Electronic brake pedal and brake system

Abstract

The invention provides an electronic brake pedal and a brake system, and relates to the technical field of vehicle braking. The electronic brake pedal comprises a first sensing module, a second sensing module and a pedal power supply, the first sensing module comprises a first sensor and a second sensor, and the second sensing module comprises a third sensor and a fourth sensor, namely, the electronic brake pedal is provided with two sensing modules; according to the electronic brake pedal, two sensors are arranged in each sensing module, different communication protocols are adopted, and through the electronic brake pedal, even if factors, such as electromagnetic interference, which interfere with any communication protocol occur in a brake system, signals transmitted by the other communication protocol can still be used for controlling, so that the brake system continues to work.

Description

Technical Field

[0001] The present invention relates to the technical field of vehicle braking, and in particular to an electronic brake pedal and a brake system. Background Art

[0002] The Chinese patent application document with publication number CN115465239A provides a vehicle braking device, wherein the brake pedal is provided with two pedal sensors; the first sensor is connected and transmits the signal to the first control unit, the second sensor is connected and transmits the signal to the second control unit, and the first control unit and the second control unit are connected by a third data line for transmitting valid signals. When the signal of any sensor is judged to be invalid, each control unit can at least receive another valid signal. Although in this solution, each sensor is connected to each control unit with one data line, even if any component fails, a safety redundancy effect can be achieved. However, it still has certain limitations.

[0003] For example, if there are factors that generally interfere with the sensor communication protocol in the braking system, the increase in the number of sensors and lines in the existing solution will not bring about an increase in safety. In other words, in the scenario where there are interference factors in sensor communication, braking safety still cannot be effectively improved.

[0004] Based on this, the present invention is proposed. Summary of the invention

[0005] The object of the present invention is to provide an electronic brake pedal and a brake system.

[0006] To achieve the above object, the present invention provides the following technical solutions:

[0007] In a first aspect, the present invention provides an electronic brake pedal, comprising: a first sensor module, a second sensor module and a pedal power supply; the first sensor module comprises a first sensor and a second sensor, the second sensor module comprises a third sensor and a fourth sensor; the first sensor outputs a signal through a first signal line, the second sensor outputs a signal through a second signal line, the third sensor outputs a signal through a third signal line, and the fourth sensor outputs a signal through a fourth signal line; the first signal line and the second signal line use different communication protocols; the third signal line and the fourth signal line use different communication protocols; the pedal power supply supplies power to the first sensor module and the second sensor module.

[0008] In a second aspect, the present invention provides a braking system, comprising the above-mentioned electronic brake pedal, and also comprising: a first brake unit and a second brake unit, respectively located at the two ends of one of the axles of the vehicle; a third brake unit and a fourth brake unit, respectively located at the two ends of the other axle of the vehicle; a first controller, a second controller, a third controller and a fourth controller, respectively connected to the first brake unit, the second brake unit, the third brake unit and the fourth brake unit, for respectively controlling the corresponding brake units to perform braking; a first control unit, an input end of which is connected to the output ends of two of the signal lines in the electronic brake pedal through a first physical wiring harness; an output end of the first control unit is connected to the input end of the first controller on the one hand, and to the input end of the second controller on the other hand; a second control unit, an input end of which is connected to the output ends of the other two signal lines in the electronic brake pedal through a second physical wiring harness; an output end of the second control unit is connected to the input end of the first controller on the one hand, and to the input end of the second controller on the other hand; the first control unit and the second control unit are communicatively connected.

[0009] In the second aspect, the present invention provides a preferred solution, wherein the first physical wiring harness is connected to the output end of the first signal line and the output end of the fourth signal line, and the second physical wiring harness is connected to the output end of the second signal line and the output end of the third signal line; the first physical wiring harness is used to receive signals from the first sensor module and the second sensor module; the second physical wiring harness is used to receive signals from the first sensor module and the second sensor module.

[0010] In the second aspect, the present invention provides a preferred solution, wherein the first signal line and the third signal line adopt one communication protocol; the second signal line and the fourth signal line adopt another communication protocol; the first physical wiring harness is used to receive signals of two different communication protocols from the first sensor module and the second sensor module; and the second physical wiring harness is used to receive signals of two different communication protocols from the first sensor module and the second sensor module.

