Mitsubishi Jidosha Kogyo Kabushiki Kaisha

Mitsubishi Denki Kabushiki Kaisha

Mitsubishi Corporation

Mitsubishi Research Institute, Inc.

Nobuo Momose

Hiroshi Tanaka

Hiroaki Yoshida

Yoshiaki Sano

Masayoshi Ito

Hiroyuki Kumazawa

Masanori Tani

Hiroshi Irie

Yuichiro Shimura

Tatsuji Munaka

Hitoshi Maejima

Yasuhiro Nakai

Makoto Kataniwa

Masahito Taira

Masahiko Shimizu

Takashi Fujii

Tadao Tanaka

Mitsuhiko Harara

Kiichi Yamada

Yuzo Niina

Junji Ogura

Tsuyoshi Takeo

Youichi Yamamoto

Takashi Tejima

Koichi Miyagawa

Yoshitaka Okazaki

Battery information output equipment allows a driver of an electric vehicleof an electricity consumer, now parked, to input what battery capacity is required at two or more points of time on or before the time at which the electric vehicle is scheduled to come into use, considering an operation schedule for the vehicle, and transmits the usable capacity at each point of the times, i.e., maximum capacity minus capacity required at each point of the times, to a power supply/demand management center, so that charge and discharge of a batteryis controlled by a charge/discharge command from the power supply/demand management centersuch that use of battery capacity for power supply and demand leveling is kept within the usable capacity at any point of the times.

Battery information output equipment for power supply and demand leveling system

The invention judges a total power supply/demand condition of the electricity consumersas a whole according to an individual power supply/demand condition of electricity consumers, judges a total usable capacity of all batteriesaccording to a usable capacity of the batteriesof electric vehiclesparked at electricity consumers, obtains required charge/discharge amounts of all the batteriesaccording to a result of comparison of the total power supply/demand condition of the electricity consumersas a whole with the total usable capacity of all the batteries, subjects the batteriesto charge/discharge controls according to the required charge/discharge amounts, the power supply/demand conditions of the electricity consumers, and the usable capacities of the batteries.

Power supply and demand leveling system

A strut suspension system with dual-path top mounts is provided with a first input system and a second input system. In the first input system, an upper part of a piston rod () of a shock absorber () arranged on a strut () is connected to a vehicle body () via an insulator () when the strut suspension system is arranged on an automotive vehicle. In the second input system, an upper part of a coil spring () arranged on an outer circumference of the strut () is connected to the side of the vehicle body () via an upper spring seat () and a bearing () when the strut suspension system is arranged on the automotive vehicle. To permit suppressing deflection of the vehicle by reducing a total steer moment applied to the suspension system without resulting in an increase in the number of parts, a lower bracket () is arranged in contact with a lower surface of the insulator () and between the bearing () and the vehicle body (), and is formed such that the lower bracket downwardly extends to greater extent on an inner side thereof as viewed in a lateral direction of the vehicle () than on an outer side thereof to have an axis of rotation of the bearing and a king pin axis () coincided with each other (FIG.).

Strut suspension system with dual-path top mounts

A lower spring sheet has receiving portions on a sheet surface that supports a coil spring. Thus the sheet surface and a spring end portion of the coil spring come into contact discretely. The contact positions between the coil spring and the sheet surface maintain unchanged, however a undulated portion the spring end portion may have due to the manufacturing tolerance is extended when the coil spring is compressed.

Spring sheet

An apparatus for estimating a road traffic condition and for controlling a vehicle running characteristic includes a controller having a fuzzy inference function and a neural network function. The controller carries out frequency analysis on vehicle driving parameters such as vehicle speed, steering angle, accelerator opening degree, and longitudinal acceleration and lateral acceleration of a vehicle, to thereby determine a mean value and variance of each parameter. It implements fuzzy inference based on a traveling time ratio, an average speed, and an average lateral acceleration, which are obtained from vehicle speed and/or steering angle, to thereby calculate road traffic condition parameters, including a city area degree, a jammed road degree, and a mountainous road degree. According to the neural network function, the controller further determines an output parameter, indicative of the vehicle maneuvering state, by subjecting the mean value and variance of the vehicle driving parameters and the weighted total sum of the road traffic condition parameters to nonlinear conversion. Then, it variably controls the operating characteristic of a vehicle-mounted apparatus such as a rear-wheel steering controlling unit in accordance with the output parameter, thereby variably controlling the vehicle running characteristic.

Method and apparatus for estimating a road traffic condition and method

A power steering apparatus for a vehicle including a steering mechanism having a torsion bar, a rotary valve connected to an oil pump and disposed between an input shaft and an output shaft, a valve driving mechanism having a pressed portion projected on either the input shaft or the output shaft and a plunger on the one shaft of the input shaft or output shaft on which the pressed portion is not projected for pressing the pressed portion, setting a target assist force of an assist force of an assist force obtained by rotating the rotary valve in the torsion direction of the torsion bar and an assist force obtained by rotating the rotary valve in the reverse direction to the torsion direction, a plunger driving mechanism for driving the plunger so that the preset assist force is obtained, controlling the pressure itself of the rotary valve to the operation angle of the rotary valve, whereby varying the steering force of the steering wheel over a wide range of steering condition with a reduced burden to the driver.

