Device for detecting wind disturbance-induced force on a vehicle

Abstract

To accurately and quickly detect disturbances caused by wind that a traveling vehicle receives.SOLUTION: According to one aspect of the present disclosure, a compulsive force detector of a vehicle includes: one or more processors; and one or more memories communicatively coupled to the one or more processors. The processor stores a road surface disturbance force received from a road surface on which the vehicle travels via wheels out of a first sensor arranged below a damper supporting the wheels of the vehicle with respect to a direction of gravity to the memory, stores a body disturbance force applied to the vehicle out of a second sensor arranged above the damper with respect to the direction of gravity to the memory, and detects a compulsive force due to wind disturbance received by the vehicle based on the body disturbance force applied to the vehicle and the road surface disturbance force, respectively stored in the memory.SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 1

Description

[Technical Field]

[0001] The present disclosure relates to a vehicle coercive force detection device that is mounted on, for example, a vehicle and is capable of detecting a coercive force due to wind disturbance that the vehicle experiences while traveling. [Background technology]

[0002] In modern society, transportation is essential, and various vehicles such as automobiles travel on the roads in daily life. For such vehicles, it is important to improve their running stability against external disturbances such as crosswinds and road surface disturbances that they encounter while traveling.

[0003] For example, Patent Document 1 proposes a technology for generating a disturbance-suppressing yaw moment to stabilize the vehicle posture when a lateral acceleration occurs due to a road disturbance such as a crosswind or a rut while the vehicle is traveling straight, causing a disturbance yaw moment to act on the vehicle.

[0004] Furthermore, Patent Document 2 proposes a technology in which a vehicle body disturbance determination unit determines that a change in steering angle is due to a vehicle body disturbance when the timing of the rise in the sensor value from the vehicle body disturbance sensor satisfies a non-driver steering determination condition. Furthermore, Patent Document 3 discloses that a tire force sensor is provided inside the axle near each wheel, and this tire force sensor detects the longitudinal force Fx, lateral force Fy, and vertical force Fz acting on the tire. [Prior art documents] [Patent documents]

[0005] [Patent Document 1] Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 2002-211380 [Patent Document 2] Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 2014-013006 [Patent Document 3] Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 2006-349440 Summary of the Invention [Problem to be solved by the invention]

[0006] Not limited to the above-mentioned patent documents, current technologies still do not meet market needs, and the following problems remain. For example, Patent Document 1 does not distinguish between wind disturbances and disturbances from road surface inputs, and instead processes all disturbances to the vehicle together, leaving ample room for further improvement in vehicle stability. Patent Document 2 also uses the driver's steering to determine disturbances, which poses the problem of requiring a relatively long time to detect wind disturbances. Patent Document 3 also uses tire force sensors to accurately detect disturbances from road surface inputs, but makes no specific mention of detecting wind disturbances.

[0007] The present disclosure has been made in consideration of the above-mentioned problems as an example, and aims to provide a control device that can accurately and quickly detect disturbances caused by wind that a vehicle receives while in motion, and a vehicle equipped with this control device. [Means for solving the problem]

[0008] In order to solve the above-described problems, according to one aspect of the present disclosure, there is provided a wind disturbance force detection device that can be mounted on a vehicle and that includes one or more processors and one or more memories communicatively connected to the one or more processors, wherein the processor stores in the memory a road disturbance force that the vehicle receives from the road surface on which the vehicle is traveling via the wheels from a first sensor that is arranged lower in the direction of gravity than a damper that supports the wheels of the vehicle, and stores in the memory a body disturbance force that is applied to the vehicle from a second sensor that is arranged higher in the direction of gravity than the damper, and detects a wind disturbance force that the vehicle receives based on the body disturbance force and the road disturbance force that are applied to the vehicle that are respectively stored in the memory. [Effects of the Invention]

[0009] According to the present disclosure, it is possible to accurately and quickly detect the forcing force due to, for example, wind disturbances that a vehicle receives while traveling. [Brief explanation of the drawings]