[0011] In the second aspect, the present invention provides a preferred solution, and the braking system also includes: a first power supply, which is used to power the first control unit on the one hand and to power the pedal power supply on the other hand; the first power supply and the pedal power supply are connected via a first power line; a second power supply, which is used to power the second control unit on the one hand and to power the pedal power supply on the other hand; the first power supply and the pedal power supply are connected via a second power line.

[0012] In the second aspect, the present invention provides a preferred solution, wherein the first power supply is a working power supply, which is used to supply power to the pedal power supply when the first power supply is normal; and the second power supply is a backup power supply, which is used to supply power to the pedal power supply when the first power supply is abnormal.

[0013] Compared with the prior art, the above technical solution has the following advantages:

[0014] The electronic brake pedal of the present invention is provided with two sensor modules, and two sensors are provided in each sensor module and adopt different communication protocols. Even if factors that interfere with any of the communication protocols appear in the brake system, such as electromagnetic interference, the signal transmitted by the other communication protocol can still be used for control to enable the brake system to continue to work. BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

[0015] In order to more clearly illustrate the embodiments of the present invention or the technical solutions in the prior art, the drawings required for use in the embodiments or the description of the prior art will be briefly introduced below. Obviously, the drawings described below are only embodiments of the present invention. For ordinary technicians in this field, other drawings can be obtained based on the provided drawings without paying creative work.

[0016] Figure 1 A schematic diagram of the structure of an electronic brake pedal and a brake system provided in Embodiment 1 of the present invention;

[0017] Figure 2 This is a structural schematic diagram of the electronic brake pedal and brake system provided in Example 2 of the present invention.

[0018] The figure numbers are as follows: electronic brake pedal 48, first controller 49A, second controller 49B, third controller 49C, fourth controller 49D, first brake unit 50A, second brake unit 50B, third brake unit 50C, fourth brake unit 50D, first control unit 51, second control unit 52, first sensing module 53, first sensor 53a, second sensor 53b, second sensing module 54, third sensor 54a, fourth sensor 54b, pedal power supply 55, first power supply 56, second power supply 57, first signal line L1, second signal line L2, third signal line L3, fourth signal line L4, first physical wiring harness C1, second physical wiring harness C2, first power line P1, second power line P2. DETAILED DESCRIPTION

[0019] The following will be combined with the drawings in the embodiments of the present invention to clearly and completely describe the technical solutions in the embodiments of the present invention. Obviously, the described embodiments are only part of the embodiments of the present invention, not all of the embodiments. Based on the embodiments of the present invention, all other embodiments obtained by ordinary technicians in this field without creative work are within the scope of protection of the present invention.

[0020] The vehicle braking system is mainly composed of a brake pedal, a parking switch (not shown), two or more control units, a controller, a brake unit, and a signal transmission line. The brake pedal and the parking switch are both brake request devices. The vehicle contains at least two types of brake request devices. The brake request device generates an operation signal after being operated manually or automatically. The electronic brake pedal 48, as a type of brake pedal, is mainly used in an electromechanical brake device. The present invention mainly improves the electronic brake pedal 48, so other forms of brake request devices are not shown in the given embodiment.

[0021] The electronic brake pedal 48 provided by the present invention is used to send an operation signal during driving. At least two sensor modules are provided on the electronic brake pedal 48, and at least two sensors for collecting the operation signal of the electronic brake pedal 48 are provided on each sensor module. For the convenience of reading, understanding and explanation, the schemes given in the following embodiments are all based on two sensor modules, and two sensors are provided in each sensor module, as an example, but in actual applications, the specific number of sensor modules and sensors can be set according to the actual safety redundancy requirements, including but not limited to this.

