Electric tail gate control method and system and vehicle

Abstract

The invention provides an electric tail gate control method and system and a vehicle. The electric tail gate control method is applied to the electric tail gate control system. The control method comprises the steps that when a central controller receives a vehicle collision signal but does not receive a vehicle speed signal sent by a braking system controller, the central controller sends an unlocking control signal to a tail gate controller after collision occurs for a first preset duration; in response to the unlocking control signal, the tail gate controller sends a driving unlocking signal to a tail gate lock motor; and in response to the drive unlocking signal, the tail door lock motor drives the electric tail door to execute unlocking. The opening problem of the electric tail door under the collision working condition can be solved.

Description

Technical Field

[0001] The present application relates to the field of vehicle technology, and in particular to an electric tailgate control method, a control system and a vehicle. Background Art

[0002] The collision safety performance of automobiles has received widespread attention. Automobile collisions are usually divided into frontal collisions, side collisions, rear collisions, rollovers, and pedestrian collisions. After a collision occurs, the four doors of the car need to be unlocked to facilitate the escape of passengers and external rescue. In some collision scenarios, such as falling into water and rollovers, the four doors may be greatly deformed, so the tailgate or back door is also one of the escape routes. With the rapid development of the new energy vehicle market, domestic and foreign automakers have also invested a lot of manpower and material resources in the research and development of new energy vehicles such as new energy and hybrid vehicles. More and more models use electric doors and electric tailgates. These configurations have put forward higher and higher requirements on whether they can be opened normally after a collision. Summary of the invention

[0003] The purpose of the embodiments of the present application is to provide an electric tailgate control method, a control system and a vehicle, which can solve the problem of opening the electric tailgate under collision conditions.

[0004] One aspect of an embodiment of the present application provides an electric tailgate control method, which is applied to an electric tailgate control system. The control method includes: when a central controller receives a vehicle collision signal but does not receive a vehicle speed signal sent by a brake system controller, the central controller sends an unlocking control signal to a tailgate controller after a first preset time period of the collision; in response to the unlocking control signal, the tailgate controller sends a driving unlocking signal to a tailgate lock motor; in response to the driving unlocking signal, the tailgate lock motor drives the electric tailgate to unlock.

[0005] Furthermore, the failure to receive the vehicle speed signal sent by the brake system controller includes the vehicle speed signal being lost or the brake system controller being offline.

[0006] Furthermore, the control method also includes: receiving the vehicle collision signal through a collision controller in the electric tailgate control system; after the collision controller receives the vehicle collision signal, the collision controller continuously sends the vehicle collision signal to the central controller for a second preset time length, so that the central controller receives the vehicle collision signal.

[0007] Furthermore, the collision controller sends the vehicle collision signal to the central controller via a PWM signal and / or a CAN network signal.

[0008] Furthermore, the central controller continuously sends the unlocking control signal to the tailgate controller for a third preset time period.

[0009] Furthermore, the control method further includes: if the central controller is restarted while sending the unlocking control signal to the tailgate controller, controlling the restarted central controller to continue sending the unlocking control signal to the tailgate controller.

[0010] Furthermore, the drive unlocking signal is sent at least twice, and the control method also includes: determining the number of times the drive unlocking signal has been sent; if the number of times the signal has been sent is greater than a preset number of times, determining the current state of the tailgate lock motor; if the current state of the tailgate lock motor is an unlocked state, stopping sending the drive unlocking signal to the tailgate lock motor; if the current state of the tailgate lock motor is still a locked state, continuing to send the drive unlocking signal to the tailgate lock motor.

[0011] Furthermore, the control method also includes: detecting the power supply status of a main power supply connected to the electric tailgate control system; when the power supply status of the main power supply is abnormal, controlling the electric tailgate control system to be connected to a backup power supply so as to power the electric tailgate control system through the backup power supply.

