Vehicle driveline component having a sensor-less electromagnetic actuator system

A vehicle driveline component comprising:

• an armature disposed along a translation axis, wherein the armature is moveable along the translation axis;
• a coil assembly having a coil;
• a coil driver electrically coupled to the coil, wherein the coil driver is operable to provide a modulating power signal to the coil to generate an electromagnetic field that causes relative motion between the coil assembly and the armature along the translation axis;
• an oscillator circuit having a resonant circuit including an inductor, the oscillator circuit being electrically coupled to the coil, wherein the oscillator circuit is configured to generate an oscillating signal that varies based on a spacing between the armature and the coil assembly along the translation axis;
• and
• a controller coupled to the oscillator circuit and the coil driver, wherein the controller is configured to measure a first inductance value of the coil while the vehicle driveline component is commanded to an unlocked state, measure a second inductance value of the coil while the vehicle driveline component is commanded to a locked state, and regulate an amount of electrical power applied to the coil based on the first inductance value, the second inductance value, and whether the vehicle driveline component is in the unlocked state or the locked state.

A vehicle driveline component comprising:

• an armature disposed along a translation axis, wherein the armature is moveable along the translation axis;
• a coil assembly having a coil;
• a coil driver electrically coupled to the coil, wherein the coil driver is operable to provide a modulating power signal to the coil to generate an electromagnetic field that causes relative motion between the coil assembly and the armature along the translation axis;
• an oscillator circuit having a resonant circuit including an inductor, the oscillator circuit being electrically coupled to the coil, wherein the oscillator circuit is configured to generate an oscillating signal that varies based on a spacing between the armature and the coil assembly along the translation axis;
• and
• a controller coupled to the oscillator circuit and the coil driver, wherein the controller is configured to measure an inductance value of the coil at a first time, measure an inductance value of the coil at a second time, determine a change in inductance of the coil between the first time and the second time, and regulate an amount of electrical power applied to the coil based on the change in inductance.