[0010] [Figure 1] 1 is a schematic diagram showing an example of the configuration of a vehicle equipped with a control device and a coercive force detection device according to a first embodiment. [Figure 2] 3 is a schematic diagram showing an arrangement of the control device, a first sensor, and a second sensor according to the first embodiment. FIG. [Figure 3] FIG. 2 is a block diagram showing an example of the configuration around the control device and the coercive force detection device according to the first embodiment. [Figure 4] FIG. 3 is a schematic diagram showing a signal processing flow from a first sensor and a second sensor according to the first embodiment. [Figure 5] FIG. 2 is a schematic diagram showing an example of signals from a first sensor and a second sensor when a steering operation is performed (tire input event), as an example. [Figure 6] FIG. 10 is a schematic diagram showing an example of signals from the first sensor and the second sensor when a wind disturbance occurs (wind disturbance event), as an example. [Figure 7] 4 is a flowchart showing a method for detecting a coercive force due to a wind disturbance according to the first embodiment. [Figure 8] 1 is a schematic diagram showing an example of signals from a first sensor and a second sensor during actual driving and an example of signal processing. FIG. [Figure 9] FIG. 10 is a block diagram showing an example of the configuration around a control device and a coercive force detection device according to a second embodiment. [Figure 10] 10 is a flowchart showing a method for detecting a coercive force due to a wind disturbance according to a second embodiment. DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0011] Next, preferred embodiments of the present disclosure will be described. In this specification and drawings, components having substantially the same functional configurations are designated by the same reference numerals, and redundant description will be omitted. Furthermore, configurations other than those described in detail below may be supplemented appropriately with known elemental technologies and configurations related to on-board sensors and disturbance detection, including those described in the above-mentioned patent documents.

[0012] First Embodiment [Vehicle 200] 1 shows an example of the configuration of a vehicle 200 according to the first embodiment. In the following, a four-wheel drive automobile is exemplified as a vehicle suitable for this embodiment, but the present invention may also be applied to automobiles other than four-wheel vehicles, such as motorcycles, as long as the purpose of this disclosure is not impaired.

[0013] <Overall vehicle configuration> Fig. 1 is a schematic diagram showing an example of the configuration of a vehicle 200 equipped with a forcing force detection device 100 according to this embodiment. The vehicle 200 shown in Fig. 1 is configured as a four-wheel drive vehicle in which drive torque output from a drive force source 9 that generates drive torque for the vehicle is transmitted to a left front wheel 3LF, a right front wheel 3RF, a left rear wheel 3LR, and a right rear wheel 3RR (hereinafter collectively referred to as "wheels 3" unless a distinction is required). The drive force source 9 may be an internal combustion engine such as a gasoline engine or a diesel engine, a drive motor, or both an internal combustion engine and a drive motor.

[0014] Vehicle 200 may be an electric vehicle equipped with two drive motors, for example, a front-wheel drive motor and a rear-wheel drive motor, or may be an electric vehicle equipped with drive motors corresponding to each of wheels 3. Furthermore, if vehicle 200 is an electric vehicle or a hybrid electric vehicle, vehicle 200 is equipped with a secondary battery that stores power supplied to the drive motors, and a motor or a generator such as a fuel cell that generates power to charge the battery.

[0015] The vehicle 200 is equipped with a driving force source 9, an electric steering device 15, and a known brake fluid pressure control unit as devices used to control the driving of the vehicle. The driving force source 9 outputs driving torque that is transmitted to the front drive shaft 5F and the rear drive shaft 5R via a transmission, a front wheel differential mechanism 7F, and a rear wheel differential mechanism 7R (not shown). The driving of the driving force source 9 and the transmission is controlled by a vehicle control device 41 that includes one or more electronic control units (ECUs: Electronic Control Units).

