JP2014094701A - Vehicle suspension system - Google Patents

Abstract

A vehicle suspension system that can be easily and reliably installed in an existing vehicle without requiring complicated installation work.
A suspension device 130 is disposed between a vehicle body 201 and a wheel 202 of a vehicle 200, the damping force of a hydraulic shock absorber of the suspension device 130 is adjusted by an actuator driver 120, and the actuator driver 120 is controlled by a central control device 110. In the vehicle suspension system 100, the wireless communication is performed between the central controller 110 and the actuator driver 120, whereby the cabin 205 where the central controller 110 is located and the engine room or trunk room where the actuator driver 120 is located. Wiring penetrating through the front partition wall 203 and the rear partition wall 204 located at the center is completely unnecessary, and the installation work of the vehicle suspension system 100 is simplified and the installation cost is reduced.
[Selection] Figure 1

Description

  The present invention relates to vehicle suspension technology.

  For example, as described in Patent Document 1, in vehicles such as passenger cars and trucks, a plurality of suspension devices capable of changing damping characteristics with motors are installed between individual wheels and a vehicle body, and each wheel It is known to centrally control the suspension motor by connecting it to a central electronic control device with a cable.

JP 2006-117209 A

  However, in the above-described conventional technology, when another suspension device is added or replaced to an existing vehicle and centralized control is performed from the controller provided in the cabin, the additional or provided on the controller and individual wheels are added. There has been a technical problem that the replaced suspension device needs to be individually connected with a cable, and complicated installation work is required.

  In other words, a partition wall exists between the engine room side where the front wheel is located and the cabin, and between the trunk room side where the rear wheel is located and the cabin. Since it is necessary to expand the hole and route the cable, the installation work becomes complicated, which causes an increase in installation cost.

Further, when a new hole cannot be formed in the partition wall or when the hole cannot be expanded, additional installation itself is impossible.
An object of the present invention is to provide a vehicle suspension system that can be easily and reliably installed on an existing vehicle without requiring a complicated installation operation.

The present invention
A driver having a wireless communication function, variably controlling operation characteristics by controlling an actuator provided in a suspension device installed between an individual wheel and a vehicle body of the vehicle;
A control device that is provided in the cabin of the vehicle and controls the driver by wireless communication to centrally control the operation characteristics of the individual suspension devices;
A vehicle suspension system is provided.

  ADVANTAGE OF THE INVENTION According to this invention, the vehicle suspension system which can be installed in the existing vehicle simply and reliably, without requiring complicated installation work can be provided.

1 is a conceptual diagram schematically illustrating a configuration example of a vehicle including a vehicle suspension system according to an embodiment of the present invention. It is a block diagram which shows an example of the central control apparatus which comprises the vehicle suspension system which is one embodiment of this invention. It is a block diagram which shows an example of the actuator driver which comprises the vehicle suspension system which is one embodiment of this invention, and a suspension apparatus. It is a flowchart which shows an example of an effect | action of the central control apparatus which comprises the vehicle suspension system which is one embodiment of this invention. It is a flowchart which shows an example of an effect | action of the actuator driver which comprises the vehicle suspension system which is one embodiment of this invention. It is a conceptual diagram which shows the modification of the vehicle suspension system of this invention. It is a conceptual diagram which shows the modification of the vehicle suspension system of this invention.

  In the present embodiment, as one aspect, the driver receives a radio signal from a control device that controls the electric actuator of the suspension device, and causes the driver to control the electric actuator. This makes it possible to directly connect the drive power source of an electric actuator such as a motor from any nearest battery including a dedicated battery, without wiring through the bulkheads before and after the cabin and the bulkheads provided in various parts of the vehicle. The vehicle suspension system can be installed.

  As a result, the installation work of the vehicle suspension system can be simplified and the installation cost can be reduced, and further, modification or damage of the vehicle itself can be suppressed to a minimum, and the installation can be performed on any vehicle.

