# US 11,897,303 B2 · Vehicle control device, vehicle control method, and vehicle control system > Agents: this data is available as JSON from the patentgrep API and MCP server — see https://patentgrep.com/llms.txt - Number: US 11,897,303 B2 - Document ID: US11897303B2 - Status: Granted - Kind: B2 - Application number: 17/797,250 - Filed: 2021-02-04 - Published: 2023-03-02 - Granted: 2024-02-13 - Earliest claimed: 2020-02-07 - Assignees: Hitachi Astemo, Ltd. - Applicants: Hitachi Astemo, Ltd. - Inventors: Yuki Yoshida; Ryusuke Hirao; Nobuyuki Ichimaru - Web page: https://patentgrep.com/patent/US11897303B2 ## CPC - B60G 17/0195: characterised by the regulation being combined with other vehicle control systems {(conjoint control of vehicle sub-units including control of suspension systems B60W10/22)} - B60G 17/08: Characteristics of fluid dampers (adjusting fluid dampers in general F16F9/44 - F16F9/53) - B60G 17/016: characterised by their responsiveness, when the vehicle is travelling, to specific motion, a specific condition, or driver input {(B60G17/017 takes precedence)} - B60G 17/0182: {involving parameter estimation, e.g. observer, Kalman filter} - B60G 2400/0521: Roll rate - B60G 2400/0522: Pitch rate - B60G 2400/0523: Yaw rate - B60G 2400/104: lateral or transversal with regard to vehicle - B60G 2400/202: Piston speed; Relative velocity between vehicle body and wheel - B60G 2400/208: of wheel rotation - B60G 2400/41: Steering angle - B60G 2400/82: Ground surface - B60G 2400/90: Other conditions or factors - B60G 2500/10: Damping action or damper - B60G 2600/02: Retarders, delaying means, dead zones, threshold values, cut-off frequency, timer interruption - B60G 2800/21: Traction, slip, skid or slide control - B60G 2800/70: Estimating or calculating vehicle parameters or state variables - B60G: VEHICLE SUSPENSION ARRANGEMENTS (air-cushion vehicles B60V; {cycle suspensions B62K25/00}) ## Abstract A vehicle control device includes a vertical VSE, a riding comfort control logic, a planar VSE, a steering stability control logic, a command limiting unit, a control command selection unit. The command limiting unit acquires specifications related to a traveling of a vehicle such as, for example, a slip rate and a four-wheel independent braking/driving force control flag through a CAN. The command limiting unit limits a variable range of a damping force generated by a suspension device provided between a vehicle body and wheels of the vehicle based on the specifications related to the traveling of the vehicle to obtain a first command value. The command limiting unit outputs the obtained first command value to the control command selection unit. ## Claims ### Claim 1 A vehicle control device comprising a controller configured to perform a calculation based on input information and output a calculation result, wherein the controller is configured to: acquire specifications related to a traveling of a vehicle, based on the acquired specifications related to the traveling of the vehicle, limit a variable range of a damping force generated by a damping force generator provided between a vehicle body and a wheel of the vehicle, thereby obtaining a damping force control command, and output the obtained damping force control command, and wherein the controller limits the variable range of the damping force based on a slip ratio of the wheel among the specifications related to the traveling of the vehicle, when the slip ratio is smaller than a first threshold value set in advance, the controller does not limit the variable range of the damping force, when the slip ratio is equal to or larger than the first threshold value and smaller than a second threshold value larger than the first threshold value, the controller limits the variable range of the damping force to be narrower as the slip ratio increases, and when the slip ratio is equal to or larger than the second threshold value, the controller limits the variable range of the damping force to be narrower than the variable range of the damping force when the slip ratio is smaller than the second threshold value. ### Claim 2 (depends on 1) The vehicle control device according to claim 1, wherein when a control flag for independently braking and driving all wheels of the vehicle including the wheel is acquired among the specifications related to the traveling of the vehicle, the controller limits the variable range of the damping force to be narrower than the variable range of the damping force when the slip ratio is smaller than the second threshold value. ### Claim 3 (depends on 1) The vehicle control device according to claim 1, wherein when the slip ratio is equal to or larger than the second threshold value, the controller sets the variable range of the damping force to a predetermined value set in advance. ### Claim 4 (depends on 1) The vehicle control device according to claim 1, wherein when the slip ratio is equal to or larger than the second threshold value, the controller sets the variable range of the damping force to a predetermined value set in advance. ### Claim 5 (depends on 1) The vehicle control device according to claim 1, wherein the controller limits the variable range of the damping force based on a front/rear acceleration of the vehicle among the specifications related to the traveling of the vehicle. ### Claim 6 (depends on 5) The vehicle control device according to claim 5, wherein the controller changes a threshold value for changing the limit of the variable range of the damping force based on a road surface friction coefficient on a road surface on which the vehicle travels. ### Claim 7 (depends on 1) The vehicle control device according to claim 1, wherein the controller limits the variable range of the damping force based on a brake/drive torque applied to the wheel among the specifications related to the traveling of the vehicle. ### Claim 8 A vehicle control method comprising: acquiring specifications related to a traveling of a vehicle; based on the acquired specifications related to the traveling of the vehicle, limiting a variable range of a damping force generated by a damping force generator provided between a vehicle body and a wheel of the vehicle, thereby obtaining a damping force control command; outputting the obtained damping force control command; limiting the variable range of the damping force based on a slip ratio of the wheel among the specifications related to the traveling of the vehicle; when the slip ratio is smaller than a first threshold value set in advance, not limiting the variable range of the damping force; when the slip ratio is equal to or larger than the first threshold value and smaller than a second threshold value larger than the first threshold value, limiting the variable range of the damping force to be narrower as the slip ratio increases; and when the slip ratio is equal to or larger than the second threshold, limiting the variable range of the damping force to be narrower than the variable range of the damping force when the slip ratio is smaller than the second threshold value. ### Claim 9 A vehicle control system comprising: a damping force generator provided between a vehicle body and a wheel of a vehicle; and a controller configured to: acquire specifications related to a traveling of the vehicle, limit a variable range of a damping force generated by the damping force generator based on the acquired specifications related to the traveling of the vehicle, thereby obtaining a damping force control command, and output the obtained damping force control command, wherein the controller limits the variable range of the damping force based on a slip ratio of the wheel among the specifications related to the traveling of the vehicle, when the slip ratio is smaller than a first threshold value set in advance, the controller does not limit the variable range of the damping force, when the slip ratio is equal to or larger than the first threshold value and smaller than a second threshold value larger than the first threshold value, the controller limits the variable range of the damping force to be narrower as the slip ratio increases, and when the slip ratio is equal to or larger than the second threshold value, the controller limits the variable range of the damping force to be narrower than the variable range of the damping force when the slip ratio is smaller than the second threshold value.