Mercedes-benz Aktiengesellschaft

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Eads Deutschland Gmbh

Rainer Freitag

Richard Zimmer

Harry Troester

Reinhold Schoeb

Armin Mueller

Hubert Bohner

Manfred H Burckhardt

Armin Muller

Mathias Hartl

Gerd Eilert

Sinan Kazan

Wilfried Huber

Rainer Spiecker

Martin Moser

Helmut Seidel

Gerhard Kurz

Reinhold Schneckenburger

Ulrich Prechtel

Josef Schalk

Karin Bauer

Ingo Dudeck

Harry Troster

Harry Tr&ouml;ster

Wolfgang Schrock

Andy Yap

Ralf Voss

Matthias Aikele

Thomas Roehrig-Gericke

Martina Richerzhagen

Tobias Speidel

Erwin Stenzel

Matthias Hartl

Armin M{umlaut Over (u)}ller

Roland Hilser

Andreas Platte

Franz Ringer

Michael Duvenbeck

Wofgang Lauer

Wolfgang Gautsch

A method and apparatus for braking a vehicle having a vehicle brake system with a brake control device, and an engine whose torque is transmitted via a transmission to driven wheels. When there is a malfunction of the braking system and a demand for a braking operation, the transmission ratio is increased by a transmission control unit, which activates the transmission, to produce increased braking torque at the driven wheels.

Automotive braking method and devices for carrying out said method

An automatic brake and steering system and method for a vehicle contains a sensor unit for sensing vehicle state and characteristic variables, and ambient conditions. Furthermore, a control unit and actuator devices are provided for setting the vehicle brake system and/or the vehicle steering system. In order to be able to carry out automatic avoidance maneuvers with maximum safety, an avoidance route is determined if there is an obstacle in the path of the vehicle. Thereby, if there is a further obstacle on the avoidance route, the strategy for determining the avoidance route is applied once more. If it is not possible to find a collision-free avoidance route, that route on which the difference between the remaining braking distance and the remaining distance from the obstacle is smallest is selected.

Automatic brake and steering system and method for a vehicle

A steering system functions in accordance with the &ldquo;steer by wire&rdquo; concept and has a normal operating system without positive coupling between the steering handle and the steered vehicle wheels, as well as an emergency operating system, which functions with positive coupling between the steered vehicle wheels and the steering handle. An auxiliary operating system is additionally provided, which, in response to malfunctions of the normal operating system, assumes its tasks and, in a transitional phase, adapts the performance characteristics of the steering system to those of the emergency system, which is switched on upon conclusion of the transitional phase. Thus, at the transition from the normal operating system to the emergency operating system, the driver is given time to become accustomed to the other steering performance.

Steering system for motor vehicles

A self-testing sensor (especially to measure an angular rate or acceleration) includes a resonant structure, an actor unit configured to excite the structure to a first periodic vibration, a piezoresistive element configured to generate an output signal that depends on the measured quantity, and an isolator configured to isolate a test signal component from the output signal, whereby the test signal component is generated by a second periodic vibration of the structure superposed on the first vibration. A device for self-testing a sensor includes an isolator configured to isolate a test signal component superposed on a useful signal component from the periodic output signal of the sensor, and it includes a comparator configured to compare the test signal component with a predefined value or a test signal fed to the sensor. For the self-test, a second periodic vibration is superposed on a first vibration of the structure, and an output signal containing information on the measured quantity is determined. A test signal component contained in the output signal is monitored.

Sensor having a resonance structure, especially an acceleration or rotation rate sensor, and a device for carrying out a self-test

A steering system for motor vehicles, has a steering handle, for example steering handwheel, capable of being operated by the driver. A steering actuating drive provides for the steering adjustment of steerable vehicle wheels. A steering-angle desired-value encoder is capable of being operated by the steering handle, and a steering-angle actual-value encoder operates via the steerable vehicle wheels. A regulating and control arrangement operates the steering actuating drive as a function of a comparison of the desired and actual values of the steering angle. The risk of a collision between a vehicle equipped with the steering system and an obstacle is reduced, and the steering system is suitable for steer-by-wire operation by equipping the steering system with collision prevention apparatus which determine steering angles (collision steering angles) making a collision possible between the motor vehicle and an obstacle. The regulating and control arrangement hinders or prevents the setting of a desired steering angle coinciding with one of the collision angles.

