Ford Global Technolgoies, LLC

Ford Motor Company Limited

Albert Chenouda Salib

Jianbo Lu

Erik Christopher Chubb

Todd Allen Brown

Keith Glenn Mattson

David John Messih

David Michael Russell

Uwe Hoffmann

Russ Lee Norton

Marc Suermann

Daniel Domek Eisele

Mathijs Willem Geurink

Hani Abdul Ghani

Li Xu

Joseph Carr Meyers

Benjamin Bulat

Michael Edward Brewer

Ben Bulat

Darrell Erick Butler

Paul Schmitt

Michael Lopez

Todd Mory

William Gregory Suter

Louis Joseph Jamail

Gregory Suter

Greg Gregory Suter

An active vehicle suspension system includes an active damping mechanism operatively coupled to a vehicle wheel and configured for controlling a damping force applied to the wheel responsive to a control signal. A controller is operatively coupled to the damping mechanism and configured for generating a control signal to the damping mechanism responsive to velocity of the wheel in a downward vertical direction. At least one of a timer threshold and velocity threshold, used to determine whether a vehicle wheel has encountered a depression in a road surface, may be varied on a basis of a speed of the vehicle. A damping mechanism for a rear wheel of a vehicle may be controlled on a basis of how a damping mechanism for a front wheel is controlled.

Ride performance optimization in an active suspension system

An active vehicle suspension system includes an active damping mechanism operatively coupled to a vehicle wheel and configured for controlling a damping force applied to the wheel responsive to a control signal. A controller is operatively coupled to the damping mechanism and configured for generating a control signal to the damping mechanism responsive to velocity of the wheel in a downward vertical direction.

A method and system for controlling vehicle stability may comprise determining whether a vehicle is oversteering or understeering and, if the vehicle is oversteering or understeering, determining an amount by which to reduce a speed of the vehicle to correct for understeering or oversteering and applying brake pressure to at least the rear brakes of the vehicle to reduce vehicle speed. The method and system also may comprise determining an engine torque reduction amount based on vehicle oversteer or understeer conditions, reducing engine torque by the determined amount or to zero if the determined amount of engine torque reduction is greater than an actual engine torque, and applying braking to at least the rear brakes of the vehicle if the determined amount of engine torque reduction is greater than the actual engine torque.

Vehicle stability control system and method

A control system () and method for an automotive vehicle () includes a roll rate sensor () for generating a roll rate signal, a lateral acceleration sensor () for generating a lateral acceleration signal, a longitudinal acceleration sensor () for generating a longitudinal acceleration signal, and a yaw rate sensor () for generating a yaw rate signal. A safety device or system () and the sensors are coupled to a controller. The controller () determines an added mass and the height of the added mass on the vehicle, or a roll gradient, a roll acceleration coefficient, and/or a roll rate parameter that take into account the added mass and height from the roll rate, the lateral acceleration, the longitudinal acceleration, and the yaw rate of the vehicle, and controls the safety system in response thereto.

System and method for dynamically determining vehicle loading and vertical loading distance for use in a vehicle dynamic control system

A vehicle suspension system () includes a suspension (). A lateral acceleration sensor () generates a lateral acceleration signal. A roll rate sensor () generates a roll rate signal. A controller () detects an irregularity in the suspension in response to the lateral acceleration signal and the roll rate signal. A method of detecting suspension irregularities in a vehicle () includes the generating of a lateral acceleration signal and a roll rate signal. Roll angle is determined in response to the lateral acceleration signal and roll rate signal. A roll gradient, a roll acceleration coefficient, and a roll damping parameter are determined in response to at least the roll angle. The roll gradient, the roll acceleration coefficient, and the roll damping parameter are compared to associated nominal values. A suspension irregularity is indicated in response to the comparison.

Suspension irregularity detecting system

A control system for a vehicle () is described for use in conjunction with the safety system () of the vehicle (). A tire sensor or plurality of tire sensors generates tire force signals. The tire force signals may include lateral tire forces, longitudinal (or torque) tire forces, and normal tire forces. Based upon the tire force signals, a safety system () may be activated. The tire force sensors may be used to monitor various conditions including but not limited to sensing a roll condition, wheel lift detection, a trip event, oversteering and understeering conditions, pitch angle, bank angle, roll angle, and the position of the center of gravity of the vehicle.

System and method for controlling a safety system of a vehicle in response to conditions sensed by tire sensors related applications

A method for sensitizing the roll signal for a rollover control system () is provided. A sensitizing method for controlling a vehicle includes when the relative roll angle reaches a threshold, initiating a wheel departure angle determination, boosting control effort and controlling a safety system () in response to the computed roll angles.

System and method for sensitizing the activation criteria of a rollover control system

A method of densensitizing includes determining a relative roll angle, determining when the vehicle is in a transitional maneuver, and when the vehicle is in a transitional maneuver, setting a roll signal for control to the relative roll angle, reducing control effort and controlling a safety system () correspondingly.

System and method for desensitizing the activation criteria of a rollover control system

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Ypsilanti, MI, United States of America

Albert Chenouda Salib