GB2461299A - Gear selector lever with optical display that indicates an optimum gear - Google Patents
Gear selector lever with optical display that indicates an optimum gear Download PDFInfo
- Publication number
- GB2461299A GB2461299A GB0811768A GB0811768A GB2461299A GB 2461299 A GB2461299 A GB 2461299A GB 0811768 A GB0811768 A GB 0811768A GB 0811768 A GB0811768 A GB 0811768A GB 2461299 A GB2461299 A GB 2461299A
- Authority
- GB
- United Kingdom
- Prior art keywords
- gear
- gearshift
- optimum
- optimum gear
- selector lever
- 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- Withdrawn
Links
- 230000003287 optical effect Effects 0.000 title description 5
- 230000005540 biological transmission Effects 0.000 claims abstract description 20
- 238000000034 method Methods 0.000 claims description 8
- 238000005065 mining Methods 0.000 claims 1
- 239000000446 fuel Substances 0.000 description 3
- HRPVXLWXLXDGHG-UHFFFAOYSA-N Acrylamide Chemical compound NC(=O)C=C HRPVXLWXLXDGHG-UHFFFAOYSA-N 0.000 description 1
- 239000003086 colorant Substances 0.000 description 1
- 230000001419 dependent effect Effects 0.000 description 1
- 238000011161 development Methods 0.000 description 1
- 230000018109 developmental process Effects 0.000 description 1
- 230000007935 neutral effect Effects 0.000 description 1
Classifications
-
- B—PERFORMING OPERATIONS; TRANSPORTING
- B60—VEHICLES IN GENERAL
- B60K—ARRANGEMENT OR MOUNTING OF PROPULSION UNITS OR OF TRANSMISSIONS IN VEHICLES; ARRANGEMENT OR MOUNTING OF PLURAL DIVERSE PRIME-MOVERS IN VEHICLES; AUXILIARY DRIVES FOR VEHICLES; INSTRUMENTATION OR DASHBOARDS FOR VEHICLES; ARRANGEMENTS IN CONNECTION WITH COOLING, AIR INTAKE, GAS EXHAUST OR FUEL SUPPLY OF PROPULSION UNITS IN VEHICLES
- B60K20/00—Arrangement or mounting of change-speed gearing control devices in vehicles
- B60K20/02—Arrangement or mounting of change-speed gearing control devices in vehicles of initiating means
- B60K20/04—Arrangement or mounting of change-speed gearing control devices in vehicles of initiating means floor mounted
-
- F—MECHANICAL ENGINEERING; LIGHTING; HEATING; WEAPONS; BLASTING
- F16—ENGINEERING ELEMENTS AND UNITS; GENERAL MEASURES FOR PRODUCING AND MAINTAINING EFFECTIVE FUNCTIONING OF MACHINES OR INSTALLATIONS; THERMAL INSULATION IN GENERAL
- F16H—GEARING
- F16H63/00—Control outputs from the control unit to change-speed- or reversing-gearings for conveying rotary motion or to other devices than the final output mechanism
- F16H63/40—Control outputs from the control unit to change-speed- or reversing-gearings for conveying rotary motion or to other devices than the final output mechanism comprising signals other than signals for actuating the final output mechanisms
- F16H63/42—Ratio indicator devices
-
- F—MECHANICAL ENGINEERING; LIGHTING; HEATING; WEAPONS; BLASTING
- F16—ENGINEERING ELEMENTS AND UNITS; GENERAL MEASURES FOR PRODUCING AND MAINTAINING EFFECTIVE FUNCTIONING OF MACHINES OR INSTALLATIONS; THERMAL INSULATION IN GENERAL
- F16H—GEARING
- F16H59/00—Control inputs to control units of change-speed- or reversing-gearings for conveying rotary motion
- F16H59/02—Selector apparatus
- F16H59/0278—Constructional features of the selector lever, e.g. grip parts, mounting or manufacturing
-
- F—MECHANICAL ENGINEERING; LIGHTING; HEATING; WEAPONS; BLASTING
- F16—ENGINEERING ELEMENTS AND UNITS; GENERAL MEASURES FOR PRODUCING AND MAINTAINING EFFECTIVE FUNCTIONING OF MACHINES OR INSTALLATIONS; THERMAL INSULATION IN GENERAL
- F16H—GEARING
- F16H59/00—Control inputs to control units of change-speed- or reversing-gearings for conveying rotary motion
- F16H59/02—Selector apparatus
- F16H59/04—Ratio selector apparatus
-
- F—MECHANICAL ENGINEERING; LIGHTING; HEATING; WEAPONS; BLASTING
- F16—ENGINEERING ELEMENTS AND UNITS; GENERAL MEASURES FOR PRODUCING AND MAINTAINING EFFECTIVE FUNCTIONING OF MACHINES OR INSTALLATIONS; THERMAL INSULATION IN GENERAL
- F16H—GEARING
- F16H63/00—Control outputs from the control unit to change-speed- or reversing-gearings for conveying rotary motion or to other devices than the final output mechanism
- F16H63/40—Control outputs from the control unit to change-speed- or reversing-gearings for conveying rotary motion or to other devices than the final output mechanism comprising signals other than signals for actuating the final output mechanisms
- F16H63/42—Ratio indicator devices
