# US 9,751,542 B2 · System and method of vehicle system control > Agents: this data is available as JSON from the patentgrep API and MCP server — see https://patentgrep.com/llms.txt - Number: US 9,751,542 B2 - Document ID: US9751542B2 - Status: Granted - Kind: B2 - Application number: 14/963,889 - Filed: 2015-12-09 - Published: 2016-03-24 - Granted: 2017-09-05 - Earliest claimed: 2013-03-15 - Assignees: General Electric Company - Applicants: General Electric Company - Inventors: David Bradley Pulliam; Ajith Kuttannair Kumar; Bret Dwayne Worden; Jeremy Thomas McGarry; Kevin Ray Ruybal - Web page: https://patentgrep.com/patent/US9751542B2 ## CPC - B61L 15/00: Indicators provided on the vehicle or train for signalling purposes - B60L 1/003: {to auxiliary motors, e.g. for pumps, compressors} - B60L 1/14: to electric lighting circuits - B60L 3/106: {for maintaining or recovering the adhesion of the drive wheels} - B60L 3/108: {whilst braking, i.e. ABS} - B60L 13/00: Electric propulsion for monorail vehicles, suspension vehicles or rack railways; Magnetic suspension or levitation for vehicles ({tracks for Maglev-type trains E01B25/30;} electromagnets per se H01F7/06; linear motors per se H02K41/00) - B60L 15/20: for control of the vehicle or its driving motor to achieve a desired performance, e.g. speed, torque, programmed variation of speed - B60L 15/2009: {for braking} - B60L 15/2045: {for optimising the use of energy} - B60L 50/51: characterised by AC-motors - B61C 3/00: Electric locomotives or railcars (characterised by power transmission B61C9/00; electrical features B60L; H02) - B60L 2200/26: Rail vehicles - B60L 2200/32: Waterborne vessels - B60L 2200/36: Vehicles designed to transport cargo, e.g. trucks - B60L 2210/40: DC to AC converters - B60L 2220/42: with use of more than one motor - B60L 2240/12: Speed - B60L 2240/421: Speed - B60L 2240/423: Torque - B60L 2240/461: Speed - B60L 2240/463: Torque - B60L 2240/465: Slip - B60L 2240/622: by satellite navigation - B60L 2240/647: Surface situation of road, e.g. type of paving - B60L 2240/70: Interactions with external data bases, e.g. traffic centres - B60L 2250/00: Driver interactions - B60L 2250/10: by alarm - B60L 2250/12: by confirmation, e.g. of the input - B60L 2260/28: Four wheel or all wheel drive - B60L 2260/44: by parameter estimation - B61L 2201/00: Control methods - Y02T 10/64: Electric machine technologies in electromobility - Y02T 10/70: Energy storage systems for electromobility, e.g. batteries - Y02T 10/72: Electric energy management in electromobility - Y02T 90/16: Information or communication technologies improving the operation of electric vehicles - B61L: GUIDING RAILWAY TRAFFIC; ENSURING THE SAFETY OF RAILWAY TRAFFIC (brakes or auxiliary equipment B61H, B61K; point or crossing construction E01B) - B60L: PROPULSION OF ELECTRICALLY-PROPELLED VEHICLES (arrangements or mounting of electrical propulsion units or of plural diverse prime-movers for mutual or common propulsion in vehicles B60K1/00, B60K6/20; arrangements or mounting of electrical gearing in vehicles B60K17/12, B60K17/14; preventing wheel slip by reducing power in rail vehicles B61C15/08; dynamo-electric machines H02K; control or regulation of electric motors H02P); SUPPLYING ELECTRIC POWER FOR AUXILIARY EQUIPMENT OF ELECTRICALLY-PROPELLED VEHICLES (electric coupling devices combined with mechanical couplings of vehicles B60D1/64; electric heating for vehicles B60H1/00); ELECTRODYNAMIC BRAKE SYSTEMS FOR VEHICLES IN GENERAL (control or regulation of electric motors H02P); MAGNETIC SUSPENSION OR LEVITATION FOR VEHICLES; MONITORING OPERATING VARIABLES OF ELECTRICALLY-PROPELLED VEHICLES; ELECTRIC SAFETY DEVICES FOR ELECTRICALLY-PROPELLED VEHICLES - B61C: LOCOMOTIVES; MOTOR RAILCARS (vehicles in general B60; frames or bogies B61F; special railroad equipment for locomotives B61J, B61K) - Y02T: CLIMATE CHANGE MITIGATION TECHNOLOGIES RELATED TO TRANSPORTATION ## Abstract A method for controlling a vehicle system includes determining a vehicle reference speed using an off-board-based input speed and an onboard-based input speed. The off-board-based input speed is representative of a moving speed of the vehicle system and is determined from data received from an off-board device. The onboard-based input speed is representative of the moving speed of the vehicle system and is determined from data obtained from an onboard device. The method includes using the vehicle reference speed to at least one of measure wheel creep for one or more wheels of the vehicle system or control at least one of torques applied by or rotational speeds of one or