[0016] The front-wheel drive shaft 5F is provided with an electric steering device 15. The electric steering device 15 includes an electric motor and a gear mechanism (not shown), and is controlled by a vehicle control device 41 to adjust the steering angles of the left front wheel 3LF and the right front wheel 3RF. During manual driving, the vehicle control device 41 controls the electric steering device 15 based on the steering angle of the steering wheel 13 operated by the driver.

[0017] The brake system of the vehicle 200 is configured as a hydraulic brake system. A brake fluid pressure control unit 20 adjusts the hydraulic pressure supplied to brake calipers 17LF, 17RF, 17LR, and 17RR (hereinafter collectively referred to as "brake calipers 17" unless a distinction is required) provided on the front, rear, left, and right drive wheels 3LF, 3RF, 3LR, and 3RR, respectively, to generate braking force. The drive of the brake fluid pressure control unit 20 is controlled by a vehicle control device 41. If the vehicle 200 is an electric vehicle or a hybrid electric vehicle, the brake fluid pressure control unit 20 is used in conjunction with regenerative braking using a drive motor.

[0018] The vehicle control device 41 includes one or more electronic control devices that control the drive of the driving force source 9 that outputs the drive torque of the vehicle 200, the steering wheel 13 or the electric steering device 15 that controls the steering angle of the steered wheels, and the brake fluid pressure control unit that controls the braking force of the vehicle 200. The vehicle control device 41 may also have a function of controlling the drive of a transmission that changes the speed of the output output from the driving force source 9 and transmits it to the wheels 3. The vehicle control device 41 is configured to be able to acquire information transmitted from a coercive force detection device 100, which will be described later, and is configured to be able to perform vehicle control based on the coercive force due to wind disturbance calculated by the coercive force detection device 100.

[0019] The vehicle 200 may also include a wind disturbance force detection sensor pair 30, an ambient environment sensor 33, a vehicle state sensor 35, a GPS (Global Positioning System) sensor 37, a navigation system 40, and an HMI (Human Machine Interface) 43.

[0020] Of these, the wind disturbance-force detecting sensor pair 30 is used in this embodiment to detect a wind disturbance-force acting on the vehicle 200 while it is traveling. More specifically, as can be seen from Figures 1 and 2, the wind disturbance-force detecting sensor pair 30 is made up of a first sensor 31 arranged below the dampers 4 that support the wheels 3 of the vehicle 200 in the direction of gravity, and a second sensor 32 arranged above the dampers 4 in the direction of gravity.

[0021] The first sensor 31 is disposed lower than the damper 4 of the vehicle 200 in the direction of gravity, and has the function of detecting a road disturbance force received from the road surface via the tire (wheel 3) of the vehicle 200. Such a first sensor 31 may be provided, for example, on a wheel hub provided between the wheel 3 and the axle. Therefore, in this embodiment, a hub sensor that can be mounted on the axle hub is applied as the first sensor 31. A specific example of such a hub sensor that can be applied is a known tire force sensor such as that disclosed in Patent Document 4, which is capable of detecting a force in the Fz direction perpendicular to the direction of gravity.

[0022] The second sensor 32 is provided at the upper end of the damper 4 and is configured to be able to detect external forces (particularly forces in the Fz direction perpendicular to the direction of gravity) that the body 1 receives. In other words, the second sensor 32 of this embodiment is disposed above the damper 4 in the direction of gravity and has the function of detecting body disturbance forces that act on the body 1 of the vehicle 200. There are no particular limitations on a specific example of such a second sensor 32 as long as it is possible, but a suitable example is a known top mount sensor that is installed in a known top mount (also referred to as an upper mount), which is a fastening portion between the body 1 of the vehicle 200 and the damper 4, as shown in FIG. 2 .

[0023] 2, the present embodiment will be described by taking as an example the pair of wind-disturbance-force-detecting sensors 30 (first sensor 31LF, second sensor 32LF) provided at the upper and lower ends, respectively, of the damper 4 (damper 4LF) corresponding to the left front wheel 3LF among the wheels 3 of the vehicle 200. However, in the present embodiment, the wheel 3 on which the pair of wind-disturbance-force-detecting sensors 30 are mounted is not limited to the left front wheel 3LF, but may be, for example, the right front wheel 3RF, or may be on the rear wheel side, such as the left rear wheel 3LR shown in FIG.

