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GB2358004A - A drive and active suspension system for a vehicle that allows the vehicle to turn on the spot - Google Patents

A drive and active suspension system for a vehicle that allows the vehicle to turn on the spot Download PDF

Info

Publication number
GB2358004A
GB2358004A GB0000280A GB0000280A GB2358004A GB 2358004 A GB2358004 A GB 2358004A GB 0000280 A GB0000280 A GB 0000280A GB 0000280 A GB0000280 A GB 0000280A GB 2358004 A GB2358004 A GB 2358004A
Authority
GB
United Kingdom
Prior art keywords
wheels
vehicle
load
vehicle according
drive
Prior art date
Legal status (The legal status is an assumption and is not a legal conclusion. Google has not performed a legal analysis and makes no representation as to the accuracy of the status listed.)
Withdrawn
Application number
GB0000280A
Other versions
GB0000280D0 (en
Inventor
Martin Ranson
Paul Thomas Faithfull
Chris Macdonald-Bradley
Current Assignee (The listed assignees may be inaccurate. Google has not performed a legal analysis and makes no representation or warranty as to the accuracy of the list.)
Bayerische Motoren Werke AG
MG Rover Group Ltd
Original Assignee
Bayerische Motoren Werke AG
MG Rover Group Ltd
Priority date (The priority date is an assumption and is not a legal conclusion. Google has not performed a legal analysis and makes no representation as to the accuracy of the date listed.)
Filing date
Publication date
Application filed by Bayerische Motoren Werke AG, MG Rover Group Ltd filed Critical Bayerische Motoren Werke AG
Priority to GB0000280A priority Critical patent/GB2358004A/en
Publication of GB0000280D0 publication Critical patent/GB0000280D0/en
Publication of GB2358004A publication Critical patent/GB2358004A/en
Withdrawn legal-status Critical Current

Links

Classifications

    • BPERFORMING OPERATIONS; TRANSPORTING
    • B62LAND VEHICLES FOR TRAVELLING OTHERWISE THAN ON RAILS
    • B62DMOTOR VEHICLES; TRAILERS
    • B62D11/00Steering non-deflectable wheels; Steering endless tracks or the like
    • B62D11/02Steering non-deflectable wheels; Steering endless tracks or the like by differentially driving ground-engaging elements on opposite vehicle sides
    • B62D11/04Steering non-deflectable wheels; Steering endless tracks or the like by differentially driving ground-engaging elements on opposite vehicle sides by means of separate power sources
    • BPERFORMING OPERATIONS; TRANSPORTING
    • B60VEHICLES IN GENERAL
    • B60GVEHICLE SUSPENSION ARRANGEMENTS
    • B60G17/00Resilient suspensions having means for adjusting the spring or vibration-damper characteristics, for regulating the distance between a supporting surface and a sprung part of vehicle or for locking suspension during use to meet varying vehicular or surface conditions, e.g. due to speed or load
    • B60G17/015Resilient suspensions having means for adjusting the spring or vibration-damper characteristics, for regulating the distance between a supporting surface and a sprung part of vehicle or for locking suspension during use to meet varying vehicular or surface conditions, e.g. due to speed or load the regulating means comprising electric or electronic elements
    • B60G17/016Resilient suspensions having means for adjusting the spring or vibration-damper characteristics, for regulating the distance between a supporting surface and a sprung part of vehicle or for locking suspension during use to meet varying vehicular or surface conditions, e.g. due to speed or load the regulating means comprising electric or electronic elements characterised by their responsiveness, when the vehicle is travelling, to specific motion, a specific condition, or driver input
    • B60G17/0162Resilient suspensions having means for adjusting the spring or vibration-damper characteristics, for regulating the distance between a supporting surface and a sprung part of vehicle or for locking suspension during use to meet varying vehicular or surface conditions, e.g. due to speed or load the regulating means comprising electric or electronic elements characterised by their responsiveness, when the vehicle is travelling, to specific motion, a specific condition, or driver input mainly during a motion involving steering operation, e.g. cornering, overtaking
    • BPERFORMING OPERATIONS; TRANSPORTING
    • B60VEHICLES IN GENERAL
    • B60GVEHICLE SUSPENSION ARRANGEMENTS
    • B60G2300/00Indexing codes relating to the type of vehicle
    • B60G2300/02Trucks; Load vehicles
    • B60G2300/026Heavy duty trucks
    • B60G2300/0262Multi-axle trucks
    • BPERFORMING OPERATIONS; TRANSPORTING
    • B60VEHICLES IN GENERAL
    • B60GVEHICLE SUSPENSION ARRANGEMENTS
    • B60G2300/00Indexing codes relating to the type of vehicle
    • B60G2300/36Independent Multi-axle long vehicles
    • BPERFORMING OPERATIONS; TRANSPORTING
    • B60VEHICLES IN GENERAL
    • B60GVEHICLE SUSPENSION ARRANGEMENTS
    • B60G2400/00Indexing codes relating to detected, measured or calculated conditions or factors
    • B60G2400/60Load
    • B60G2400/61Load distribution
    • BPERFORMING OPERATIONS; TRANSPORTING
    • B60VEHICLES IN GENERAL
    • B60GVEHICLE SUSPENSION ARRANGEMENTS
    • B60G2800/00Indexing codes relating to the type of movement or to the condition of the vehicle and to the end result to be achieved by the control action
    • B60G2800/21Traction, slip, skid or slide control
    • B60G2800/214Traction, slip, skid or slide control by varying the load distribution
    • BPERFORMING OPERATIONS; TRANSPORTING
    • B60VEHICLES IN GENERAL
    • B60GVEHICLE SUSPENSION ARRANGEMENTS
    • B60G2800/00Indexing codes relating to the type of movement or to the condition of the vehicle and to the end result to be achieved by the control action
    • B60G2800/24Steering, cornering
    • BPERFORMING OPERATIONS; TRANSPORTING
    • B60VEHICLES IN GENERAL
    • B60GVEHICLE SUSPENSION ARRANGEMENTS
    • B60G2800/00Indexing codes relating to the type of movement or to the condition of the vehicle and to the end result to be achieved by the control action
    • B60G2800/90System Controller type
    • B60G2800/91Suspension Control
    • B60G2800/915Suspension load distribution