In addition, since it has a function of shutting off the drive power supply to the electric actuator when the vehicle is not in operation, unnecessary power consumption is suppressed and the technical problem of running out of the battery is solved.
In addition, when it is necessary to supply power to the electric actuator of the suspension system from an independent power source, there is a technical problem that the battery will run up if measures are not taken to reduce power consumption when not in operation. Issues can be solved together.

  That is, according to the present embodiment, for example, an effect of reducing the burden of conventional wiring work associated with the installation of a controller or driver such as a control device of a damping force adjusting device for a vehicle shock absorber can be obtained. Further, it is possible to reduce the cost by shortening the lengths of various electric wires for driving or control that connect the driver, the electric actuator, and the controller, which have been required to be set longer in consideration of versatility.

Hereinafter, embodiments of the present invention will be described in detail with reference to the drawings.
FIG. 1 is a conceptual diagram schematically showing a configuration example of a vehicle including a vehicle suspension system according to an embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 2 is a block diagram showing an example of a central control device constituting the vehicle suspension system according to the embodiment of the present invention.
FIG. 3 is a block diagram showing an example of an actuator driver and a suspension device constituting the vehicle suspension system according to the embodiment of the present invention.

As illustrated in FIG. 1, a vehicle 200 on which the vehicle suspension system 100 of the present embodiment is mounted includes a vehicle body 201 supported by a plurality of wheels 202.
A cabin 205 (cabinet) including a driver's seat is disposed at the center of the vehicle body 201 of the vehicle 200, and a front partition wall 203 is provided between the engine room side (not shown) where the front wheel 202 is located and the cabin 205. Is provided.

Similarly, a trunk room (not shown) where the rear wheel 202 of the vehicle 200 is located and the cabin 205 are partitioned by a rear partition wall 204.
On the other hand, the vehicle suspension system 100 of the present embodiment includes a plurality of suspension devices 130 disposed between each of the plurality of wheels 202 and the vehicle body 201, and a damping force adjusting actuator (see FIG. (Not shown), and a central controller 110 that is provided inside the cabin 205 and remotely controls the plurality of actuator drivers 120 by wireless communication. In this case, the actuator may be incorporated in the hydraulic shock absorber, or another device may be additionally attached to the hydraulic shock absorber.

  In the example of FIG. 1, two suspension devices 130 provided on the two wheels 202 on the front side are operated by one common actuator driver 120, and two suspension devices 130 provided on the two wheels 202 on the rear side are provided. It is configured to be operated by one common actuator driver 120.

  As described above, in the vehicle suspension system 100 according to the present embodiment, the central controller 110 remotely controls the front and rear actuator drivers 120 by wireless communication. Therefore, when installing, through holes are formed in the front partition 203 and the rear partition 204. No complicated work such as opening or enlarging existing through-holes is required.

Next, an example of the configuration of each part of the vehicle suspension system 100 according to the present embodiment will be described in detail with reference to FIGS.
As illustrated in FIG. 2, the central control device 110 constituting the vehicle suspension system 100 of the present embodiment includes a microcomputer 111, a nonvolatile memory 112, an operation interface 113, a display 114, an acceleration sensor 115, a GPS device 116, a wireless A communication function unit 117 and an antenna 118 are provided.

  The microcomputer 111 is configured by a microprocessor or the like, and executes the control program 111a stored in the nonvolatile memory 112, thereby performing overall control of the vehicle suspension system 100 as exemplified in a flowchart described later.

The nonvolatile memory 112 stores information such as the control program 111a and the control data 111b of the microcomputer 111 in a rewritable manner.
The operation interface 113 includes, for example, button switches, dials, and keyboards operated by the user, and is used for command input from the user to the central control device 110.

The display 114 visualizes and outputs the current operation status, control information, and various sensor information of the vehicle suspension system 100.
The acceleration sensor 115 detects the acceleration acting on the vehicle 200 and inputs it to the microcomputer 111.

The GPS device 116 is a receiver of the global positioning system, and measures position information and speed information of the vehicle 200 and inputs them to the microcomputer 111.
The wireless communication function unit 117 exchanges information input / output from the microcomputer 111 with the actuator driver 120 by wireless communication.