[0024] The surrounding environment sensor 33 may be configured to include, for example, well-known front-facing cameras 33LF and 33RF and a LiDAR (Light Detection and Ranging) 33S. These front imaging cameras 33LF, 33RF and LiDAR 33S constitute ambient environment sensors for acquiring information about the ambient environment of the vehicle 200. The front imaging cameras 33LF and 33RF may include, for example, well-known imaging elements such as CCDs (Charged-Coupled Devices) or CMOSs ​​(Complementary Metal-Oxide-Semiconductors). In addition to the front imaging cameras 33LF and 33RF, the vehicle 200 may also include, for example, a well-known camera that is provided on a side mirror and captures images of the left rear or right rear.

[0025] The LiDAR 33S transmits optical waves and receives reflected waves of the optical waves, and detects an object and the distance to the object based on the time between transmitting the optical waves and receiving the reflected waves. The vehicle 200 may be equipped with one or more known sensors, such as a radar sensor such as a millimeter-wave radar, or an ultrasonic sensor, instead of or in addition to the LiDAR 33S, as the surrounding environment sensor 33 for acquiring information about the surrounding environment.

[0026] The vehicle state sensor 35 is mounted on the vehicle 200 separately from the wind disturbance forcing force detection sensor pair 30 and is composed of one or more known sensors that detect the operating state and behavior of the vehicle 200. The vehicle state sensor 35 may include at least one of a steering angle sensor, an accelerator position sensor, a brake stroke sensor, a brake pressure sensor, or an engine speed sensor, and may detect the operating state of the vehicle 200, such as the steering angle of the steering wheel 13 or steered wheels, the accelerator opening, the amount of brake operation, or the engine speed.

[0027] The vehicle state sensor 35 may include at least one of a vehicle speed sensor, an acceleration sensor, and an angular velocity sensor to detect vehicle behavior such as vehicle speed, longitudinal acceleration, lateral acceleration, and yaw rate. The vehicle state sensor 35 may include a sensor to detect the operation of a turn signal, and may detect the operation state of the turn signal. The vehicle state sensor 35 may also include a sensor to detect the inclination state of the vehicle 200, and may detect the inclination state of the road.

[0028] The navigation system 40 is a known navigation system that sets a driving route to a destination set by the occupant and notifies the driver of the driving route. A GPS sensor 37 is connected to the navigation system 40, and receives satellite signals from GPS satellites via the GPS sensor 37 to obtain position information of the vehicle 200 on map data. Note that instead of the GPS sensor 37, an antenna that receives satellite signals from another satellite system that identifies the position of the vehicle 200 may be used.

[0029] The HMI 43 is driven by, for example, the control unit 50 (described later), and can present various information to the driver by means of image display, audio output, etc. The HMI 43 may include, for example, a known display device provided in the instrument panel and a known speaker provided in the vehicle. Of these, the display device may have the function of the display device of the navigation system 40. The HMI 43 may also include a head-up display that displays an image on the front window of the vehicle 200.

[0030] [Device 100 for detecting wind disturbance-induced force] Next, with reference to FIGS. 1 to 5, the coercive force detection device 100 according to this embodiment for detecting a coercive force due to wind disturbance acting on a traveling vehicle 200 will be described in detail. In this embodiment, "wind disturbance" refers to a disturbance caused by wind that is different from the constant wind that a vehicle normally experiences while driving, and that is different from wind that occurs relatively as the vehicle moves, such as a gust of wind or a crosswind.