[0012] Another aspect of the embodiment of the present application provides an electric tailgate control system. The electric tailgate control system includes a central controller, a brake system controller, a collision controller, a tailgate controller and a tailgate lock motor, wherein the brake system controller is used to send a vehicle speed signal to the central controller; the collision controller is used to send a vehicle collision signal to the central controller; the central controller is used to send an unlocking control signal to the tailgate controller after a first preset time period of collision when receiving the vehicle collision signal sent by the collision controller but not receiving the vehicle speed signal sent by the brake system controller; the tailgate controller is used to send a driving unlocking signal to the tailgate lock motor in response to the unlocking control signal; the tailgate lock motor is used to drive the electric tailgate to unlock in response to the driving unlocking signal.

[0013] Another aspect of the embodiments of the present application provides a vehicle, wherein the vehicle includes the electric tailgate control system as described above.

[0014] The electric tailgate control method, control system and vehicle of one or more embodiments of the present application can solve the problem of opening the electric tailgate under vehicle collision conditions.

[0015] The electric tailgate control method, control system and vehicle of one or more embodiments of the present application can solve the problem of failure of the electric tailgate to open due to a drop in low voltage during a vehicle collision.

[0016] The electric tailgate control method, control system and vehicle of one or more embodiments of the present application can solve the problem of failure of the door opening and unlocking functions due to a temporary failure of the main power supply during a vehicle collision. BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

[0017] Figure 1 The figure is a logic diagram of opening an electric tailgate in the related art.

[0018] Figure 2 The figure is a logic diagram of opening an electric tailgate after a collision in the related art.

[0019] Figure 3 The figure is a flow chart of a method for controlling an electric tailgate according to an embodiment of the present application.

[0020] Figure 4 The module flow diagram of the electric tailgate control method according to one embodiment of the present application is shown.

[0021] Figure 5 This is a module flow chart of an electric tailgate control method according to another embodiment of the present application. DETAILED DESCRIPTION

[0022] Exemplary embodiments will be described in detail herein, examples of which are shown in the accompanying drawings. When the following description refers to the drawings, unless otherwise indicated, the same numbers in different drawings represent the same or similar elements. The embodiments described in the following exemplary embodiments do not represent all embodiments consistent with the present application. Instead, they are merely examples of devices consistent with some aspects of the present application as detailed in the appended claims.

[0023] Figure 1 The present invention discloses a logic diagram of an electric tailgate opening in the related art. Figure 1As shown in the figure, the electric tailgate can only be opened when the vehicle is stationary, that is, the speed is 0, and the central control is unlocked. The driver and passengers input the tailgate controller (POT) through keys, soft and hard switches, etc. inside and outside the vehicle, and the tailgate controller (POT) will exchange information with the central electronic module (CEM), the control brain of the vehicle. If the vehicle central control is unlocked and the speed is 0, the central controller (CEM) will send an unlock control signal to the POT. After receiving the unlock control signal, the tailgate controller (POT) will send a drive unlock signal to the electric tailgate lock motor. After receiving the drive unlock signal, the electric tailgate lock motor will drive the electric support rod and other actuators to open the electric tailgate. If the vehicle speed is not 0, the electric tailgate cannot be opened. The vehicle speed signal will be sent to the vehicle brake system controller (BCM), and then transmitted to the central controller (CEM) by the brake system controller (BCM). The whole process needs to ensure normal power supply and communication transmission.

[0024] Figure 2 The present invention discloses a logic diagram of opening an electric tailgate after a collision in the related art. Figure 2 As shown in the figure, after a vehicle collides, a collision signal is generated to the collision controller (ACU, Auto Controlled Unit), and the collision controller (ACU) transmits the collision signal to the vehicle central controller (CEM). The central controller (CEM) as the brain of the vehicle sends an unlocking control signal to the tailgate controller (POT), and the tailgate controller (POT) sends a drive unlocking signal to the tailgate lock motor. The tailgate lock motor performs unlocking. At this time, the driver and passengers can open the electric tailgate through the switch inside or outside the car. The whole process needs to ensure voltage stability, and also needs to ensure that the power supply and communication of the collision controller (ACU), central controller (CEM) and tailgate controller (POT) are normal. The brake system controller (BCM) is usually arranged in the engine compartment. In many accident scenarios, especially in frontal collisions, it will be damaged and unable to send a vehicle speed signal. The current strategy for opening the electric tailgate is: in the collision mode, it is still necessary to read the vehicle speed for judgment. If the vehicle speed is not 0 or the vehicle speed signal cannot be read, or the brake system controller (BCM) communication is not online, the electric tailgate cannot be opened.