The antenna 118 transmits and receives radio waves for wireless communication of the wireless communication function unit 117. The antenna 118 may be built in the control device.
The power source 119 supplies power for operating the central controller 110. In this case, the power source 119 may use a battery (not shown) provided in the vehicle 200.

On the other hand, the actuator driver 120 includes a microcomputer 121, a nonvolatile memory 122, a motor driver circuit 123, a wireless communication function unit 124, an antenna 125, and a power supply 126.
In the case of the present embodiment, the suspension device 130 includes a hydraulic shock absorber as an example, and is defined by a cylinder 131, a piston 132, a piston rod 133, a hydraulic oil 134, a gas chamber 135, a free piston 136, and a piston 132. A lower oil chamber 137a, an upper oil chamber 137b, a bypass passage (not shown) formed through the piston 132, a needle valve 138, and a step motor 139 are provided.

  In the actuator driver 120, the microcomputer 121 is configured by a microprocessor or the like, and executes the control program 121a, so that the suspension device 130 in the suspension device 130 is based on an instruction from the central control device 110 as illustrated in a flowchart and the like described later. The rotation of the step motor 139 is controlled to control the operating characteristics of the suspension device 130 (in this case, the damping characteristics as a hydraulic shock absorber).

The nonvolatile memory 122 stores information such as the control program 121a of the microcomputer 121 in a nonvolatile manner so as to be rewritable.
The motor driver circuit 123 controls the rotation direction and the rotation amount of the step motor 139 of the suspension device 130 by outputting a drive current based on a command from the microcomputer 121.

The wireless communication function unit 124 realizes wireless communication with the central control device 110 described above.
The antenna 125 transmits and receives radio waves to and from the central controller 110.
The power source 126 is, for example, a battery (not shown) provided in the vehicle 200.

  On the other hand, in the suspension device 130, the fixed portion 133 a of the piston rod 133 is fixed to the vehicle body 201 side of the vehicle 200, and the fixed portion 131 a of the cylinder 131 is fixed to the side of the chassis (not shown) that supports the wheels 202. The vibration generated from the impact or the like acting on the vehicle body 201 is attenuated, and the riding comfort and control performance of the vehicle 200 are variably controlled.

  That is, the suspension device 130 generates a damping force when the hydraulic oil 134 sealed in the cylinder 131 moves between the lower oil chamber 137a and the upper oil chamber 137b defined by the piston 132.

  The gas chamber 135 is filled with a gas such as nitrogen gas at an appropriate pressure so that the inside of the cylinder 131 does not always have a negative pressure, and the free piston 136 completely partitions the sealed gas and the hydraulic oil 134. .

  A bypass valve (not shown) is provided with a needle valve 138 for changing the opening of the bypass passage to a predetermined position, and the opening of the bypass passage by the needle valve 138 is controlled by the rotation direction and the rotation amount of the step motor 139. .

If the opening degree of the bypass passage is small, the flow resistance of the hydraulic oil 134 increases and the damping force of the suspension device 130 increases. Conversely, if the opening degree of the bypass passage is large, the damping force decreases.
That is, the actuator driver 120 controls the step motor 139 based on a command from the central control device 110, thereby arbitrarily setting and changing the damping characteristic of the suspension device 130.

Hereinafter, an example of the operation of the vehicle suspension system 100 of the present embodiment will be described.
FIG. 4 is a flowchart showing an example of the operation of the central control device constituting the vehicle suspension system according to the embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 5 is a flowchart showing an example of the operation of the actuator driver constituting the vehicle suspension system according to the embodiment of the present invention.
In the case of the present embodiment, the control data 111b stored in the non-volatile memory 112 of the central controller 110 includes, for example, a control table and corresponds to the acceleration value of the vehicle 200 detected by the acceleration sensor 115 and A setting value of the damping characteristic of the suspension device 130 provided in the rear wheel 202 is stored for each identification information (driver ID) of each actuator driver 120.