- F16H2063/426—Ratio indicator devices with means for advising the driver for proper shift action, e.g. prompting the driver with allowable selection range of ratios
Landscapes
- Engineering & Computer Science (AREA)
- General Engineering & Computer Science (AREA)
- Mechanical Engineering (AREA)
- Chemical & Material Sciences (AREA)
- Combustion & Propulsion (AREA)
- Transportation (AREA)
- Control Of Transmission Device (AREA)
- Arrangement Or Mounting Of Control Devices For Change-Speed Gearing (AREA)
Abstract
A gearshift system in a vehicle comprises a selector lever with a gear knob 1 which is marked with a shift pattern 3 containing knots 5 having at least one light source 6 (e.g, LED). The system determines, via an electronic system, an optimum gear depending on current driving conditions of the vehicle and switches on the LED 6 in the gear knob 1 which relates to that optimum gear. At least two or three operating states are provided for optically indicating the optimum gear. The gearshift system may be an automated manual transmission system or a manual transmission system. In the automated transmission system the optimum gear is shifted automatically and is indicated optically, if it does not correspond to a gear selected by a driver while in the manual system the optimum gear is only indicated.
Description
Description
Gear shift system for a vehicle, vehicle with a gearshift system and method for indicating an optimum gear The invention relates to a gear shift system of a vehicle with a manual-type shift stick, in particular to a MTA (man- ual transmission automated) -system working as a shift-by-wire-system and to manual transmission systems.
In MTA-systems like e.g. the Easytronic system, clutch and gearbox are electronically controlled by an ECU. The selector lever may comprise a shift pattern called H-pattern like the one known from conventional manual transmission levers. The selector lever in this case is a signal receiver receiving an input signal from a driver that is converted into an electric signal, e.g. by Hall sensors measuring the position of the lever. There is no mechanical link between the selector lever and the transmission ("shift-by-wire"). MTA-systems typically may also be operated in a fully automatic mode and modes may be switched while driving. The combination of an MTA with an H-type shifter without a conventional clutch pedal is not yet available on the market.
Manual transmission systems are generally cheaper, lighter, and give better fuel efficiency than automatic systems.
However, an unexperienced driver is likely to have difficulties always selecting the most efficient gear. Even experienced drivers may not shift optimally at any time.
The document US 4,604,700 A discloses an apparatus for indicating an optimum time to shift a manual transmission. A lamp in the operator's compartment may signal to shift to a different gear, and a loudspeaker may confirm the performance of the shifting. A similar system is disclosed in DE 39 12 359 Al, where a lamp at the dashboard indicates the recommended shifting.
It is an object of the invention to provide a gear shift sys-tern for a vehicle, that indicates the optimum gear to a driver and is very simple, robust and cheap at the same time.
Furthermore, a method for indicating an optimum gear shall be provided.
This object is achieved by means of the subject matter of the independent claims. Advantageous developments of the inven-tion emerge from the dependent claims.
The invention provides a gearshift system for a vehicle com- prising a selector lever movable into a plurality of gear- shift positions, means for determining an optimum gear de-pending on current driving conditions and means for optically indicating the optimum gear on the selector lever.
According to the invention, an optimum gear may be determined and indicated to the driver via the selector lever itself.
Thus no separate display has to be provided.
The optimum gear may be e.g. the most fuel efficient gear, the gear that is least wearing for the motor and components or the gear that permits driving most comfortable and safely in various situations, e.g. at a constant speed, when over-taking, when driving uphill or downhill. Thus the "optimum gear'1 is to be understood as the gear best suited to a cer- tain given driving request. In the case of an automatic sys-tern, the optimum gear is meant to refer to the gear selected and engaged by an automatic system.