Landscapes

  • Engineering & Computer Science (AREA)
  • Mechanical Engineering (AREA)
  • Chemical & Material Sciences (AREA)
  • Combustion & Propulsion (AREA)
  • Transportation (AREA)
  • Vehicle Body Suspensions (AREA)

Abstract

A vehicle has four independently drivable wheels (10a, 10b, 10c, 10d) and an active suspension (16a, 16b, 16c, 16d) which can control the ride heights of, and hence the load distribution between, the wheels. In order to enable the vehicle to turn on the spot the suspension is controlled so as to reduce the level of friction at at least some of the wheels, either by vibrating them or by lifting them upwards, whilst wheels on opposite sides of the vehicle are driven in opposite directions.

Description

2358004 Vehicle Steerin The present invention relates to the steering of
vehicles and in particular to turning of vehicles which have the ability to drive their wheels in opposite directions.
It is known in such vehicles to control the drive to the wheels so that wheels on opposite sides of the vehicle are turned in opposite directions at substantially the same speed so as to turn the vehicle on the spot. However, this can result in significant damage to the surface on which the vehicle is situated because the wheels are dragged sideways across the surface during the turning manoeuvre. It can also be a problem that, on high friction surfaces, the drive torques available are not sufficient to break traction between the wheels and the ground, and so the wheels cannot be turned at all in the desired opposite directions.
Accordingly the present invention provides a vehicle having a plurality of wheels and a sprung part to which the wheels are connected by means of active suspension means which can be operated so as to vary the load on at least one of the wheels, and drive means operable to drive at least two of said wheels, which are on opposite sides of the vehicle, in opposite directions thereby to - turn the vehicle, wherein the active suspensio,. n means is arranged to vary the load on said at least one wheel in co-operation with operation of the drive means so as to facilitate turning of the vehicle substantially on the spot.
Preferred embodiments of the present invention will now be described by way of example only with reference to the accompanying drawings in which:
Figure 1 is a schematic plan view of a vehicle according to a first embodiment of the invention, 2 Figures 2 and 3 show in side view and plan view one axle of a vehicle according to a second embodiment of the invention, and Figures 4 and 5 are schematic side and plan views of a vehicle according to a third embodiment of the invention.
Referring to Figure 1, a vehicle comprises four wheels 10a, 10b, 10c, 10d connected to a body 12 by respective suspension arms 14a, 14b, 14c, 14d. Actuators 16a, 16b, 16c, 16d operate between the suspension arms and the body and the force they provide is controlled by a suspension control unit 18 to actively control the vertical positions of the wheels 10 relative to the body 12 and the loads on the wheels. The wheels are driven by electric motors 20a, 20b, 20c, 20d which can be controlled by a power train control unit 22 so that the magnitude and direction of the driving torques to each of the wheels can be controlled independently. The suspension control unit 18 and the power train control unit 22 are connected together so that they can cooperate to perform certain functions.
The power train control unit 22 is arranged so that, in response to a suitable input from the driver, it can cause the wheels 10b, 10d on the right of the vehicle to be driven in a reverse direction and those 10a, 10c on the left of the vehicle to be driven in a forward direction at the same speed. Assuming the same level of friction at each wheel this will result in no forward or backward motion of the vehicle, but will tend to rotate it on the spot about its centre, clockwise as seen from above. However rotation requires a lot of wheel slip, both longitudinally and laterally, and this will only be possible if the friction between the wheels 10 and the road surface is not too high. Therefore if the power train control unit 22 detects that it is applying opposing torques to the wheels 10 on opposite sides of the vehicle and the wheels 10 are not rotating, it is arranged to send a