Method and apparatus for reminding the vehicle operator to refill the spare tire in a tire pressure monitoring system
AssigneeFord Global Technologies, LLC
InventorsThomas Michael McQuade, Thomas Lee Miller
Life of this patent
Estimating the term…
Abstract
A tire pressure monitoring system (12) for a spare tire of a vehicle (10) includes an indicator (52) and a timer (44) that generates a first time signal corresponding to the time the spare tire is used as a rolling tire and a second time signal corresponding to a time the spare tire is stowed. The temperature sensor (34) generates a temperature profile and a controller (22) that is coupled to the indicator, the timer, and the temperature sensor generates a spare tire warning signal in response to the temperature profile, the first time signal, and the second time signal.
Claims19
A method of operating a tire pressure monitoring system for a spare tire of a vehicle comprising:
- generating a distance signal corresponding to the distance the spare tire is traveled as a rolling tire;
- generating a time duration signal corresponding to a time the spare tire has been stowed;
- generating an ambient temperature signal;
- determining a temperature profile from the ambient temperature signal;
- generating a spare tire warning signal in response to the temperature profile, the distance signal and the time signal.
A method of operating a tire pressure monitoring system for a spare tire of a vehicle comprising:
- generating a distance signal corresponding to the distance the spare tire is traveled as a rolling tire;
- generating a time signal corresponding to a time duration the spare tire has been stowed;
- generating an ambient temperature signal;
- determining a rolling temperature profile and a stowed temperature profile from the ambient temperature signal;
- determining a tire construction;
- generating a tire deflation estimation in response to the spare temperature profile, the stowed temperature profile, the distance signal, the time signal and the tire construction;
- and
- generating a spare tire warning signal in response to the spare dire deflation estimation.
A tire pressure monitoring system for a spare tire of a vehicle comprising:
- an indicator;
- a timer generating a time signal corresponding to a time duration the spare tire has been stowed;
- a distance sensor generating a distance signal corresponding to the distance the spare tire traveled in a rolling location;
- a temperature sensor generating a temperature profile;
- and
- a controller coupled to a plurality of indicators, said controller generating a spare tire warning signal in response to said temperature profile, said time signal and said distance signal, said controller controlling the indicator in response to the spare tire warning signal.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.