In one preferable embodiment the means for optically indicat-ing the optimum gear are a plurality of light sources, wherein at least one light source is assigned to each gear-shift position.
The light sources may e.g. be light emitting diodes (LEDs) and one LED may be provided for each gearshift position.
In one embodiment, the selector lever comprises a gear knob, which is marked with a shift pattern containing knots assigned to individual gears. Such a shift pattern is known from conventional manual transmission levers and is sometimes called a "H-pattern" due to the arrangement of the knots. At least one light source, e.g. a LED, is assigned to each knot.
In one embodiment, the gearshift system is an automated man-ual transmission system. In an alternative embodiment, the gearshift system is a manual transmission system.
The means for optically indicating the optimum gear may have at least two operating states. The at least two operating states may e.g. be the constant glow of a light source and an off-state or a flashing light and an off-state. Different op-erating states may also be realised by light sources, e.g. LEDs, of different colours.
In an alternative embodiment, the means for optically indi-cating the optimum gear have at least three operating states.
These may e.g. be the constant glow of a light source, a flashing light and an off-state or a light flashing with sev-eral frequencies.
The different operating states may be used to indicate tO the driver a currently engaged gear and one or more recommended ("optimum") gears.
The gearshift system can be used for various vehicles, in particular for passenger cars. It allows safe, comfortable and efficient driving and because the system is relatively simple and does not require extra space, it is also cheap and robust and may be implemented even in small cars easily.
According to another aspect of the invention, a method for indicating on optimum gear in a gear shift system with a Se-lector lever movable into a plurality of gearshift positions, the method comprises determining current driving conditions and determining an optimum gear depending on the current driving conditions and optically indicating the optimum gear on the selector lever.
In one embodiment, the gearshift system is an automated man-ual transmission system, wherein the optimum gear is shifted automatically and is indicated optically, if it does not cor-respond to the gear selected by a driver.
This may be the case in MTA-systems combined with an H-type shifter, when the driver changes the operating mode from man-ual to automatic while driving. The selector lever may than point to a different gear that the one currently engaged. Ac-cording to the invention the driver is informed about this by the optical signal indicating the gear currently engaged, which is the optimum gear in automatic mode.
The currently engaged gear may be indicated by a glowing light source.
In an alternative embodiment, the gearshift system is a man- ual transmission system, wherein the optimum gear is mdi- cated optically, if it does not correspond to the gear se-lected by a driver.
In this case, the driver is informed by the optical signal of the shifting recommendation. In order to draw the drivers at-tentibn to the shifting recommendation, a flashing light may be used as an optical signal in this case.
The invention will now be explained in more detail with ref-erence to the accompanying figure.
Figure 1 schematically shows a gear knob 1 as it is conven-tionally used with floor-mounted shifters. The upper surface 2 of the gear knob 1 has a molded-in shift pattern 3 which has the form of a "H-pattern". Knots 5 where the molded-in lines 7 cross mark the positions of the five gears, the re-verse gear and neutral gear.
The knots 5 each have gear labels 4. At the position of each knot, a LED 6 is placed as a light source.
In operation, an optimum gear is determined depending on the current driving conditions. In the case of the transmission being a manual transmission, the determined optimum gear is compared to the currently engaged gear. If the optimum gear is not the currently engaged gear, a shifting indication is issued by way of an optical signal.
The LED 6 assigned to the knot indicating the optimum gear is switched on and may be operating in a flashing mode to catch the driver's attention. Because the knot 5 of the flashing LED 6 is labelled with a gear label 4, the drivers intui-tively identifies the recommended optimum gear and can decide whether to select it.
In the case of an MTA-system, the LED 6 assigned to the cur- rently engaged gear (which in the automatic mode is the opti-mum gear) may glow to inform the driver about the currently engaged gear which may deviate from the gear currently se-lected by the selector lever.
The invention thus provides a very simple system to inform the driver about an optimum gear. It may therefore help to reduce fuel consumption and CO2 emissions.
List of reference synibols 1 gear knob 2 upper surface 3 shift pattern 4 gear label knot 6 LED 7 line
Claims (11)
- Patent claims 1. Gearshift system for a vehicle, comprising -a selector lever movable into a plurality of gear-shift positions; -means for determining an optimum gear depending on current driving conditions; -means for optically indicating the optimum gear on the selector lever.