signal to the suspension control unit 18. In response to this signal, the suspension control unit 18 sends signals to the actuators 16 causing them to produce a pulsed variation in actuator force, causing the wheels to vibrate relative to the body 12. The pulses are of a frequency similar to the natural frequency of vibration of the wheels relative to the body, which is generally between 1 and 10 Hz. These pulses reduce the level xi 01 LAlc A -- --- - V.AC G Surface r_ f ±ac+z^n 10 41 roa A start to rotate. Once this has happened it will generally be easier for the wheels to continue to rotate. However, the vibration is continued until the turning manoeuvre is completed.
The exact nature and timing of the vibrations can vary. For example, all four actuators 16 can be vibrated in phase so that all of the wheels tend to vibrate in phase. This will tend to vibrate the body 12 up and down. Alternatively the front wheels 10a, 10b can be vibrated in anti-phase with the rear wheels 10c, 10d, so that the body tends to vibrate in rotation about a transverse axis, i.e. in pitch, or the right wheels 10b, 10d can be vibrated in anti-phase with the left wheels 10a, 10c, so that the body tends to vibrate in rotation about a longitudinal axis, i.e. in roll. As a further option the wheels may be vibrated in diagonally opposite pairs, i.e. the front right 10b and rear left 10c wheels vibrating together, in antiphase with the front left 10a and rear right 10d wheels. This will cause less vibration of the body but approximately the same change in grip between the wheels and the ground.
Referring to Figures 2 and 3, in another embodiment the vehicle makes use of the distortion which can be produced in the tyres of the wheels 10 by applying a driving torque, in either direction, when the vehicle is on a high friction surface. Essentially as torque is applied the tyre 11 does not slip initially, but the deformation of the tyre 11 allows the whole wheel 10 to rotate slightly, thereby moving the hub slightly from the position shown in solid lines to that shown in broken lines. Therefore, assuming that driving torques are applied in opposite directions to the opposite sides of the vehicle as described above in relation to Figure 1, the two front wheels 10a, 10b will move slightly in opposite directions as shown in Figure 3, and the two rear wheels will also move in opposite directions, thus moving the wheel hubs and rotating the vehicle body about a vertical axis, Wn.d tIne 1-1 under st."e-os. Whe.n the ve.,cle i_. tIES active suspension is then operated to reduce the load on the wheels for a short period, either by reducing the downward actuator effort (or applying an upward actuator effort) on each wheel in turn, or by changing the effort of the actuators in two pairs in anti-phase as described above. When the load on each wheel is reduced the tyre 11 can slip on the ground and rotate back to a non- stressed state, but the vehicle will remain in its slightly rotated position. This process can then be repeated to rotate the vehicle on the spot in a number of small steps.
Referring to Figures 5 and 6, in a third embodiment of the invention a vehicle having more than two axles, in this case three 40, 42, 44, and an active suspension system with actuators 46 for each of its six wheels 48, is arranged to turn on the spot by reducing the load on all but the wheels of the middle axle 42, and therefore increasing the load on the wheels on the middle axle, and then rotating the wheels on that middle axle 42 in opposite directions. Because the friction between the wheels on the front and rear axles 40, 44 and the ground is reduced they can then slip sideways relatively easily, as the opposing torques on the two centre wheels rotate the vehicle on the spot.
It will be appreciated that this approach would apply equally with any odd number of axles. Furthermore with an even number greater than two, if the wheels on all but the centre two axles were lifted, those on the centre two axles, particularly if they were relatively close together, could rotate the vehicle without significant lateral slipping of the tyres.
Furthermore it will be appreciated that some of the embodiments described could be adapted so as to work with tracked vehicles in which a track runs round a series of wheels on each side of the vehicle.