[0025] In addition, for electric tailgate models, compared with traditional mechanical tailgates, electric functions are added. The power for opening the door comes from the ejector motor, the tailgate lock motor unlocking, etc., which requires some preconditions. The process is more complicated and has higher requirements for power supply, communication and logical judgment.

[0026] In view of this, the present application provides an improved electric tailgate control method, which can solve at least one technical problem mentioned in the above related technologies.

[0027] The following is a detailed description of the electric tailgate control method, control system and vehicle of each embodiment of the present application in conjunction with the accompanying drawings. In the absence of conflict, the features of the following embodiments and implementations can be combined with each other.

[0028] Figure 3 A flow chart of an electric tailgate control method according to an embodiment of the present application is disclosed. Figure 3 As shown, the electric tailgate control method according to one embodiment of the present application may include steps S11 to S13.

[0029] In step S11 , when the central controller receives a vehicle collision signal but does not receive a vehicle speed signal sent by the brake system controller, the central controller sends an unlocking control signal to the tailgate controller after a first preset time period of the collision.

[0030] The purpose of setting the first preset time is to prevent the electric tailgate from opening within the first preset time when a collision occurs, thereby reducing or avoiding the possibility of a rollover-type traffic accident triggering the electric tailgate to open inside or outside the vehicle, thereby improving the vehicle safety level. The first preset time can be set to 10 seconds, for example. Of course, the first preset time of the present application is not limited to 10 seconds. In other embodiments, the first preset time can also be set to other seconds.

[0031] In step S12 , in response to the unlock control signal in step S11 , the tailgate controller sends a drive unlock signal to the tailgate lock motor.

[0032] In step S13 , in response to the unlocking drive signal in step S13 , the tailgate lock motor drives the electric tailgate to unlock.

[0033] The electric tailgate control method of the present application decouples the central controller (CEM) from the brake system controller (BCM) after a vehicle collision, so that even if the vehicle speed signal cannot be obtained, the tailgate controller (POT) can still obtain the authorization of the central controller (CEM) to open the electric tailgate, thereby solving the problem of opening the electric tailgate under collision conditions.

[0034] Figure 4 The module flow diagram of the electric tailgate control method according to one embodiment of the present application is disclosed. Figure 4 As shown, in some embodiments, the situation where the vehicle speed signal sent by the brake system controller (BCM) 102 is not received may include, for example, a situation where the vehicle speed signal is lost or a situation where the brake system controller 102 is offline.

[0035] When the vehicle speed signal is lost or the brake system controller 102 is offline, it indicates that a major accident or a collision or submersion accident has occurred. At this time, the central controller (CEM) 101 can be decoupled from the brake system controller 102, so that even if the vehicle speed cannot be obtained, the central controller 101 can still authorize unlocking the electric tailgate, so that the driver and passengers can open the electric tailgate by switch or key inside or outside the vehicle, which is convenient for the driver and passengers to escape or be rescued from the outside.

[0036] In some embodiments, the electric tailgate control method of the present application may further include step S14.

[0037] In step S14, when the brake system controller 102 is online, the central controller 101 can read the vehicle speed information, and when the vehicle speed is 0, the electric tailgate can be opened in the normal opening mode.

[0038] The brake system controller 102 is online, indicating that the collision accident is of low severity and does not cause major damage to the brake system controller 102 .

[0039] The opening function of the electric tailgate is controlled by the central controller 101 and the tailgate controller 104. The opening of the electric tailgate after a vehicle collision requires a precondition in order to filter some scenarios and improve the functional safety level. The precondition is, for example, that the tailgate cannot be opened within the first preset time (e.g., 10s) after the collision occurs, and the associated vehicle speed signal is mainly used to prevent the driver and passengers from being thrown out when the door is opened during vehicle movement.