[0022] Example 1

[0023] The braking system provided in Example 1 of the present invention is provided with the following components on the basis of the electronic brake pedal 48 provided in the present invention: the first brake unit 50A and the second brake unit 50B are respectively located at the two ends of one axle of the vehicle; the third brake unit 50C and the fourth brake unit 50D are respectively located at the two ends of the other axle of the vehicle. The first controller 49A, the second controller 49B, the third controller 49C and the fourth controller 49D are respectively connected to the first brake unit 50A, the second brake unit 50B, the third brake unit 50C and the fourth brake unit 50D, and are used to control the corresponding brake units to perform braking. The first control unit 51 has an input end connected to the output end of the electronic brake pedal 48, and the output end of the first control unit 51 is connected to the input end of the first controller 49A on the one hand, and to the input end of the second controller 49B on the other hand. The second control unit 52 has an input end connected to the output end of the electronic brake pedal 48; the output end of the second control unit 52 is connected to the input end of the first controller 49A on the one hand, and to the input end of the second controller 49B on the other hand. The first control unit 51 and the second control unit 52 are connected in communication with each other, and both are electronic control units. In simple terms, the first control unit 51 controls the first brake unit 50A and the second brake unit 50B, and the second control unit 52 controls the third brake unit 50C and the fourth brake unit 50D. In each of the above control units, an independent power supply (respectively the first power supply 56 and the second power supply 57) is provided to supply power to the electronic components on each control unit (respectively the first control unit 51 and the second control unit 52), and the controllers (respectively the first controller 49A, the second controller 49B, the third controller 49C, and the fourth controller 49D) on the wheels corresponding to the axles where each control unit is located (respectively the first brake unit 50A, the second brake unit 50B, the third brake unit 50C, and the fourth brake unit 50D), the motor (not shown in the figure), and the brake request device (electronic brake pedal 48). The control unit can communicate with the brake request device and other detection units of the vehicle, process these signals, and then distribute the brake request to the brakes on each wheel. The brake unit / brake is an actuator for realizing vehicle braking, which is arranged on each wheel and generates friction with the wheel to realize braking.

[0024] Please refer to Figure 1, this embodiment provides an electronic brake pedal 48, which is provided with two sensor modules, namely a first sensor module 53 and a second sensor module 54. Two sensors are provided inside the first sensor module 53, namely a first sensor 53a and a second sensor 53b. Two sensors are also provided inside the second sensor module 54, namely a third sensor 54a and a fourth sensor 54b. The first sensor 53a outputs a signal through the first signal line L1, the second sensor 53b outputs a signal through the second signal line L2, the third sensor 54a outputs a signal through the third signal line L3, and the fourth sensor 54b outputs a signal through the fourth signal line L4. The first signal line L1 and the second signal line L2 use different communication protocols, and the third signal line L3 and the fourth signal line L4 use different communication protocols. In short, the two sensors on the same sensor module use different communication protocols. However, between different sensor modules, sensors with the same communication protocol or different ones can be selected. If a factor that generally interferes with one of the sensor communication protocols appears in the braking system, the sensors using another or several communication protocols will not be interfered with. Therefore, when such a factor occurs, each sensor module can still collect and provide signals normally.

[0025] The pedal power supply 55 supplies power to the first sensor module 53 and the second sensor module 54, that is, each sensor in the first sensor module 53 and the second sensor module 54 is powered by the pedal power supply 55 on the electronic brake pedal 48, and the pedal power supply 55 is powered by the first power supply 56 and the second power supply 57 on the two control units in parallel through the first power supply 56 line and the second power supply 57. The first power supply 56 is used to supply power to the first control unit 51 on the one hand, and to supply power to the pedal power supply 55 on the other hand; the first power supply 56 and the pedal power supply 55 are connected through the first power supply line P1; the second power supply 57 is used to supply power to the second control unit 52 on the one hand, and to supply power to the pedal power supply 55 on the other hand; the first power supply 56 and the pedal power supply 66 are connected through the second power supply line P2. The first power supply 56 is the working power supply, which is used to supply power to the pedal power supply 55 when the first power supply 56 is normal. The second power supply 57 is a backup power supply, which is used to supply power to the pedal power supply 55 when the first power supply 56 is abnormal. The power supply is mainly provided by one of the power supplies. Specifically, when the power, temperature, and corresponding power line of the first power supply 56 are normal, the first power supply 56 supplies power to the pedal power supply 55. If the first power supply 56 is abnormal, the second power supply 57 supplies power to the pedal power supply 55 as a backup. The pedal power supply 5555 supplies power to two modules in parallel.

