System for detecting rotational imbalance of vehicle roadwheels
AssigneeFord Motor Company
InventorW. Trent Yopp
Life of this patent
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Abstract
A system for detecting dynamic rotational imbalance of vehicle roadwheels includes a force measurement sensor for sensing the force required to steer the roadwheel and further includes a device for generating a force signal corresponding to the sensed force and a processor responsive to the force signal for determining the dynamic rotational balance condition of the roadwheel.
Claims12
A system for detecting rotational imbalance of a steerable roadwheel of a vehicle, comprising:
- force measurement means for sensing the force required to steer said roadwheel, with said means further comprising means for generating a force signal corresponding to said sensed force;
- and
- processor means responsive to said force signal for determining the dynamic rotational balance condition of said roadwheel.
A system for measuring the rotational imbalance of a steerable roadwheel of a vehicle, comprising:
- force measurement means for sensing the force required to steer said roadwheel, with said means further comprising means for generating a force signal corresponding to said sensed force;
- means for measuring the forward velocity of said vehicle and for generating a signal corresponding to said velocity;
- and
- processor means, responsive to said force signal and to said velocity signal, for determining the dynamic rotational balance condition of said roadwheel, with said processor means comprising:
- means for resolving said force signal into a base component attributable to steering force normally required to steer said vehicle and a variable component attributable to dynamic rotational imbalance of said roadwheel;
- and
- means for comparing the magnitude of said variable component to a threshold value, with said comparator means further comprising means for providing an imbalance signal in the event that said variable component exceeds said threshold value.
A method for detecting dynamic imbalance of a steered roadwheel of a vehicle, comprising:
- sensing the force required to steer said roadwheel;
- generating a force signal having a magnitude corresponding to said sensed force;
- resolving said force signal into a base component attributable to steering force normally required to steer said vehicle and a variable component attributable to dynamic rotational imbalance of said roadwheel;
- comparing the magnitude of said variable force component to a threshold value;
- and
- providing an imbalance signal in the event that said variable force component exceeds said threshold value.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.