[0040] Figure 5 The module flow chart of the electric tailgate control method of another embodiment of the present application is disclosed. Figure 5 As shown, in some embodiments, the electric tailgate control method of the present application may further include step S21 and step S22.

[0041] In step S21 , a vehicle collision signal may be received by an collision controller (ACU) 103 in the electric tailgate control system.

[0042] In step S22 , after the collision controller 103 receives the vehicle collision signal, the collision controller 103 may continuously send the vehicle collision signal to the central controller 101 for a second preset time period, so that the central controller 101 receives the vehicle collision signal.

[0043] In some embodiments, the collision controller 103 may be, for example, a car collision sensor. After the vehicle is hit, the collision controller 103 may send a vehicle collision signal according to the collision intensity of the vehicle, and send the vehicle collision signal to the vehicle central controller 101.

[0044] The second preset time length may refer to the time length for the collision controller 103 to send the vehicle collision signal to the vehicle central controller 101, wherein the second preset time length may be reasonably set as needed, and is mainly used to ensure that the collision controller 103 can reliably send the vehicle collision signal to the vehicle central controller 101. In an embodiment of the present application, the second preset time length may be 4 seconds. Of course, in other embodiments, the second preset time length may also be set to other seconds.

[0045] The purpose of setting the second preset time length is that when the collision controller 103 of the present application receives a vehicle collision signal and forwards it to the central controller 101, it ignores the status feedback and only focuses on sending the vehicle collision signal, thereby effectively improving the stability and continuity of the collision controller 103 sending the vehicle collision signal, improving the safety level, and preventing the problem of signal loss due to time interruption.

[0046] In order to improve stability, the collision controller 103 can send the vehicle collision signal to the central controller 101 by wired transmission and / or wireless transmission. Wired transmission can include sending the vehicle collision signal by PWM (Pulse Width Modulation) signal. For example, when the vehicle is in a normal state, the collision controller 103 sends a first PWM signal; when the vehicle is in a collision state, the collision controller 103 sends a second PWM signal, and triggers the central controller 101 to unlock by switching between the two PWM signal types. Wireless transmission can include sending the vehicle collision signal by CAN network (Controller Area Network). When the vehicle is in a normal state or in a collision state, the central controller 101 can be triggered to unlock by sending a signal of a specific different message on the CAN network. When in use, the two ways of sending the vehicle collision signal from the collision controller 103 to the vehicle central controller 101 can be backed up and redundant to each other.

[0047] In some embodiments, the central controller 101 may continuously send the unlock control signal to the tailgate controller (POT) 104 for a third preset time. This can effectively improve the stability and continuity of the unlock control signal sent by the central controller 101, improve the security level, and prevent signal loss caused by time interruption.

[0048] In an embodiment of the present application, the third preset time length may be 10 seconds. Of course, in other embodiments, the third preset time length may also be set to other numbers of seconds.

[0049] In some embodiments, the electric tailgate control method of the present application may further include step S31.

[0050] In step S31 , if the central controller 101 is restarted while sending the unlocking control signal to the tailgate controller 104 , the restarted central controller 101 is controlled to continue sending the unlocking control signal to the tailgate controller 104 .

[0051] For example, when the central controller 101 continuously sends an unlocking control signal to the tailgate controller 104 for 5 seconds, a voltage drop problem occurs and the controller restarts. The central controller 101 can continue to send an unlocking control signal to the tailgate controller 104 after the restart, thereby improving the functional safety level.

[0052] In some embodiments, in step S12, the tailgate controller 104 sends a driving unlocking signal at least twice to the tailgate lock motor 105. In this case, the electric tailgate control method of the present application may further include steps S41 to S44.

[0053] In step S41 , the number of times the drive unlock signal has been sent is determined.

[0054] In step S42, if the number of transmissions is greater than the preset number of transmissions, the current state of the tailgate lock motor 105 is determined. The current state of the tailgate lock motor 105 may refer to whether the electric tailgate is currently in a "locked state" or an "unlocked state".