  Further, in the control data 111b, the set values of the damping characteristics of the suspension device 130 provided on the front and rear wheels 202 corresponding to the traveling speed of the vehicle 200 detected from the GPS device 116 are set for each actuator driver 120. Is stored for each identification information (driver ID).

  Then, the microcomputer 111 (control program 111a) confirms that, for example, the change value of the acceleration detected from the acceleration sensor 115 or the change value of the speed of the vehicle 200 detected from the GPS device 116 exceeds a predetermined change width. In response to this, a command is issued to the actuator driver 120 to change to the corresponding attenuation characteristic.

  Further, when a set value of the attenuation characteristic is manually input for each specific driver ID via the operation interface 113, the set value is prioritized and commanded to the actuator driver 120 to be controlled.

Hereinafter, an operation example of the vehicle suspension system 100 will be described with reference to FIGS. 4 and 5 and the like.
As illustrated in the flowchart of FIG. 4, the microcomputer 111 that executes the control program 111a waits for the occurrence of a transmission event to the actuator driver 120 (step 401). This transmission event is, for example, that a change in acceleration or speed described above exceeds a predetermined change width (threshold value) or a manual input from the operation interface 113 is detected.

  When the transmission event is detected, the microcomputer 111 determines the opening information of the needle valve 138 according to the setting of the control data 111b or the input value from the operation interface 113 (step 402).

Then, the opening degree information is transmitted from the wireless communication function unit 117 to the actuator driver 120 together with the driver ID (step 403).
Then, the microcomputer 111 waits for a setting completion response from the actuator driver 120 side (step 404), displays the received setting value on the display 114 (step 405), and returns to the event standby in step 401.

  On the other hand, as illustrated in FIG. 5, in the actuator driver 120, the microcomputer 121 that executes the control program 121 a waits for reception of a wireless command signal including its own driver ID from the central control device 110 (step 501). When there is no command to the driver ID, the power supply to the motor driver circuit 123 (step motor 139) is stopped (step 502).

  When a command including its own driver ID is received, based on the received opening information of the needle valve 138, the motor driver circuit 123 is instructed about the rotation direction and the rotation amount of the step motor 139 so as to realize the opening. (Step 503). Thereby, the needle valve 138 has an opening degree commanded from the central controller 110, and the damping characteristic of the suspension device 130 corresponding to the opening degree is set.

When the microcomputer 121 receives the setting completion from the motor driver circuit 123, it transmits the setting result together with its own driver ID to the central controller 110 (step 504).
The current setting result is displayed on the display 114 of the central controller 110 by the transmission in step 504 as described in step 405 above.

  Thus, according to the vehicle suspension system 100 of the present embodiment, the engine room side and the trunk room side separated by the central control device 110 installed in the cabin 205 of the vehicle 200 and the front bulkhead 203 and the rear bulkhead 204. Since the actuator driver 120 disposed in the center operates by wireless communication, it is not necessary to route the wiring connecting the central controller 110 and the actuator driver 120 through the front partition 203 and the rear partition 204.

  As a result, the installation work of the vehicle suspension system 100 on the vehicle 200 can be simplified and the installation cost can be reduced, and further, any modification or damage of the vehicle 200 itself can be minimized and any vehicle can be used. There is an advantage that the vehicle suspension system 100 can be installed.

Further, there is an advantage that the manufacturing cost of the vehicle suspension system 100 can be reduced by the amount of unnecessary connection wiring.
Further, there is no inconvenience that the vehicle suspension system 100 cannot be installed in the vehicle 200 due to circumstances such as the front partition 203 and the rear partition 204 of the vehicle 200 cannot be modified, and the vehicle suspension system 100 is reliably installed in any vehicle 200. There are advantages you can do.

FIG. 6 is a conceptual diagram showing a modification of the vehicle suspension system of the present invention.
In the vehicle suspension system 100A of the modified example illustrated in FIG. 6, a dedicated actuator driver 120 is integrally provided in a single housing (not shown) for each suspension device 130 installed on each wheel 202. The position of the suspension device 150 is different from the vehicle suspension system 100 described above.

