LEVEL CONTROL SYSTEM AND METHOD FOR OPERATING A LEVEL ADJUSTMENT SYSTEM

Abstract

A level adjustment system of a vehicle, comprising an electric engine a transmission driven by the electric engine; and a controller programmed to identify a motor current from the electric engine during an upward adjustment or downward adjustment of the vehicle, wherein the controller is further programmed to determine an actuator force generated by an actuator unit utilizing the motor current.

Claims

1. A level adjustment system for a motor vehicle, comprising: an actuator unit which includes an electric engine and a transmission powered by the electric engine, wherein the actuator unit is configured to enable a level adjustment of the motor vehicle; and a control unit that includes a calculation unit and a current sensor configured to detect the engine current fed into the electric engine to determine an actuator force generated by the actuator unit.

2. The level adjustment system of claim 1, wherein the calculation unit in the control unit is integrated.

3. The level adjustment system of claim 2, wherein the calculation unit is further configured to process information about engine speed and direction of rotation of the electric engine.

4. The level adjustment system of claim 3, wherein the calculation unit is coupled to a database that stores data relating to the electric engine during at least one upward adjustment phase and at least one downward adjustment phase of the actuator unit, wherein the calculation unit is adapted to process average engine currents relating to an adjustment cycle comprising an upward phase and a downward phase.

5. A The level adjustment system of claim 4, wherein the transmission has direction-dependent friction moments.

6. The level adjustment system of claim 5, wherein it is designed as a leveling system.

7. Method for operating a level adjustment system, of a motor vehicle that includes an electrical engine and a downstream transmission, comprising: powering the electrical engine by a control unit; detecting an engine current during a metrological adjustment; storing the detected engine current; and calculating an actuator force acting in the level adjustment system in response to the engine current.

8. The method of claim 7, wherein the engine currents during an adjustment cycle that includes an upward phase and a downward phase; is detected and averaged to calculate the actuator force.

9. The method of claim 8, wherein calculating the actuator force includes a non-zero difference between a reference to a first adjustment direction friction torque and a second adjustment direction related friction torque of the transmission.

10. (canceled)

11. A level adjustment system of a vehicle, comprising: an electric engine; a transmission driven by the electric engine; and a controller programmed to identify a motor current from the electric engine during an upward adjustment or downward adjustment of the vehicle, wherein the controller is further programmed to determine an actuator force generated by an actuator unit utilizing the motor current.

12. The level adjustment system of claim 11, wherein the controller is further programmed to measure the motor current at multiple instances during an upward adjustment to identify a mean upward current value in response to the upward adjustment to the level control system.

13. The level adjustment system of claim 11, the controller is further programmed to measure the motor current during a downward adjustment at multiple instances to identify an average engine current in response to the downward adjustment to the level control system.

14. The level adjustment system of claim 11, wherein the controller is further programmed to adjust settings on a rear axle of the vehicle in response to the actuator force.

15. The level adjustment system of claim 11, wherein the controller is further programmed to adjust parameters of a driving dynamic vehicle control.

16. The level adjustment system of claim 11, wherein the controller includes a current sensor.

Description

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

[0026] An embodiment of the disclosure will be explained in more detail with reference to a drawing. Shown herein:

[0027] FIG. 1 a level control system for a motor vehicle in a schematic representation,

[0028] FIG. 2 a flowchart of a method which can be carried out with the system according to FIG. 1.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

[0029] A level adjustment system, generally designated by the reference numeral 1, namely a level control system, is intended for installation in a motor vehicle, not shown, namely a passenger car or a utility vehicle. The level control system 1 may be constructed from a control unit 2 and an actuator unit 3. In a manner not shown, several actuator units 3 may be present within the motor vehicle, which are actuated by means of a single control unit 2 or more control units. Thus the level control system 1 is either the level control on a single axis or on several axles of the motor vehicle.

[0030] The actuator unit 3 comprises an electric engine 4 as well as a transmission 5 actuated by it, which may be constructed in one or more stages, and introduces force into a lifting element 7, which is coupled with suspension components, not shown. The electric engine 4 and the transmission 5 are found in the embodiment example in a common housing 6; the lifting element 7 can be moved out of the housing 6. By using the lifting element 7, an actuator force FAkt is transmitted to a chassis component in order to adjust the level of the vehicle body of the motor vehicle.

[0031] The control unit 2 is supplied via a connecting electric cable 8 with electrical energy. Components of the control unit 2 are a current sensor 9, a database 10, a calculation unit 11, as well as a power output 12. The components 9, 10, 11, 12 are not necessarily, as indicated in FIG. 1, within a common structural unit. Electric power is passed from the power output 12 to the electric engine 4 via an electric cable 13. The measurement of this current takes place with the aid of the current sensor 9. Measured current values are, as explained in more detail below, stored in the database 10 and fed to the calculation unit 11, which circulates a calculated force FC that at least approximately corresponds to the actuator force FAkt.

[0032] A method illustrated in FIG. 2, which can be carried out with the level control system 1 according to FIG. 1, begins with a first method step S1, which in the present case is assumed as an upward adjustment of the level control system 1in short: as upward flow. During this upward flow, the motor current IM is measured in the electric cable 13 by using the current sensor 9. In the second step S2, a storage and first averaging takes place, resulting in a mean upward current value IMa.

[0033] After the upward adjustment and any break in operation of the level control system 1, a downward adjustment, referred to briefly as downward flow of the level control system 1, takes place in step S3. Here, too, the motor current IM may be measured analogously to the first step S1. Similarly, storage and averaging takes place in an analogous manner, which results in this case in Step S4 an average engine current IMu relative to the lowering.

[0034] From the average motor current values IMa and IMu, the force FC is finally calculated in Step S5, which, if the model works realistically, corresponds to the actuator force FAkt. A direct force measurement on the actuator unit 3 or on other load components is thus not required for determining the load state of the motor vehicle.

LIST OF REFERENCE NUMBERS

[0035] 1 Level adjustment system, Level control system [0036] 2 Control unit [0037] 3 Actuator unit [0038] 4 Engine [0039] 5 Transmission [0040] 6 Housing [0041] 7 Lifting element [0042] 8 Connecting cable [0043] 9 Current sensor [0044] 10 Database [0045] 11 Calculation unit [0046] 12 Power unit [0047] 13 Cable [0048] FAkt Actuator power, generated through the actuator unit [0049] FC Calculated actuator force [0050] IM Engine current [0051] IMa Average engine current, upward flow [0052] IMa Average engine current, downward flow [0053] S1 . . . S5 Method steps