[0026] The first signal line L1, the second signal line L2, the third signal line L3 and the fourth signal line L4 are wiring forms on the circuit board, and each independently outputs the output signal of the corresponding sensor. The other end of the signal line is connected to the physical harness, and the other end of the physical harness is connected to the control unit. Please refer to Figure 1 , this embodiment provides a connection method of two physical wire harnesses with each sensor. Specifically, the first signal line L1 of the first sensor 53a and the second signal line L2 of the second sensor 53b are connected to the first physical wire harness C1, and the third signal line L3 of the third sensor 54a and the fourth signal line L4 of the fourth sensor 54b are connected to the second physical wire harness C2. However, the first signal line L1 and the second signal line L2 use different communication protocols, and the third signal line L3 and the fourth signal line L4 use different communication protocols. However, between different modules, sensors with the same communication protocol can be selected, or different ones can be selected. For example, the first signal line L1 and the third signal line L3 can use the single-side half-byte communication protocol (SENT) for communication, and the second signal line L2 and the fourth signal line L4 can use the pulse width modulation communication protocol (PWM) for communication. Therefore, in the connection scheme of the two physical wire harnesses provided in this embodiment, each physical wire harness receives signals of two different protocols. The other end of the first physical wiring harness C1 is connected to the first control unit 51 , and the other end of the second physical wiring harness C2 is connected to the second control unit 52 , so that both control units can receive sensor signals of two different communication protocols.

[0027] In the connection scheme of the electronic pedal brake and the physical wiring harness in the present embodiment, if there are factors in the braking system that interfere with either the SENT or PWM protocol, such as electromagnetic interference, a signal transmitted through another protocol is used for control so that the braking system continues to work.

[0028] In addition, in the electronic brake pedal 48 and the brake system solution of this embodiment, if the following single point failures occur: a sensor failure, a single power line disconnection, at least one control unit can receive a signal from the undamaged party and continue to work. This embodiment achieves heterogeneous redundancy of the electronic brake pedal 48 through simple lines and minimal physical wiring harnesses.

[0029] Example 2

[0030] Please refer to Figure 2 Based on the first embodiment, the present embodiment provides another more preferred connection scheme between two physical wiring harnesses and each sensor of the electronic brake pedal 48, which is different from the first embodiment in that:

[0031] The first physical wiring harness C1 is connected to the output end of the first signal line L1 and the output end of the fourth signal line L4, and the second physical wiring harness C2 is connected to the output end of the second signal line L2 and the output end of the third signal line L3; the first physical wiring harness C1 is used to receive signals from the first sensor module 53 and the second sensor module 54; the second physical wiring harness C2 is used to receive signals from the first sensor module 53 and the second sensor module 54. The first signal line L1 and the third signal line L3 use a communication protocol, such as a single-side half-byte communication protocol (SENT), and the second signal line L2 and the fourth signal line L4 use another communication protocol, such as a pulse width modulation communication protocol (PWM). The first physical wiring harness C1 is used to receive signals of two different communication protocols from the first sensor module 53 and the second sensor module 54; the second physical wiring harness C2 is used to receive signals of two different communication protocols from the first sensor module 53 and the second sensor module 54. The other end of the first physical wiring harness C1 is connected to the first control unit 51 , and the other end of the second physical wiring harness C2 is connected to the second control unit 52 , so that both control units can receive sensor signals of two different communication protocols.

[0032] In the connection scheme of the electronic pedal brake and the physical wiring harness in the present embodiment, if there are factors in the braking system that interfere with either the SENT or PWM protocol, such as electromagnetic interference, a signal transmitted through another protocol is used for control so that the braking system continues to work.

[0033] In addition, in the electronic brake pedal 48 and the brake system solution of this embodiment, if the following single point failures occur: a sensor failure, a sensor module power failure, a single power line disconnection, a physical wiring harness failure, at least one control unit can receive a signal from the undamaged party and continue to work. This embodiment realizes heterogeneous redundancy of the electronic brake pedal 48 through simple lines and minimal physical wiring harnesses, and compared with the solution in Example 1, with the same number of lines, it can be applied to brake control in more types of fault conditions, such as a sensor module power failure, a physical wiring harness failure, at least one control unit can receive a signal from the undamaged party and continue to work.

[0034] In another implementation, in order to further improve redundancy, the following changes can be easily made:

[0035] The first sensor 53a is a position sensor or a force sensor; the second sensor 53b is a position sensor or a force sensor; the third sensor 54a is a position sensor or a force sensor; the fourth sensor 54b is a position sensor or a force sensor. In simple terms, sensors in a single sensor module or between different sensor modules can also use the same type of sensor, such as position sensors, or different types of sensors, such as position sensors, force sensors, etc.

[0036] The number of sensors in each module can be increased according to actual safety redundancy requirements.

[0037] The first physical wiring harness C1 and / or the second physical wiring harness C2 may be any one of CAN bus, hard wire, LIN bus and FlexRay.