Power steering apparatus for vehicle

An apparatus for estimating a vehicle maneuvering state and controlling a vehicle running characteristic includes a controller having a fuzzy estimating function and a neural network function. The controller carries out frequency analysis on vehicle driving parameters such as vehicle speed, steering angle, opening degree of an accelerator, and longitudinal acceleration and lateral acceleration of a vehicle, to thereby determine a mean value and variance of each parameter. It implements fuzzy inference based on a traveling time ratio, an average speed, and an average lateral acceleration, which are obtained from vehicle speed and/or steering angle, to thereby calculate road traffic condition parameters, including a city area degree, a jammed road degree, and a mountainous road degree. According to the neural network function, the controller further determines an output parameter, indicative of the vehicle maneuvering state, by subjecting the mean value and variance of the vehicle driving parameters and the weighted total sum of the road traffic condition parameters to nonlinear conversion. Then, it variably controls the operating characteristic of a vehicle-mounted apparatus such as a rear-wheel steering controlling unit in accordance with the output parameter, thereby variably controlling the vehicle running characteristic.

Method and apparatus for estimating a vehicle maneuvering state and

A method and apparatus for correcting the zero pressure value of a hydraulic power steering pressure sensor. A power steering pressure PK is detected through pressure sensors 9 and 10 of a power steering cylinder 1 after an engine 14 stops running. The number of detections D [PK] of the power steering pressure PK is added up, provided that the power steering pressure PK remains unchanged for a predetermined time period, and then after a predetermined time period passes after the engine has stopped running, the power steering pressure PK, at which the number of detections D [PK] reaches a maximum value, is adopted as the zero pressure value of the pressure sensors. This makes it possible to accurately correct the zero pressure value of the pressure sensors in the hydraulic power steering unit.

Method and apparatus for correcting the zero pressure value of a

Various steering coefficients (KB, KC, KG) are decided in accordance with a detected car speed (V), while a correction amount (X) and a correction factor (Y) are determined by fuzzy reasoning in accordance with a detected road surface friction coefficient (.mu.), road surface gradient (.alpha.), and lateral acceleration (G). A reference in-phase steering amount (.delta.RB), equal to a product of a reference in-phase steering coefficient (KB) and a detected steering wheel angle (.theta.H), is corrected by an in-phase correction steering amount (.delta.RC), which is equal to a product of an in-phase steering coefficient (KC) and the detected steering wheel angle (.theta.H), with a delay determined by a time constant (T) calculated from the correction amount (X), to thereby determine a corrected in-phase steering amount (.delta.R). A corrected anti-phase steering amount (.delta.G), obtained by multiplying a reference anti-phase steering amount (.delta.GB), equal to a product of the anti-phase correction coefficient (KG) and a detected steering wheel angular velocity (.theta.HA), by the correction factor (Y), is added to the corrected in-phase steering amount (.delta.R), to thereby obtain a rear-wheel steering amount (.delta.) on which the rear wheels are so steered as to match the road surface friction coefficient, road surface gradient, and lateral acceleration.

Control method and device for steering the rear wheel of a vehicle

A method for detecting a friction coefficient of the road surface includes a detection step of detecting an operating angle of the steering wheel of the vehicle, a vehicle speed and an operating pressure of the hydraulic power steering unit for the front wheels, and a calculation step of calculating the friction coefficient of the road surface on turning of the vehicle by considering relationships among a slip angle of the front wheel, the friction coefficient of the road surface and a cornering force of the front wheels. The method further includes a step of prohibiting the execution of the calculation step when the steering wheel is turned back, whereby the calculation step is executed only when the direction of the operating pressure of power steering unit is in the equiphase with the operating direction of the steering wheel. Also, a four-wheel steering system includes has a rear steering actuator for steering the rear wheels so as to increase the steering angle of the rear wheels as the friction coefficient of the road surface calculated by the above-described method decreases.

Method and apparatus for detecting friction coefficient of road surface,

A method is provided which permits accurate estimation of the neutral point of a steering wheel while a vehicle is traveling. In this method, a wheel angle is detected whenever a condition, wherein the car speed has reached a specified speed or higher, the working pressure of a hydraulic power steering has not virtually risen yet, and the steering wheel has not yet virtually steered, lasts for a specified time; the detection frequency distribution, which corresponds to the detected wheel angles, is determined; the weighted mean value of the wheel angles is calculated from the detection frequency distribution; and the weighted mean value is estimated as the neutral point of the steering wheel.

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Okazaki, Japan

Nobuo Momose