more motors of the vehicle system. ## Claims ### Claim 1 A method comprising: obtaining an onboard-based input speed and an off-board-based input speed of a vehicle system; controlling a torque of at least a first axle of the vehicle system based at least in part on a throttle setting of the vehicle system, the onboard-based input speed, and the off-board-based input speed; determining an uncertainty parameter of the off-board-based input speed, the uncertainty parameter representative of a potential inaccuracy of the off-board-based input speed and of a range of potential speeds of the vehicle system; and modifying the off-board-based input speed using the onboard-based input speed responsive to determining that the onboard-based input speed is within the range of potential speeds represented by the uncertainty parameter. ### Claim 2 (depends on 1) The method of claim 1, further comprising determining a first vehicle reference speed of the vehicle system based on the onboard-based input speed and the off-board-based input speed, wherein the torque is controlled based at least in part on the throttle setting and the first vehicle reference speed. ### Claim 3 (depends on 1) The method of claim 1, wherein the onboard-based input speed is obtained from output of a speed sensor measuring a speed at which at least one axle of the vehicle system rotates and the off-board-based input speed is wirelessly obtained from one or more sources disposed off-board the vehicle system. ### Claim 4 (depends on 1) The method of claim 1, further comprising calculating a scale factor based on one or more differences between the onboard-based input speed and the off-board-based input speed and determining a wheel size of the vehicle system based on the scale factor and a previously measured wheel size. ### Claim 5 (depends on 1) The method of claim 1, further comprising controlling a torque of a second axle of the vehicle system based on the throttle setting and the onboard-based input speed of the vehicle system. ### Claim 6 (depends on 1) The method of claim 1, wherein the uncertainty parameter is determined based on the onboard-based input speed. ### Claim 7 (depends on 1) The method of claim 1, further comprising determining wheel creep for one or more wheels of the vehicle system based at least in part on the onboard-based input speed and the off-board-based input speed. ### Claim 8 (depends on 1) The method of claim 1, further comprising controlling a rotational speed of one or more motors of the vehicles system based at least in part on the onboard-based input speed and the off-board-based input speed. ### Claim 9 A system comprising: one or more processors configured to obtain an onboard-based input speed and an off-board-based input speed of a vehicle system, the one or more processors also configured to control a torque of at least a first axle of the vehicle system based at least in part on a throttle setting of the vehicle system, the onboard-based input speed, and the off-board-based input speed, wherein the one or more processors are configured to determine an uncertainty parameter of the off-board-based input speed, the uncertainty parameter representative of a potential inaccuracy of the off-board-based input speed and of a range of potential speeds of the vehicle system, the one or more processors also configured to modify the off-board-based input speed using the onboard-based input speed responsive to determining that the onboard-based input speed is within the range of potential speeds represented by the uncertainty parameter. ### Claim 10 (depends on 9) The system of claim 9, wherein the one or more processors also are configured to determine a first vehicle reference speed of the vehicle system based on the onboard-based input speed and the off-board-based input speed, wherein the one or more processors are configured to control the torque based at least in part on the throttle setting and the first vehicle reference speed. ### Claim 11 (depends on 9) The system of claim 9, wherein the one or more processors are configured to obtain the onboard-based input speed from output of a speed sensor measuring a speed at which at least one axle of the vehicle system rotates, the one or more processors configured to wirelessly obtain the off-board-based input speed from one or more sources disposed off-board the vehicle system. ### Claim 12 (depends on 9) The system of claim 9, wherein the one or more processors are configured to control a torque of a second axle of the vehicle system based on the throttle setting and the onboard-based input speed of the vehicle system.