Electric power steering apparatus, malfunction judging method, and current estimating method
AssigneeMando Corporation
InventorsJae Sang Park, Jong Kwan Kim
Life of this patent
Estimating the term…
Abstract
Disclosed is an electric power steering apparatus. The electric power steering apparatus includes: a torque sensor configured to detect a torque applied to a steering wheel; a current detector configured to measure a current flowing through a driving motor; and an electronic control unit configured to estimate a current flowing through the driving motor depending on the detected torque and compare the estimated current with the measured current to judge a malfunction of the torque sensor or the current detector.
Claims13
An electric power steering apparatus comprising:
- a torque sensor configured to detect a torque applied to a steering wheel;
- a current detector configured to measure a current flowing through a driving motor;
- and
- an electronic control unit configured to estimate a current flowing through the driving motor depending on the detected torque and compare the estimated current with the measured current to judge a malfunction of the torque sensor or the current detector.
A method for judging a malfunction in an electric power steering apparatus, the method comprising the steps of:
- detecting a torque applied to a steering wheel through a torque sensor;
- measuring a current flowing through a driving motor through a current detector;
- estimating a current flowing through the driving motor depending on the torque detected by an electronic control unit;
- and
- comparing the measured value of the current flowing through the driving motor with the estimated value of the current flowing through the driving motor to judge a malfunction of the torque sensor or the current detector.
A method of estimating a current flowing through a driving motor by an electronic control unit, the method comprising the steps of:
- receiving a detected value of a torque applied to a steering wheel from a torque sensor;
- determining an angular speed of the steering wheel depending on the detected value of the torque;
- calculating an angular speed of the driving motor based on an angular speed of the steering wheel and a gear ratio of a reducer;
- and
- estimating a current flowing through the driving motor based on a voltage across the driving motor, a back EMF constant of the driving motor, a resistance of the driving motor, and an angular speed of the driving motor.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.