[0055] For example, the preset number of sending times is set to 3 times. When the number of sending times is 3 times, the current state of the tailgate lock motor 105 needs to be determined.

[0056] In step S43 , when the number of transmissions is greater than the preset number of transmissions, if the current state of the tailgate lock motor 105 is the unlocked state, the transmission of the driving unlocking signal to the tailgate lock motor 105 is stopped.

[0057] In step S44, when the number of times the signal has been sent is greater than the preset number of times, if the current state of the tailgate lock motor 105 is still locked, the drive unlock signal is continuously sent to the tailgate lock motor 105 to unlock the electric tailgate. Optionally, in order to ensure the service life of the tailgate lock motor 105, the upper limit of the number of times the drive unlock signal is sent can be set to 10 times, wherein the preset number of times can be set to 3 times.

[0058] For example, in Figure 5In the illustrated embodiment, the tailgate controller 104 receives the unlocking control signal from the central controller 101, and the tailgate controller 104 sends a single driving unlocking signal lasting 200 ms (milliseconds) to the tailgate lock motor 105, then pauses for 1 second, and then sends a driving unlocking signal lasting 200 ms to the tailgate lock motor 105, and then pauses for 1 second, and so on, and executes at least 3 cycles to improve the functional safety level. Regardless of whether the tailgate lock motor 105 feeds back the unlocking status, the subsequent 7 cycles need to be associated with the status of the tailgate lock motor 105; if the tailgate lock motor 105 feeds back to the tailgate controller that the unlocking is completed, the subsequent 7 cycles are no longer executed.

[0059] In some embodiments, the electric tailgate control method of the present application may further include step S51 and step S52.

[0060] In step S51, the power supply state of the main power supply 106 connected to the electric tailgate control system is detected. The main power supply 106 is used to supply power to corresponding components in the electric tailgate control system, for example, the main power supply 106 can supply power to the central controller 101, the brake system controller 102, the collision controller 103, the tailgate controller 104, the tailgate lock motor 105, etc.

[0061] In step S52, when the power supply state of the main power supply 106 is abnormal, for example, the connection between the main power supply 106 and the electric tailgate control system is interrupted, the electric tailgate control system can be controlled to be connected to the backup power supply 107, so that the corresponding components in the electric tailgate control system can be powered by the backup power supply 107. For example, the backup power supply 107 can power the central controller 101, the tailgate controller 104, the tailgate lock motor 105, etc.

[0062] In some embodiments, the main power supply 106 and the backup power supply 107 may be independent power supplies. The main power supply 106 and the backup power supply 107 may be, for example, 12V (volt) batteries.

[0063] The electric tailgate control method of the present application provides backup power supply support for the electric tailgate control system by adding a backup power supply 107, so that in extreme scenarios, such as when the main power supply 106 is out of power, the backup power supply 107 can support and ensure the unlocking action of the tailgate controller 104 and the tailgate lock motor 105, thereby improving the redundancy.

[0064] The present application also provides an electric tailgate control system. Figure 4 and Figure 5 As shown, the electric tailgate control system of the present application includes a central control unit (CEM) 101 , a brake system control unit (BCM) 102 , an collision control unit (ACU) 103 , a tailgate control unit (POT) 104 and a tailgate lock motor 105 .

[0065] Among them, the braking system controller 102 can send a vehicle speed signal to the central controller 101101; the collision controller 103 can send a vehicle collision signal to the central controller 101101; when the central controller 101101 receives the vehicle collision signal sent by the collision controller 103 but does not receive the vehicle speed signal sent by the braking system controller 102, it will send an unlocking control signal to the tailgate controller 104 after a first preset time period of the collision; the tailgate controller 104 can respond to the unlocking control signal and send a driving unlocking signal to the tailgate lock motor 105; the tailgate lock motor 105 can respond to the driving unlocking signal and drive the electric tailgate to unlock.

[0066] The electric tailgate control method and control system thereof according to one or more embodiments of the present application can solve the problem of opening the electric tailgate under vehicle collision conditions.