[0031] FIG. 3 is a block diagram showing an example of the configuration of the coercive force detection device 100 according to this embodiment. The forcing force detection device 100 is connected to the sensors SR (first sensor 31, second sensor 32, surrounding environment sensor 33, vehicle state sensor 35, GPS sensor 37, etc.) via a dedicated line or communication means such as CAN (Controller Area Network) or LIN (Local Inter Net). The forcing force detection device 100 is also connected to the above-mentioned navigation system 40, vehicle control device 41, and HMI 43 via a dedicated line or communication means such as CAN or LIN. The forcing force detection device 100 is also configured to be connectable to an external network NET, such as the Internet, via a known communication means 45.

[0032] The forcing force detection device 100 of this embodiment includes a control unit 50 and a known memory 60 (for example, at least one of a RAM 60A and an HDD 60B). The control unit 50 is configured with one or more known processors such as CPUs (Central Processing Units). Part or all of the control unit 50 may be configured with updatable firmware or the like, or may be a program module or the like executed by instructions from the CPU or the like.

[0033] The memory 60 may be configured as a known updatable recording medium, such as a read-only memory (ROM), a solid-state drive (SSD), a USB flash drive, or a storage device. However, the number and type of the storage units are not particularly limited in this embodiment. The memory 60 of this embodiment may be configured to record information such as computer programs executed by the control unit 50, various parameters used in arithmetic processing, detection data, and arithmetic results.

[0034] 3, the control unit 50 of this embodiment is configured to include an unsprung signal acquisition unit 51, a sprung signal acquisition unit 52, a signal comparison unit 53, a body resonance component acquisition unit 54, a forcing force calculation unit 55, and a vehicle control unit 56. Note that the body resonance component acquisition unit 54 included in the control unit 50 is not necessarily required and may be omitted as appropriate. Each of these units may have a function realized by the execution of a computer program by a processor such as a CPU, but some or all of them may be configured with analog circuits.

[0035] The unsprung signal acquisition unit 51 is configured to have a function of acquiring an unsprung signal Fz1 (see FIGS. 4 and 5, etc.) related to a road disturbance force (specifically, a force Fz component related to the vertical Z direction) received from the road surface on which the vehicle 200 is traveling, from the first sensor 31. Furthermore, the unsprung signal acquisition unit 51 of this embodiment is configured to have a function of storing the acquired unsprung signal Fz1 related to the road disturbance force in the memory 60.

[0036] The sprung signal acquisition unit 52 is configured to have a function of acquiring a sprung signal Fz2 (see FIGS. 4 and 5, etc.) related to a body disturbance force (specifically, a force Fz component related to the vertical Z direction) acting on the vehicle 200 from the second sensor 32. Furthermore, the sprung signal acquisition unit 52 of this embodiment is configured to have a function of storing the acquired sprung signal Fz2 related to the body disturbance force in the memory 60.

[0037] The signal comparison unit 53 is configured to have a function of comparing the unsprung signal Fz1 related to the road disturbance force obtained from the first sensor 31 with the sprung signal Fz2 related to the body disturbance force obtained from the second sensor 32. As an example, the signal comparison unit 53 of this embodiment can determine in time series which of the above-mentioned sprung signal Fz2 and unsprung signal Fz1 shows a larger value.

[0038] The body resonance component acquisition unit 54 is configured to have a function of acquiring the body resonance load as the body disturbance force acting on the vehicle via the second sensor 32. More specifically, the resonance load component can be extracted by, for example, performing a process of filtering a narrow band of resonance frequencies calculated in advance by an experiment, a simulation, or the like, on the sprung mass signal Fz2 acquired above.

[0039] The force calculation unit 55 is configured to have the function of detecting a force due to wind disturbance that the vehicle 200 receives, based on the body disturbance force acting on the vehicle 200 and the above-mentioned road disturbance force that the vehicle 200 receives from the road surface on which the vehicle 200 is traveling, both of which are stored in the memory 60. More specifically, the force calculation unit 55 of this embodiment can detect the load obtained by the second sensor 32 that acquires the sprung signal Fz2 as a force due to wind disturbance during the period when the sprung signal Fz2 corresponding to the above-mentioned body disturbance force and the unsprung signal Fz1 corresponding to the above-mentioned road surface disturbance force are in phase (during in-phase fluctuation).