  This eliminates the need for wiring for connecting the suspension device 130 and the actuator driver 120, and has the advantage that the installation work of the vehicle suspension system 100A on the vehicle 200 is further simplified.

FIG. 7 is a conceptual diagram showing a modification of the vehicle suspension system of the present invention.
In the vehicle suspension system 100B of the modified example illustrated in FIG. 7, the suspension device 130 and the actuator driver 120 are integrated into a single housing (not shown) as a driver / suspension device 150, and each driver A dedicated battery 126 </ b> A is arranged as a power source 126 in the suspension device 150.

  As a result, the driver / suspension device 150 arranged on each wheel 202 also eliminates the need for power supply wiring from the battery (not shown) of the vehicle 200 (the power supply 126 in FIGS. 1 and 6 described above).

  As a result, when installing the vehicle suspension system 100B, power supply wiring from a battery (not shown) of the vehicle 200 is not required, and the installation work of the vehicle suspension system 100B can be simplified.

  Further, as in step 502 of the flowchart of FIG. 5 described above, the actuator driver 120 cuts off the power supply to the motor driver circuit 123 and the step motor 139 when not in operation, so that there is an advantage that the duration of the dedicated battery 126A can be increased. is there.

Needless to say, the present invention is not limited to the configuration exemplified in the above-described embodiment, and various modifications can be made without departing from the spirit of the present invention.
For example, the suspension device 130 is not limited to the above-described shock absorber, and may be a vehicle height adjustment device or the like. In that case, the operating characteristic is the vehicle height.

  [Supplementary Note 1] By installing an electric actuator, a driver having a wireless communication function for driving the electric actuator, and a controller for controlling the driver wirelessly, the damping force of the hydraulic shock absorber of the vehicle having the damping force adjusting mechanism, In-vehicle equipment characterized by wireless control.

[Supplementary Note 2] The in-vehicle device according to Supplementary Note 1, which has a function of shutting off an electric actuator driving power source when not operating.
[Appendix 3] The in-vehicle device according to Appendix 1 or 2, wherein the driver and the electric actuator are integrated.

  [Appendix 4] The in-vehicle device according to Appendix 1 or 2, wherein a dedicated drive battery is connected to or built in the driver.

100 vehicle suspension system 100A vehicle suspension system 100B vehicle suspension system 110 central control device 111 microcomputer 111a control program 111b control data 112 nonvolatile memory 113 operation interface 114 display 115 acceleration sensor 116 GPS device 117 wireless communication function unit 118 antenna 119 power source 120 actuator driver 121 Microcomputer 121a Control program 122 Non-volatile memory 123 Motor driver circuit 124 Wireless communication function unit 125 Antenna 126 Power supply 126A Dedicated battery 130 Suspension device 131 Cylinder 131a Fixing part 132 Piston 133 Piston rod 133a Fixing part 134 Hydraulic oil 135 Gas chamber 136 Free piston 137 Bypass passage 137a Lower oil chamber 137b Upper oil chamber 138 Knee Dollar valve 139 Step motor 150 Driver / suspension device 200 Vehicle 201 Car body 202 Wheel 203 Front partition wall 204 Rear partition wall 205 Cabin

Claims (4)

A driver having a wireless communication function, variably controlling operation characteristics by controlling an actuator provided in a suspension device installed between an individual wheel and a vehicle body of the vehicle;
A control device that is provided in the cabin of the vehicle and controls the driver by wireless communication to centrally control the operation characteristics of the individual suspension devices;
A vehicle suspension system comprising: The vehicle suspension system according to claim 1,
The vehicle suspension system according to claim 1, wherein the driver has a function of stopping current supply to the actuator of the suspension device when not operating without an operation command from the control device. The vehicle suspension system according to claim 2,
A vehicle suspension system, wherein each of the suspension devices and the driver are provided integrally. The vehicle suspension system according to claim 3,
A vehicle suspension system, wherein each of the drivers is connected or built in the suspension device and a dedicated drive power source for operating the driver.