[0067] The electric tailgate control method and control system thereof according to one or more embodiments of the present application can solve the problem of failure of the electric tailgate to open due to a drop in low voltage during a vehicle collision.

[0068] The electric tailgate control method and control system thereof according to one or more embodiments of the present application can solve the problem of failure of the door opening and unlocking functions due to a temporary failure of the main power supply 106 during a vehicle collision.

[0069] The present application also provides a vehicle, which includes the electric tailgate control system as described above.

[0070] The above is a detailed introduction to the electric tailgate control method, control system and vehicle provided in the embodiments of the present application. This article uses specific examples to illustrate the electric tailgate control method, control system and vehicle in the embodiments of the present application. The description of the above embodiments is only used to help understand the core idea of ​​the present application and is not intended to limit the present application. It should be pointed out that for ordinary technicians in this technical field, without departing from the spirit and principles of the present application, several improvements and modifications can be made to the present application, and these improvements and modifications should also fall within the scope of protection of the claims attached to the present application.

Claims

1. An electric tailgate control method, applied to an electric tailgate control system, characterized in that: include: When the central controller receives a vehicle collision signal but does not receive a vehicle speed signal sent by the brake system controller, the central controller sends an unlocking control signal to the tailgate controller after a first preset time period of the collision; In response to the unlocking control signal, the tailgate controller sends a driving unlocking signal to the tailgate lock motor; In response to the unlocking drive signal, the tailgate lock motor drives the electric tailgate to unlock.

2. The control method according to claim 1, characterized in that: The failure to receive the vehicle speed signal sent by the brake system controller includes the vehicle speed signal being lost or the brake system controller being offline.

3. The control method according to claim 1, characterized in that: Also includes: Receiving the vehicle collision signal through a collision controller in the electric tailgate control system; After the collision controller receives the vehicle collision signal, the collision controller continuously sends the vehicle collision signal to the central controller for a second preset time period, so that the central controller receives the vehicle collision signal.

4. The control method according to claim 3, characterized in that: The collision controller sends the vehicle collision signal to the central controller via a PWM signal and / or a CAN network signal.

5. The control method according to claim 1, characterized in that: The central controller continuously sends the unlocking control signal to the tailgate controller for a third preset time period.

6. The control method according to claim 5, characterized in that: Also includes: If the central controller is restarted while sending the unlocking control signal to the tailgate controller, the restarted central controller is controlled to continue sending the unlocking control signal to the tailgate controller.

7. The control method according to claim 1, characterized in that: The driving unlocking signal is sent at least twice, and the control method further includes: determining the number of times the drive unlock signal has been sent; If the number of times sent is greater than the preset number of times sent, determining the current state of the tailgate lock motor; If the current state of the tailgate lock motor is the unlocking state, stopping sending the driving unlocking signal to the tailgate lock motor; If the current state of the tailgate lock motor is still the locked state, the drive unlocking signal continues to be sent to the tailgate lock motor.

8. The control method according to any one of claims 1 to 7, characterized in that: Also includes: Detecting a power supply status of a main power source connected to the electric tailgate control system; When the power supply state of the main power supply is abnormal, the electric tailgate control system is controlled to be connected to the backup power supply, so that the electric tailgate control system is powered by the backup power supply.

9. An electric tailgate control system, characterized in that: It includes a central controller, a brake system controller, a collision controller, a tailgate controller and a tailgate lock motor, among which: The brake system controller is used to send a vehicle speed signal to the central controller; The collision controller is used to send a vehicle collision signal to the central controller; The central controller is used for sending an unlocking control signal to the tailgate controller after a first preset time period of collision when receiving the vehicle collision signal sent by the collision controller but not receiving the vehicle speed signal sent by the brake system controller; The tailgate controller is used for sending a driving unlocking signal to the tailgate lock motor in response to the unlocking control signal; The tailgate lock motor is used for driving the electric tailgate to unlock in response to the unlock driving signal.

10. A vehicle, characterized in that: It includes the electric tailgate control system as claimed in claim 9.

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