- 2. Gearshift system according to claim 1, wherein the means for optically indicating the optimum gear are a plurality of light sources, wherein at least one light source is assigned to each gearshift position.
- 3. Gearshift system according to claim 2, wherein the selector lever comprises a gear knob (1), which is marked with a shift pattern (3) containing knots (5) assigned to individual gears, wherein at least one light source is assigned to each knot.
- 4. Gearshift system according to any of claims 1 to 3, wherein the gearshift system is an automated manual transmission system.
- 5. Gearshift system according to any of claims 1 to 3, wherein the gearshift system is a manual transmission system.
- 6. Gearshift system according to any of the preceding claims, wherein the means for optically indicating the optimum gear have at least two operating. states.
- 7. Gearshift system according to any of the preceding claims, wherein the means for optically indicating the optimum gear have at least three operating states.
- 8. Vehicle with a gearshift system according to any of the preceding claims.
- 9. Method for indicating on optimum gear in a gear shift system with a selector lever movable into a plurality of gearshift positions, the method comprising -determining current driving conditions and deter-mining an optimum gear depending on the current driving conditions; -optically indicating the optimum gear on the selec-tor lever.
- 10. Method according to claim 9, wherein the gearshift system is an automated manual transmission system, wherein the optimum gear is shifted automatically and is indicated optically, if it does not correspond to the gear selected by a driver.
- 11. Method according to claim 9, wherein the gearshift system is a manual transmission system, wherein the optimum gear is indicated optically, if it does not correspond to the gear selected by a driver.
Priority Applications (1)
| Application Number | Priority Date | Filing Date | Title |
|---|---|---|---|
| GB0811768A GB2461299A (en) | 2008-06-27 | 2008-06-27 | Gear selector lever with optical display that indicates an optimum gear |
Applications Claiming Priority (1)
| Application Number | Priority Date | Filing Date | Title |
|---|---|---|---|
| GB0811768A GB2461299A (en) | 2008-06-27 | 2008-06-27 | Gear selector lever with optical display that indicates an optimum gear |
Publications (2)
| Publication Number | Publication Date |
|---|---|
| GB0811768D0 GB0811768D0 (en) | 2008-07-30 |
| GB2461299A true GB2461299A (en) | 2009-12-30 |
Family
ID=39683243
Family Applications (1)
| Application Number | Title | Priority Date | Filing Date |
|---|---|---|---|
| GB0811768A Withdrawn GB2461299A (en) | 2008-06-27 | 2008-06-27 | Gear selector lever with optical display that indicates an optimum gear |
Country Status (1)
| Country | Link |
|---|---|
| GB (1) | GB2461299A (en) |
Cited By (5)
| Publication number | Priority date | Publication date | Assignee | Title |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| US8573649B2 (en) | 2011-02-09 | 2013-11-05 | GM Global Technology Operations LLC | Passenger automobile without B-column |
| CN104842786A (en) * | 2014-02-19 | 2015-08-19 | 通用汽车环球科技运作有限责任公司 | Motor vehicle display device |
| DE102014008044A1 (en) | 2014-05-28 | 2015-12-03 | GM Global Technology Operations LLC (n. d. Ges. d. Staates Delaware) | Method and device for assisting a driver of a motor vehicle |
| DE102016009948A1 (en) | 2016-08-16 | 2018-02-22 | GM Global Technology Operations LLC (n. d. Ges. d. Staates Delaware) | Gear shift device of a motor vehicle, motor vehicle and method for delivering a gear selection recommendation |
| CN109931400A (en) * | 2019-03-21 | 2019-06-25 | 东风汽车集团有限公司 | A kind of gear selecting fail-safe system and method |
Citations (9)
| Publication number | Priority date | Publication date | Assignee | Title |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| US4604700A (en) * | 1983-02-25 | 1986-08-05 | Toyota Jidosha Kabushiki Kaisha | Apparatus for indicating an optimum time to shift a manual transmission installed in a vehicle |
| JPS63265731A (en) * | 1987-04-22 | 1988-11-02 | Tadashi Kobayashi | Indicating device for operating condition of operating lever and the like of vehicle |