[0040] The forced force calculation unit 55 may detect the forced force due to the wind disturbance by further removing the resonant load from the body disturbance force acting on the vehicle. More specifically, the resonant load component extracted by the body resonance component acquisition unit 54 may be removed from the sprung signal Fz2 related to the body disturbance force acquired from the second sensor 32. The forced force calculation unit 55 may then determine the phase state (i.e., whether they are in phase or out of phase) of the sprung signal Fz2 related to the body disturbance force from which the resonant load component has been removed and the unsprung signal Fz1 related to the road surface disturbance force, to detect the forced force due to the wind disturbance.

[0041] <Calculation principle of forcing force due to wind disturbance> Here, the principle of calculation of the forcing force due to wind disturbance using the unsprung signal Fz1 and the sprung signal Fz2 in this embodiment will be described in detail with reference to FIGS. First, as a result of intensive research, the inventors have found that the phase of the signal obtained by the wind disturbance forcing force detection sensor pair 30 installed at the upper and lower ends of the damper 4 changes when the vehicle 200 is subjected to a forcing force due to wind disturbance and when the vehicle 200 is subjected to a road disturbance from the road surface on which it is traveling.

[0042] 4, when a state in which a traveling vehicle 200 is subjected to a forcing force due to a wind disturbance is dominant, the wheels 3 are supported by the road surface, while the body 1 of the vehicle 200 is subjected to a forcing force due to the wind disturbance. In such a case, as can be seen from the figure, the unsprung signal Fz1 obtained by the first sensor 31 of the wind disturbance forcing force detection sensor pair 30 and the sprung signal Fz2 obtained by the second sensor 32 will be in phase along the time series.

[0043] 5, when the state in which the vehicle 200 is subjected to road disturbances from the road surface on which the vehicle 200 is traveling is dominant, the body 1 of the vehicle 200 is supported by inertial forces while traveling, but is also subjected to forcing forces from the wheels 3. In such a case, as can be seen from the figure, the unsprung signal Fz1 obtained by the first sensor 31 of the wind disturbance forcing force detection sensor pair 30 and the sprung signal Fz2 obtained by the second sensor 32 will have opposite phases in time series.

[0044] An example of a state in which such a forcing force is generated on the wheel 3 is steering operation using the steering wheel 13, as shown in Figure 5(b). That is, as can be understood by comparing Figures 5(a) and 5(b), when the wheel 3 is turned by steering operation, for example, an internal force is generated in the second sensor 32 installed on the outer wheel side in a direction that causes the second sensor 32 to sink due to a roll load caused by the centrifugal force of the body 1. On the other hand, an internal force in the opposite direction to the roll load is generated in the first sensor 31 on the outer wheel side due to the influence of the axial rotation of the kingpin at the fastening portion with the damper 4.

[0045] As described above, in this embodiment, an example has been given in which a rolling load is generated on the wheels 3 by steering operation using the steering wheel 13 as a state in which a rolling force on the wheels 3 is generated, but the present invention is not limited to this. That is, a rolling force on the wheels 3 may also be generated, for example, when the wheels 3 are subjected to a rolling force from unsteady and random road undulations. Even when the wheels 3 are subjected to a rolling force from such road surface irregularities, the unsprung signal Fz1 obtained by the first sensor 31 and the sprung signal Fz2 obtained by the second sensor 32 will have opposite phases in time series.

[0046] The vehicle control unit 56 has a function of controlling the vehicle 200 based on the forcing force due to wind disturbance detected by the forcing force calculation unit 55. Examples of vehicle control based on such forcing force due to wind disturbance include control to alert the occupants via the HMI 43, and control to adjust the drive torque of the vehicle 200 via the vehicle control device 41 in response to the forcing force.

