Active wheel damping
AssigneeBose Corporation
InventorsAmar G. Bose, Paul Bender, Marco Giovanardi, Lawrence D. Knox, Neal M. Lackritz, William R. Short, Wade P. Torres, Upendra V. Ummethala, David J. Warkentin
Life of this patent
Estimating the term…
Abstract
An active wheel damper. An active suspension damps vertical displacement of an unsprung mass in a frequency range and reduces vertical displacement of a sprung mass in another frequency range.
Claims36
A vehicle suspension for controlling motion of a sprung and unsprung mass comprising:
- a force source which is capable of applying a force in response to a control signal and without a physical stimulus, the force source coupling a vehicle unsprung mass and a vehicle sprung mass:
- a sensor for detecting vertical motion of the sprung mass or a quantity from which vertical motion of the sprung mass can be derived;
- an unsprung mass sensor for detecting vertical motion of the unsprung mass or a quantity from which vertical motion of the unsprung mass can be derived;
- and
- control circuitry;
- responsive to the sprung mass sensor for determining a force to reduce the vertical motion of the sprung mass in a first frequency range;
- and
- responsive to the unsprung mass sensor for determining a force to reduce the vertical motion of the unsprung mass in a second frequency range;
- wherein the first frequency range includes frequencies above and below the second frequency range and wherein the first frequency range does not include the second frequency range.
A method for controlling motion of a sprung and unsprung mass of a vehicle, where the unsprung mass incorporates a wheel with a tire and the unsprung mass resonates with a compliance of the tire at a resonance frequency, comprising:
- a first detecting, of vertical motion of an unsprung mass of a vehicle or a quantity from which vertical motion of the unsprung mass of the vehicle can be derived or both;
- in a first frequency band and responsive to the first detecting, determining a force to reduce the vertical motion of the unsprung mass;
- a second detecting, of vertical motion of a sprung mass or a quantity from which vertical motion of the sprung mass can be derived or both;
- in a second frequency band not including the resonance frequency of the unsprung mass, and responsive to the second detecting, determining a force to reduce the vertical motion of the sprung mass;
- applying, in the first frequency range, by a force source which is capable of exerting a force in response to a control signal and without a physical stimulus and which couples the sprung mass and the unsprung mass, the force to reduce the vertical motion of the unsprung mass;
- and
- applying, in the second frequency range, by the force source, the a force to reduce vertical motion of the sprung mass.
Apparatus, comprising:
- a wheel hop damper, comprising
- a sensor to detect vertical motion of an unsprung mass of a vehicle in a first frequency range;
- a controller to determine a force for the force source to apply to reduce the vertical motion of the unsprung mass in the first frequency range;
- and
- a force source which is capable of exerting a force between a sprung mass and an unsprung mass in response to a control signal and without a physical stimulus
- wherein the wheel hop damper is free of a damping mass.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.