Control system for brake power proportioning on a road vehicle

A system generates a brake pressure with a pump which delivers a volume into the chamber of a master brake cylinder and builds up a pressure which is used by at least one additional assembly, particularly a power-assisted steering system. The system has at least one distributing and throttling element for admitting a definable pressure to the chamber of the master brake cylinder and/or the additional assembly. The one or more distributing and throttling elements can be triggered, as a function of the brake pedal position and/or of driving condition values and/or of operating values of the vehicle, such that the chamber and/or the additional unit can be acted upon by a pump generated adjustable pressure.

Pump system for generating a brake pressure

A brake system is provided in which, in the normal operation, the brake pressure in the wheel brake cylinders is generated in a power-assisted manner and the master brake lines are closed by change-over valves. During a functional disturbance, the brake pressure in the wheel brake cylinders is built up by way of a master brake cylinder, such that, when the brake pressure control device operates normally also when the switching valves are closed the brake pedal can carry out a pedal travel and, on the other hand, when there are functional disturbances of the brake pressure control device, at most with a slight idling path of the brake pedal, by the operation of the brake pedal in the master brake cylinder and the wheel brake cylinders, a brake pressure can be generated in a conventional manner.

Brake linkage and master brake cylinder

For the determination of the friction/slip characteristics of the tires of a road vehicle which is equipped with an antilock system designed for an individual wheel control, in an initial phase of a controlled braking, only the wheel brake of an individual vehicle wheel is acted upon by brake pressure and the latter is dimensioned so that the result is the initial retardation in accordance with the driver's wish. During this initial test phase of the braking, the absolute brake slip .lambda..sub.B as well as the friction utilization .mu..sub.B linked therewith is continuously determined as soon as, as a result of just the braking of the test wheel, the vehicle retardation z increases no further and/or the braked vehicle wheel is more strongly retarded than corresponds to a predetermined threshold value, the test braking is interrupted and the braking is continued by pressure action on the further vehicle wheels; corresponding test braking phases are carried out in cyclic sequence for all guidance wheels.

Process and system for determination of friction/slip characteristics of

Process for determination of friction/slip characteristics of the tires

An apparatus and method adapts response slip threshold values for a drive slip and/or a brake slip control system to the tires fitted to a motor vehicle. The drive torque provided at the driven vehicle wheels is determined from measured operating data such as fuel supply and/or combustion air supply, engine speed and total transmission ratio of the drive train of the vehicle. From this determination, the adhesion coefficient .mu..sub.a utilized is determined with a predetermined or measured axle load at the driven vehicle wheels. From the correlation of these adhesion coefficients .mu..sub.a with measured values of the drive slip .lambda..sub.a, the .mu. slip characteristic of the tires is determined and, corresponding thereto, the response slip thresholds .lambda..sub.A and .lambda..sub.B for the drive slip and the antiblocking control are set. A sliding averaging over the quotient .mu..sub.a /.lambda..sub.a of continuously determined .mu.a, .lambda..sub.a value pairs is utilized for recognizing the tire characteristic of summer/winter tires.

Method and apparatus for adapting motor vehicle drive slip threshold

A vehicle is equipped both with an anti-lock system working on the return-flow principle and with a drive-slip control device working on the differential brake principle, in which the return pump is utilized as an auxiliary pressure source for loading the driven vehicle wheels with brake pressure. In an operational situation requiring drive-slip control, a pump working at a low pressure level is actuated, even before the control responds, and conveys brake fluid both into the brake circuit of the driven vehicle wheel and into the brake circuit of the non-driven vehicle wheels, which are shut off from the brake unit of the brake system by, on one hand, an ASR-function control valve and, on the other hand, by an isolating valve. The pre-charge pump of the return pump of the brake circuits of the driven vehicle wheels is used as a low-pressure pump. This pressurization of the brake circuits with a moderate brake pressure causes a compensation of the lifting play and is utilized both for the drive-slip control and for normal braking.

Road vehicle hydraulic service-brake system and activation process

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Owen, Germany

Rainer Freitag