Claims (14)

-6CLAIMS
1. A vehicle having a plurality of wheels and a sprung part to which the wheels are connected by means of active suspension means which can be operated so as to vary the load on at least one of the wheels, and drive means operable to 11 ' oppr drive a,",- 1Wast. two of said wheels, are or, si4.e sides of the vehicle, in opposite directions thereby to turn the vehicle, wherein the active suspension means is arranged to vary the load on said at least one wheel in co-operation with operation of the drive means so as to facilitate turning of the vehicle substantially on the spot.
2 A vehicle according to claim 1 wherein the suspension means is arranged to produce a pulsed change in said load.
3. A vehicle according to claim 2 wherein said pulsed change is repeated so as to vibrate said at least one wheel.
4. A vehicle according to claim 3 wherein the frequency of the pulsed change is approximately equal to the natural frequency of the wheel relative to the sprung part.
5. A vehicle according to any one of claims 2 to 4 wherein the at least two wheels are on opposite sides of the vehicle and the suspension means is arranged to produce the pulsed changes in load of said at least two wheels, while they are driven in opposite directions.
6. A vehicle according to claim 5 having two pairs of wheels each being on opposite sides of the vehicle wherein the suspension control means is arranged to provide the pulsed changes in load to each of the two pairs of wheels while each pair is driven in opposite directions.
7. A vehicle according to claim 6 wherein the load on a first two of said wheels is changed in anti-phase with that on the other two.
8. A vehicle according to claim 6 wherein said first two wheels are at one end of the vehicle and said other two are at the other end.
9. A vehicle according to claim 6 wherein said first two wheels are at one side of the vehicle and said other two are at the other side.
10. A vehicle according to claim 6 wherein said first two wheels are at diagonally opposed corners of the vehicle and said other two are at diagonally opposed corners of the vehicle.
11. A vehicle according to claim 1 wherein the drive means is arranged to drive the wheels so as to cause resilient distortion of a Part thereof and rotation of the vehicle, and the suspension means is arranged to reduce the load on the wheels in a predetermined order so as to allow them to resile.
12. A vehicle according to claim 11 wherein the drive means and the suspension means are arranged to repeat the distortion and release of wheels so as to rotate the vehicle in steps.
13. A vehicle according to claim 1 having a wheel forward of said two wheels and a wheel rearward of said two wheels and the active suspension means is arranged to increase the load on said two wheels and reduce the load on the other wheels to facilitate turning.
14. A vehicle substantially as hereinbefore described with reference to the accompanying drawings.
GB0000280A 2000-01-08 2000-01-08 A drive and active suspension system for a vehicle that allows the vehicle to turn on the spot Withdrawn GB2358004A (en)

Priority Applications (1)

Application Number Priority Date Filing Date Title
GB0000280A GB2358004A (en) 2000-01-08 2000-01-08 A drive and active suspension system for a vehicle that allows the vehicle to turn on the spot

