention happens always and exclusively on car mechanical organs (braking system, motor, etc.) but never outside the vehicle, as a consequence they do not have the capacity to modify the environment where the vehicle works.

IN OTHER WORDS, THE POSSIBILITY OF IMPROVING THE OUTERMOST RING" THE LINK BETWEEN TYRES AND ROAD-BED, BECAUSE ALL ELECTRONIC SYSTEMS OFFER THE POSSIBILITY TO USE AT MAXIMUM LEVEL THE AVAILABLE ADHERENCE, BUT NONE OF THEM IS ABLE TO RAISE IT. Though the adherence is generally sufficient for a regular and safe circulation of motor vehicles, it can be totally inadequate in case of emergencies, caused by high speed, necessity to decelerate or stopping the car in a short section of road or by bed-road conditions. These are instants where for an impossible help any price would be paid. More adherence between pneumatic tyres and road-bed even limited only to a certain section of the road, only for very little instants could improve or solve the problems. In these situations the automobile technique does not offer any solution, because it does not give the possibility to modify the environment where the car works. DISCLOSURE OF INVENTION The main purpose of this invention is to raise the adherence between tyres and road-bed, during the car running, in case of real emergencies, provisionally to the selection of the road in which the driver risks of losing the control of the car. The device: - works along with control and regulation systems of braking, drive and car stability.; - detects the real emergency situations, where in other words, the vehicle is in dangerous conditions and electronic systems cannot improve their performances, because available adherence is already used at the maximum level; - intervene and applies on the tyre tread of one or more pneumatic tyres a very thin layer of an anti-skidding product which makes raise for a few instants the car adherence allowing electronic system to improve their functions and enlarge considerably the radius. The electronic system starts working only in two cases: when according to the data supplied by the sensors and elaborated by the control rooms for braking, drive, or stability of the car, it is detected that the starting (according to different needs) of an electronic control system could be insufficient to bring the car in a safety condition; after that electronic systems for the control of braking or drive or car stability have carried out the maximum of their functions, but despite that, the power plants of electronic systems with which the vehicle is equipped, comparing the behaviour of the car with saved data, detect that the vehicle is yet in a very dangerous situation.

The electronic system interrupts its function when the car is out of the real emergency and can be "managed"^' by the plants for the control of braking, drive and stability of the car or by the single driver. The application of an anti-skid product modifies the adherence because pneumatics and road-bed are no more on direct contact or are only partially in contact, so the transmission of forces between vehicle and road happens even between the intermediate layers of the new product. The effects of interposition between pneumatics and road-bed are dependant of the nature of the product itself. The phenomenon constantly happens in presence of damp, wet or unctuous roads. In fact the very tight veil of water interposing is skidding for its nature, so wet roads have low adherence. On unctuous roads the interposed product is the oil, lubricant for its nature, as a consequence roads are completely slippery. While in case of an anti-skidding product interposition, as the forces transmitting on earth the motor power, the braking systems efficacy " and directional organs precision develop also between intermediate layers of a product anti-skidding for its nature, the adherence is no more the pre-existing one, but a new adherence is created, determined "ad hoc'' by the quality and quantity of interposed product, according the specific needs of the moment, detected and suggested by electronic systems. So, for a very short period, a very little section of road in normal, skidding or unctuous conditions, can be transformed in a road with an extraordinary adherence. This gives the possibility to control the car, even in cases of real emergency, possibility till now missed. BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF DRAWING To better describe the invention in object a drawing (fig 1) has been added schematically representing, as a reference but not narrowing, a preferred form of realization of the distribution plant of the anti-skid product on the four tyres of the vehicle. Between the anti-skidding products there is one in liquid form sold in spray bomb and till now exclusively proposed to be sprayed in the belts of industrial and agricultural machines to avoid pulleys skidding. The device object of this patent, as results from the attached drawing (fig 1) and from details indicated by Arabic numerals in brackets, is made by an electronic part and a mechanical one, and more specifically by: control rooms for breaking, drive and stability of the car by appropriately modified software (1) ; - tank for anti-skid liquid (2); - tube of the anti-skid liquid pipe (3); - pump with electric motor (4); - electric motor of the pump (5); - anti-skid liquid tailpipes (6) (one or more for tyre) ; - closing/opening of the liquid solenoid valves (7) ; - liquid quantity control pilot light (8); - working system pilot light (9); - anti-skid liquid used by the plant (10) ; - sensors revealing wheel speed (11) (plus other sensors on issue to not represented electronic systems) ; - anti-skid liquid (12); - tyre (13); - electronic connections (14) (only partially represented) ;

