Surface vehicle vertical trajectory planning
AssigneeBose Corporation, a Delaware corporation
InventorsLawrence Knox, Neal Lackritz, James Parison, William Short
Life of this patent
Estimating the term…
Abstract
An active suspension system for a vehicle including elements for developing and executing a trajectory plan responsive to the path on which the vehicle is traveling. The system may include a location system for locating the vehicle, and a system for retrieving a road profile corresponding to the vehicle location.
Claims63
-78. (canceled)
Apparatus for a surface vehicle for operating on a path, said path comprising vertical disturbances, said apparatus comprising:
- a controllable suspension for applying a force between a payload compartment and a surface engaging device;
- and
- a trajectory developing system operatively coupled to said controllable suspension, said trajectory developing system for developing a trajectory plan responsive to data specifically representative of said vertical disturbances.
A method for operating an active vehicle suspension system in a surface vehicle on a surface having vertical disturbances comprising:
- determining the location of said surface vehicle;
- and
- determining if there is a vertical trajectory plan corresponding to said location, said trajectory plan corresponding to data specifically representative of said vertical disturbances.
Apparatus for a surface vehicle comprising:
- an active suspension;
- a locator system for determining the location of said surface vehicle;
- a trajectory plan storage device, for storing trajectory plans corresponding to locations, said trajectory plans corresponding to data specifically representative of vertical disturbances on a surface on which said surface vehicle is traveling;
- and
- a trajectory plan microprocessor for determining if said trajectory plans contain a trajectory plan corresponding to said determined location.
A method for operating an active vehicle suspension system in a surface vehicle, comprising,
- determining the location of said surface vehicle;
- determining if there is stored in said surface vehicle a profile corresponding to said location, said profile comprising data specifically representative of vertical disturbances of a road on which said vehicle is traveling;
- retrieving said profile in response to a determination that there is stored in said vehicle said profile, and
- developing a trajectory plan in response to said retrieved profile.
A method for developing a trajectory plan for use with an active vehicle suspension, comprising:
- recording data points specifically representative of vertical disturbances of a section of road;
- and
- smoothing said data to provide said trajectory plan, said smoothing preserving positive and negative values of said data points.
A method for operating a vehicle, said vehicle including a controllable suspension element and a microprocessor, said method comprising:
- storing a plurality of profiles comprising data specifically representative of vertical deflections;
- driving said vehicle over a road section and recording data to provide measured data specifically representative of vertical deflections of said road section;
- and
- comparing said measured data with said plurality of profiles to determine a degree of match.
A method for developing a trajectory plan for a vehicle including a controllable suspension element, comprising:
- a first developing, using a first characteristic value, of a first trajectory plan corresponding to a profile;
- a first executing, of said first trajectory plan;
- and
- a first recording of performance data corresponding to said first trajectory plan.
A method for operating a vehicle comprising:
- operating said vehicle on a road segment including disturbances so that a front surface engaging device encounters said disturbances before a rear surface engaging device;
- determining the amplitude of one of said road disturbances;
- and
- responsive to said determining, modifying the operating of a rear suspension element associated with said rear surface engaging device.
A surface vehicle comprising:
- a payload compartment;
- a front surface engaging device;
- a rear surface engaging device;
- and
- a suspension system including a front controllable suspension element;
- a sensor for measuring the amplitude of a road disturbance encountered by said front surface engaging device;
- and
- a rear controllable suspension element including a controllable centering subsystem for urging said rear controllable suspension element toward a centered position;
- and
- controlling circuitry, responsive to said amplitude, for disabling said rear suspension element centering subsystem.
A method for operating a vehicle comprising:
- operating said vehicle on a road segment having disturbances so that a first surface engaging device encounters said disturbances before a second surface engaging device;
- receiving data representative of said disturbances;
- and
- based on said received data, developing a profile of said road segment, said profile comprising data specifically representative of said disturbances.
A method for operating a vehicle comprising a front surface engaging device and an a rear surface engaging device having an associated surface controllable suspension element having a centering system, said method comprising:
- driving said vehicle on a road segment having vertical disturbances;
- determining the amplitude of said disturbances;
- responsive to a determining that an amplitude of one of said disturbances is less than a first threshold amount, operating said controllable suspension element in a reactionary mode;
- responsive to a determining that said amplitude of said one of said disturbances is greater than said first threshold amount and less than a second threshold amount, disabling said centering system.
A method comprising:
- driving a surface vehicle over a section of road;
- acquiring vertical deflection data specifically representative of disturbances of a surface of the road;
- and
- developing a trajectory plan corresponding to the profile.
A method for operating a vehicle, comprising:
- operating said vehicle on a road segment including disturbances so that a front surface engaging device encounters said disturbances before a rear surface engaging device and so that a front controllable suspension element exerts a force responsive to a long upslope;
- and
- causing a rear controllable suspension element to exert a different force responsive to said upslope.
Apparatus for a surface vehicle for operating on a path, said path comprising vertical disturbances, said suspension comprising:
- means for applying a force between a payload compartment and a surface engaging device;
- and
- means for developing a trajectory operatively coupled to said force applying element, said trajectory developing means for developing a trajectory plan responsive to data specifically representative of said vertical disturbances.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.