US 4,728,120 AGranted

Suspension controller

AssigneeToyota Jidosha Kabushiki Kaisha

InventorsShuuichi Buma, Toshio Onuma, Kaoru Ohashi, Masami Itou

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Abstract

A suspension controller for a vehicle is provided to effectively absorb vibrations such as resonant vibration of the mass of the wheel when the wheel is not on the ground, namely, "resonant vibration of unsprung mass". The suspension controller includes: a vehicle height detection means at a front wheel; a vehicle height determination means for comparing the vehicle height with a predetermined reference value; a cycle time determination means for detecting the cycle time of the vehicle height signal and for comparing the detected cycle time with a predetermined reference value; a control means for generating a suspension characteristic alteration signal based upon the vehicle height determination result and the cycle time determination result; and a suspension characteristic alteration means for altering a suspension characteristic of the vehicle in response to the suspension characteristic alteration signal.

Claims4

Dependent claims

A suspension controller for a vehicle comprising:

a vehicle height detection means for detecting a vehicle height at a front wheel and for generating vehicle height signal;
a vehicle height determination means for receiving said vehicle height signal and comparing said vehicle height signal with a predetermined reference value so as to generate a vehicle height determination signal;
a cycle time determination means for detecting a cycle time of each said vehicle height signal, said cycle time being indicative of the vibration of the vehicle, and comparing the detected cycle time with a predetermined reference value corresponding to a period of resonant vibration of an unsprung mass of said vehicle, so as to generate a cycle time determination signal;
a control means for receiving said vehicle height determination signal and said cycle time determination signal so as to generate a suspension characteristic alteration signal based on said vehicle height determination signal and said cycle time determination signal;
and
a suspension characteristic alteration means for altering a suspension charteristic of said vehicle in response to said suspension characteristic alteration signal.

3 more elements

Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.