Applications Claiming Priority (1)

Application Number Priority Date Filing Date Title
GB0000280A GB2358004A (en) 2000-01-08 2000-01-08 A drive and active suspension system for a vehicle that allows the vehicle to turn on the spot

Publications (2)

Publication Number Publication Date
GB0000280D0 GB0000280D0 (en) 2000-03-01
GB2358004A true GB2358004A (en) 2001-07-11

Family

ID=9883297

Family Applications (1)

Application Number Title Priority Date Filing Date
GB0000280A Withdrawn GB2358004A (en) 2000-01-08 2000-01-08 A drive and active suspension system for a vehicle that allows the vehicle to turn on the spot

Country Status (1)

Country Link
GB (1) GB2358004A (en)

Cited By (4)

* Cited by examiner, † Cited by third party
Publication number Priority date Publication date Assignee Title
US6634445B2 (en) * 2001-12-27 2003-10-21 Case Corporation Skid steer vehicle having suspensions that are locked based on vehicle speed
WO2004048136A1 (en) * 2002-11-28 2004-06-10 Societe De Technologie Michelin Method and system for extending the mobility of a vehicle
GB2601349A (en) * 2020-11-27 2022-06-01 Jaguar Land Rover Ltd Wheel-to-surface contact patch force variation
US11390322B2 (en) * 2018-11-13 2022-07-19 Rivian Ip Holdings, Llc Systems and methods for providing a vehicle with a front dig mode

Families Citing this family (1)

* Cited by examiner, † Cited by third party
Publication number Priority date Publication date Assignee Title
CN115179705A (en) * 2022-08-03 2022-10-14 苏州志势达智能科技有限公司 Coordination control system of full-vector line control chassis

Citations (2)

* Cited by examiner, † Cited by third party
Publication number Priority date Publication date Assignee Title
US4516648A (en) * 1983-04-25 1985-05-14 Coleco Industries, Inc. Child's ride-on toy with reversing drive for rear wheels
EP0522155A1 (en) * 1991-01-25 1993-01-13 Toyo Umpanki Co., Ltd. Skid steer loader

Patent Citations (2)

* Cited by examiner, † Cited by third party
Publication number Priority date Publication date Assignee Title
US4516648A (en) * 1983-04-25 1985-05-14 Coleco Industries, Inc. Child's ride-on toy with reversing drive for rear wheels
EP0522155A1 (en) * 1991-01-25 1993-01-13 Toyo Umpanki Co., Ltd. Skid steer loader

Cited By (8)

* Cited by examiner, † Cited by third party
Publication number Priority date Publication date Assignee Title
US6634445B2 (en) * 2001-12-27 2003-10-21 Case Corporation Skid steer vehicle having suspensions that are locked based on vehicle speed
WO2004048136A1 (en) * 2002-11-28 2004-06-10 Societe De Technologie Michelin Method and system for extending the mobility of a vehicle
US7546763B2 (en) 2002-11-28 2009-06-16 Michelin Recherche Et Technique S.A. Method and system for extending the mobility of a vehicle
US11390322B2 (en) * 2018-11-13 2022-07-19 Rivian Ip Holdings, Llc Systems and methods for providing a vehicle with a front dig mode
US11753073B2 (en) 2018-11-13 2023-09-12 Rivian Ip Holdings, Llc Systems and methods for providing a vehicle with a front dig mode
GB2601349A (en) * 2020-11-27 2022-06-01 Jaguar Land Rover Ltd Wheel-to-surface contact patch force variation
WO2022112454A1 (en) * 2020-11-27 2022-06-02 Jaguar Land Rover Limited Wheel-to-surface contact patch force variation
GB2601349B (en) * 2020-11-27 2023-05-24 Jaguar Land Rover Ltd Wheel-to-surface contact patch force variation

Also Published As

Publication number Publication date
GB0000280D0 (en) 2000-03-01

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Legal Events

Date Code Title Description
COOA Change in applicant's name or ownership of the application
WAP Application withdrawn, taken to be withdrawn or refused ** after publication under section 16(1)