| DE3912359A1 (en) * | 1989-04-14 | 1990-10-25 | Man Nutzfahrzeuge Ag | Gear-change aid for motor vehicle driver - uses electronic processing to computer gear-change positions with indication on dashboard instruments |
| KR960012041B1 (en) * | 1994-05-25 | 1996-09-11 | 대우자동차 주식회사 | Gear shift indicator of manual transmission vehicle |
| EP0758062A1 (en) * | 1995-08-09 | 1997-02-12 | Lemförder Metallwaren Ag. | Gear position indicator |
| US6356831B1 (en) * | 2000-02-04 | 2002-03-12 | Ford Global Technologies, Inc. | Optimization method for shifting gears in a lean capable multi-mode engine with a manual transmission |
| US20070179694A1 (en) * | 2006-01-28 | 2007-08-02 | Speedhut, Inc. | Gear shift indication method and apparatus |
| EP1860351A1 (en) * | 2006-05-26 | 2007-11-28 | Denso Corporation | Transmission operation instruction device |
| WO2008081220A1 (en) * | 2006-12-29 | 2008-07-10 | Renault Trucks | Tachometer and gear indicating apparatus |
-
2008
- 2008-06-27 GB GB0811768A patent/GB2461299A/en not_active Withdrawn
Patent Citations (9)
| Publication number | Priority date | Publication date | Assignee | Title |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| US4604700A (en) * | 1983-02-25 | 1986-08-05 | Toyota Jidosha Kabushiki Kaisha | Apparatus for indicating an optimum time to shift a manual transmission installed in a vehicle |
| JPS63265731A (en) * | 1987-04-22 | 1988-11-02 | Tadashi Kobayashi | Indicating device for operating condition of operating lever and the like of vehicle |
| DE3912359A1 (en) * | 1989-04-14 | 1990-10-25 | Man Nutzfahrzeuge Ag | Gear-change aid for motor vehicle driver - uses electronic processing to computer gear-change positions with indication on dashboard instruments |
| KR960012041B1 (en) * | 1994-05-25 | 1996-09-11 | 대우자동차 주식회사 | Gear shift indicator of manual transmission vehicle |
| EP0758062A1 (en) * | 1995-08-09 | 1997-02-12 | Lemförder Metallwaren Ag. | Gear position indicator |
| US6356831B1 (en) * | 2000-02-04 | 2002-03-12 | Ford Global Technologies, Inc. | Optimization method for shifting gears in a lean capable multi-mode engine with a manual transmission |
| US20070179694A1 (en) * | 2006-01-28 | 2007-08-02 | Speedhut, Inc. | Gear shift indication method and apparatus |
| EP1860351A1 (en) * | 2006-05-26 | 2007-11-28 | Denso Corporation | Transmission operation instruction device |
| WO2008081220A1 (en) * | 2006-12-29 | 2008-07-10 | Renault Trucks | Tachometer and gear indicating apparatus |
Cited By (7)
| Publication number | Priority date | Publication date | Assignee | Title |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| US8573649B2 (en) | 2011-02-09 | 2013-11-05 | GM Global Technology Operations LLC | Passenger automobile without B-column |
| CN104842786A (en) * | 2014-02-19 | 2015-08-19 | 通用汽车环球科技运作有限责任公司 | Motor vehicle display device |
| DE102014002305A1 (en) | 2014-02-19 | 2015-08-20 | GM Global Technology Operations LLC (n. d. Gesetzen des Staates Delaware) | Automotive display |
| DE102014008044A1 (en) | 2014-05-28 | 2015-12-03 | GM Global Technology Operations LLC (n. d. Ges. d. Staates Delaware) | Method and device for assisting a driver of a motor vehicle |
| US9719594B2 (en) | 2014-05-28 | 2017-08-01 | GM Global Technology Operations LLC | Method and device for supporting a driver of a motor vehicle |
| DE102016009948A1 (en) | 2016-08-16 | 2018-02-22 | GM Global Technology Operations LLC (n. d. Ges. d. Staates Delaware) | Gear shift device of a motor vehicle, motor vehicle and method for delivering a gear selection recommendation |
| CN109931400A (en) * | 2019-03-21 | 2019-06-25 | 东风汽车集团有限公司 | A kind of gear selecting fail-safe system and method |
Also Published As
| Publication number | Publication date |
|---|---|
| GB0811768D0 (en) | 2008-07-30 |
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Legal Events
| Date | Code | Title | Description |
|---|---|---|---|
| S30Z | Assignments for licence or security reasons |
Free format text: APPLICANT GM GLOBAL TECHNOLOGY OPERATIONS, INC SECURITY TO THE UNITED STATES DEPARTMENT OF THE TREASURY |
|
| WAP | Application withdrawn, taken to be withdrawn or refused ** after publication under section 16(1) |