BEST MODE FOR CARRYING OUT THE INVENTION The new system works, alternatively according to the needs, together with the control systems of breaking, drive and stability, to raise the adherence between tyres and road-bed which will be used later, in the best of the ways, by the mentioned electronic systems. The new system uses some electronic components, already integral part of control systems of breaking, acceleration and stability. However these electronic components, software included, will continue also to perform their precedent functions. The SOFTWARE of the power units of the plants for the control of breaking, acceleration and stability should be integrated by prefixed parameters and values, as for example a specific percentage of the break system pressure reduction made by the control and regulation system of breaking, for this electronic system, the approaching to the physical limits of the car stability for monitoring systems and regulation of the stability of the car. In case of overrun of these parameters the electronic system object of this patent will work as follows : - detect, if according the received signals by sensors it is appropriate and sufficient to activate only one of the mentioned electronic systems or contemporary also the new device to raise the available adherence; - activate therefore, according to the cases, only one electronic system or contemporary, also the new device - detect, in case of the activation of one single system, if dangerous conditions for the vehicle running regularity and security overstay or have come on caused by: 1. the inadequate efficacy of the intervention of one single electronic system, caused by the scarce available adherence; 2. to the inevitable negative consequences, derived by the electronic system intervention (lengthening of the breaking space for the diminished oil pressure of one or more wheels, to maintain the vehicle driveability, etc.); - In case of identified danger (high lengthening of the breaking space or approaching of the physical limits of car stability) activate the mechanical part of the device (start the electronic motor linked to the pump, open one or more solenoid valves to apply to one or more tyres the anti-skid product) ; - Work out the new data supplied by the sensors derived by the major adherence and interrupt the functions device if the new adherence has solved the dangerous situation for the car. The operations above mentioned can be obviously interrupted and resumed later according to the needs underlined by the sensors . The electronic system object of this patent intervene exclusively in real needs, not influencing, in other cases, in no way the other electronic systems on issue to the vehicle. A function deriving by the use of the device by one or more cars, but surely very important is to IMPROVE, EVEN IF ONLY TEMPORARY AND FOR SHORT SECTIONS, THE ADHERENCE OF THE ROAD-BED WHICH COULD BE USED BY THE FOLLOWING CARS. In fact the tyres of the cars using the product, rolling on the asphalt, leave a part of it, so also the adherence for the other cars without device is improved. In substance a road almost surely sliding is transformed, using the device, in a normal road or in a road with high adherence to the advantage of all the users.

Obviously the entity, the duration and the improving need are influenced by: - by road conditions; -• by the cause to activate the device; - by the type and quantity of used product.

Claims

CLAIMS 1. IMPROVING GRIP SYSTEM, characterized principally by the fact that together with one or more security electronic systems with which the vehicle is equipped to control and regulate breaking, drive, stability, since the software have been modified to detect real emergency situations needing intervention, this system when one of these situations happens furnish and control a pump taking from an appropriate tank the anti-skid product to be send on the tread of one or more tyres.

2. IMPROVING GRIP SYSTEM as in the precedent claim, characterized by the fact that the anti-skid product is preferably in liquid form to be sprayed through one or more dispensers (also for tyre) which can be orientate towards the tread of each tyre.

3. IMPROVING GRIP SYSTEM as in the precedent claims, characterized by the fact that the anti-skid liquid to be sprayed towards the tyres' tread is preferably based on synthetic polymers and similar to the ones already used for transmission belts.

4. IMPROVING GRIP SYSTEM as in precedent claims, characterized by the fact that, during the intervention determined by an emergency situation opens one or more solenoid valves, starts the electric motor activating the pump to have the anti-skid liquid contained in the tank sprayed through nozzles on one or more tyres to raise vehicle adherence.

5. IMPROVING GRIP SYSTEM as in claim 1, characterized by the fact that, it is programmed to work when other security systems of the vehicle are inefficient to bring the car in safe conditions.

6. IMPROVING GRIP SYSTEM as in precedent claims, characterized by the fact that, the system can use anti-skid products with very different characteristics according different specific situations caused by: the type of the road and its environmental condition where the products should be used, (dry, wet, iced, paved roads, etc. ) the type of the vehicle and of the tyres on which it should be used.

7. IMPROVING GRIP SYSTEM as in precedent claims, characterized by the fact that, the software, indicated in the statement n° 1, detect when the situation of real emergency ceases, in other words when the car can be managed by the single electronic systems or by the driver.

8. IMPROVING GRIP SYSTEM as in precedent claims, characterized by the fact that, the software, indicated in the statement n° 1, can close one or more solenoid valves previously opened, stop the electric motor and the pump, blocking the anti-skid product distribution.

9. IMPROVING GRIP SYSTEM that according the precedent claims as shown and described for specific purpose and independently from these modifications or changes which could be applied in respect of this patent.