A vehicle and associated method for calculating tire saturation is provided. The method may include the stability control computer calculating slip ratio and longitudinal force for the tire, calculating tire longitudinal stiffness by dividing longitudinal force by slip ratio, calculating tire saturation from tire longitudinal stiffness, and the stability control computer altering dynamic control of the vehicle based on calculated tire saturation. The stability control computer may calculate tire saturation from a tire saturation membership function which includes a first tire longitudinal stiffness value representing an unsaturated tire, a second tire longitudinal stiffness value representing a saturated tire, and a function line connecting the first tire longitudinal stiffness value to the second tire longitudinal stiffness value.

A method of providing automated application of turn radius reduction in a driver assist mode may include receiving steering wheel angle and wheel speed information to determine a target wheel slip during a turn. The method may further include comparing the target wheel slip to a current wheel slip to determine a slip error, and applying braking torque to an inside wheel based on the slip error to reduce the turn radius.

An illustrative example method is for estimating a friction characteristic of a surface beneath a vehicle that has a plurality of wheels contacting the surface. The method includes determining a wheel speed of at least one of the wheels, determining a velocity of the at least one of the wheels separately from determining the wheel speed, determining a wheel slip of the at least one of the wheels based on the determined wheel speed and the determined velocity, and determining the friction characteristic based on the determined wheel slip. Determining the velocity separately from the wheel speed is accomplished using at least one detector that provides an output corresponding to a range rate, such as a RADAR or LIDAR detector.

A tire longitudinal stiffness estimation system includes an electronic communication system disposed on a vehicle. A sensor is disposed on the vehicle in communication with the electronic communication system, and a processor is accessible through the electronic communication system. The sensor measures parameters associated with the vehicle and communicates data for the parameters to the processor. A mu slip curve generator receives the parameters to generate a mu slip curve in real time from the data. An extraction module extracts raw data from a linear portion of the mu slip curve. A denoising module de-noises the raw data from the mu slip curve by determining a vector for the raw data, an orientation of the vector, and a heading of the vector. The denoising module generates de-noised data, and a stiffness calculator receives the de-noised data and generates a longitudinal stiffness estimate for the tire.

A control system for controlling one or more torque generating devices on a heavy-duty vehicle comprising a primary sensor system with a primary sensor control unit configured to interpret an output signal of the primary sensor system, wherein the primary sensor control unit is configured to determine a first load value associated with the heavy-duty vehicle, and one or more tire sensor devices mounted on one or more tires of the heavy-duty vehicle, and a tire sensor control unit configured to interpret an output signal of the one or more tire sensor devices, wherein the tire sensor control unit is configured to determine a second load value associated with the heavy-duty vehicle, wherein the control system is arranged to base control of the heavy-duty vehicle on the second load value in case of malfunction in the primary sensor system and/or in the primary sensor control unit.

Aspects of the present invention relate to a method and to a control system for a vehicle, the vehicle comprising an internal combustion engine configured to provide torque to a first axle of the vehicle for generating first axle wheel torque, and an electric machine configured to provide torque to a second axle of the vehicle for generating second axle wheel torque, the method comprising: outputting a torque request for the engine and a torque request for the electric machine, the torque requests having a first ratio dependent on a required torque split between the first axle wheel torque and the second axle wheel torque, wherein received first axle wheel torque and received second axle wheel torque have a second variable ratio dependent on a difference between wheel torque response capabilities of the engine and of the electric machine; determining that a trigger condition is satisfied; and controlling, in dependence on satisfaction of the trigger condition, determination of the torque request for the electric machine such that deviation of the second ratio from the first ratio is inhibited.

A launch control method for a vehicle may include a step of increasing clutch torque of a clutch according to a decrease in braking pressure, a step of maintaining a current level of the clutch torque for a first reference duration, a step of gradually reducing the clutch torque within a range which is lower than the first reference torque level and is equal to or greater than a second reference torque level which is lower than the first reference torque level, a step of gradually increasing the clutch torque until the clutch torque reaches a third reference torque level which is higher than the first reference torque level, and a step of bringing the control to a stop when a state in which a clutch slip is less than a predetermined critical synchronous slip is maintained for a predetermined critical synchronization duration or longer than the predetermined critical synchronization duration.

A motor vehicle comprises a control device and a drive train having at least one electric traction motor, wherein the control device is adapted to activate at least one vibration element, which is coupled to at least one component of the motor vehicle and designed to put out a haptic signal which can be perceived by the driver of the motor vehicle, and/or the electric traction motor to generate at least one haptic signal in dependence on operating state information describing a current and/or predicted operating state of the drive train.

A tire (100) rolls on a surface (105). A method (600) for providing maximum traction coefficient between the tire (100) and the surface (105) include steps for detecting a momentary slip of the tire (100) on the surface (105); detecting a momentary traction coefficient; forming a tuple (410, 510) from the slip and the current traction coefficient; choosing a characteristic curve (205, 305) from a number of predetermined characteristic curves (205, 305) on the basis of the tuple (410, 510), whereby each characteristic curve (205, 305) describes a traction behavior of the tire (100) or a corresponding characteristic pitch; determining the maximum traction coefficient on the basis of the selected characteristic curves (205, 305); and thus providing the maximum traction coefficient.

One axle of a hybrid vehicle is powered by an electric motor while a second axle of the vehicle is powered by a powertrain that includes an internal combustion engine. The electrically driven axle can be controlled in a speed control mode or in a torque control mode based on a driver demanded torque. The speed control mode is used when slip is detected at the electrically driven axle. The torque control mode is used when the electrically driven axle has traction. During a transition between these modes, the rate of change of torque is controlled to a predetermined level to mitigate noise, vibration, and harshness.