[0038] The technical features of the above-described embodiments may be arbitrarily combined. To make the description concise, not all possible combinations of the technical features in the above-described embodiments are described. However, as long as there is no contradiction in the combination of these technical features, they should be considered to be within the scope of this specification.

[0039] The above-described embodiments only express several implementation methods of the present invention, and the description thereof is relatively specific and detailed, but it cannot be understood as limiting the scope of the present invention. It should be pointed out that, for a person of ordinary skill in the art, several variations and improvements can be made without departing from the concept of the present invention, and these all belong to the protection scope of the present invention. Therefore, the protection scope of the present invention shall be subject to the attached claims.

Claims

1. An electronic brake pedal, characterized in that: include: A first sensing module, a second sensing module and a pedal power supply; the first sensing module includes a first sensor and a second sensor, the second sensing module includes a third sensor and a fourth sensor; the first sensor outputs a signal through a first signal line, the second sensor outputs a signal through a second signal line, the third sensor outputs a signal through a third signal line, and the fourth sensor outputs a signal through a fourth signal line; the first signal line and the second signal line use different communication protocols; the third signal line and the fourth signal line use different communication protocols; the pedal power supply supplies power to the first sensing module and the second sensing module.

2. The electronic brake pedal according to claim 1, characterized in that: The first signal line and the third signal line communicate using a single-edge half-byte communication protocol; the second signal line and the fourth signal line communicate using a pulse width modulation communication protocol.

3. The electronic brake pedal according to claim 1, characterized in that: The first signal line, the second signal line, the third signal line and the fourth signal line are in the form of wiring on a circuit board.

4. A braking system, comprising the electronic brake pedal according to any one of claims 1 to 3, characterized in that: Also includes: A first brake unit and a second brake unit are respectively located at two ends of one axle of the vehicle; The third brake unit and the fourth brake unit are respectively located at two ends of another axle of the vehicle; A first controller, a second controller, a third controller and a fourth controller are connected to the first brake unit, the second brake unit, the third brake unit and the fourth brake unit, respectively, and are used to control the corresponding brake units to perform braking; A first control unit, the input end of which is connected to the output ends of two signal lines in the electronic brake pedal through a first physical wiring harness; the output end of the first control unit is connected to the input end of the first controller on one hand, and to the input end of the second controller on the other hand; A second control unit, the input end of which is connected to the output ends of the other two signal lines in the electronic brake pedal through a second physical wiring harness; the output end of the second control unit is connected to the input end of the first controller on one hand, and to the input end of the second controller on the other hand; The first control unit and the second control unit are communicatively connected with each other.

5. The braking system according to claim 4, characterized in that: The first physical wiring harness is connected to the output end of the first signal line and the output end of the fourth signal line, and the second physical wiring harness is connected to the output end of the second signal line and the output end of the third signal line; the first physical wiring harness is used to receive signals from the first sensor module and the second sensor module; the second physical wiring harness is used to receive signals from the first sensor module and the second sensor module.

6. The braking system according to claim 5, characterized in that: The first signal line and the third signal line adopt one communication protocol; the second signal line and the fourth signal line adopt another communication protocol; the first physical wiring harness is used to receive signals of two different communication protocols from the first sensor module and the second sensor module; the second physical wiring harness is used to receive signals of two different communication protocols from the first sensor module and the second sensor module.

7. The braking system according to any one of claims 4 to 6, characterized in that: Also includes: a first power supply, for supplying power to the first control unit on the one hand, and to the pedal power supply on the other hand; The first power supply is connected to the pedal power supply via a first power line; the second power supply is used to power the second control unit on the one hand and the pedal power supply on the other hand; the first power supply is connected to the pedal power supply via a second power line.

8. The braking system according to claim 7, characterized in that: The first power supply is a working power supply, which is used to supply power to the pedal power supply when the first power supply is normal; the second power supply is a backup power supply, which is used to supply power to the pedal power supply when the first power supply is abnormal.

9. The braking system according to claim 4, characterized in that: The first physical wiring harness and / or the second physical wiring harness is / are selected from any one of CAN bus, hard wire, LIN bus and FlexRay.

10. The braking system according to claim 4, characterized in that: The first sensor is a position sensor or a force sensor; the second sensor is a position sensor or a force sensor; The third sensor is a position sensor or a force sensor; the fourth sensor is a position sensor or a force sensor.

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