[0047] <Method for detecting wind disturbance forcing force> Next, a method for detecting a forcing force due to wind disturbance acting on the traveling vehicle 200 in this embodiment will be described with reference to FIGS. The coercive force detection method described below is executed via the coercive force detection device 100 of this embodiment mounted on the vehicle 200.

[0048] First, in step 11, a road disturbance that the traveling vehicle 200 receives from the road surface is detected. More specifically, the unsprung signal acquisition unit 51 of the force detection device 100 acquires, from the first sensor 31, an unsprung signal Fz1 related to the road disturbance force (force Fz component in the vertical Z direction) that the vehicle 200 receives from the road surface on which it is traveling.

[0049] Next, in step 12, a disturbance (body disturbance force) acting on the traveling vehicle 200 is detected. More specifically, the sprung signal acquisition unit 52 of the force detection device 100 acquires a sprung signal Fz2 related to the body disturbance force (force Fz component in the vertical Z direction) acting on the vehicle 200 from the second sensor 32 described above. The order of steps 11 and 12 may be reversed.

[0050] Here, if the driving-force detection device 100 is equipped with a body resonance component acquisition section 54, the body resonance component may be removed in step 13 following step 12. Specifically, in step 13, the body resonance component acquisition section 54 of the driving-force detection device 100 acquires the resonance load of the body 1 applied to the vehicle via the second sensor 32, and performs a process of removing the resonance load by scaling the sprung load signal Fz2 by a specified damping coefficient calculated by experiment or simulation. Note that step 13 may be omitted.

[0051] Next, in step 14, the forcing force due to wind disturbance acting on the vehicle 200 is detected. More specifically, as can be seen from Fig. 7, the coercive force calculation unit 55 of the coercive force detection device 100 first compares the magnitude of the sprung signal Fz2 with the magnitude of the unsprung signal Fz1. If the magnitude of the unsprung signal Fz1 is greater than the magnitude of the sprung signal Fz2 (the case of "sprung < unsprung" in Fig. 7), the coercive force calculation unit 55 determines that the coercive force due to wind disturbance is zero. Strictly speaking, the coercive force due to wind disturbance may not be zero, but in this embodiment, the coercive force due to wind disturbance is evaluated as not dominant and is regarded as zero.

[0052] On the other hand, when the magnitude of the sprung signal Fz2 is greater than the magnitude of the unsprung signal Fz1 (the case of "unsprung < sprung" in FIG. 7), the coherence calculation unit 55 performs known signal processing to obtain a cross spectrum and calculates the degree of phase alignment between the two signals. Note that in this embodiment, the degree of phase alignment is calculated by obtaining a cross spectrum, but this is not limiting and other known methods may be used to calculate the coherence of these two signals. Furthermore, as shown in FIG. 8, the cross spectrum or coherence of the unsprung signal Fz1 and the sprung signal Fz2 may be calculated not only during the period when "unsprung < sprung" but also during the period when "sprung < unsprung".

[0053] Next, the forcing force calculation unit 55 determines whether the calculated cross spectrum or coherence value is equal to or greater than a predetermined threshold (see "Threshold Processing" in FIG. 7). The specific value of such a threshold is not particularly limited, and may be any value between 0.6 and 0.9, for example, and may be set appropriately depending on the vehicle type and the driving environment (e.g., region, weather, etc.). The specific threshold may also be set by driving experiments or simulations.

[0054] If the calculated cross spectrum or coherence value is equal to or greater than a predetermined threshold (during an in-phase fluctuation in which the unsprung signal Fz1 and the sprung signal Fz2 are in-phase), the forcing force calculation unit 55 detects the load obtained by the second sensor 32 that acquires this sprung signal Fz2 as a forcing force due to a wind disturbance. On the other hand, if the calculated cross spectrum or coherence value is less than the predetermined threshold (during an anti-phase fluctuation in which the unsprung signal Fz1 and the sprung signal Fz2 are in anti-phase), the forcing force calculation unit 55 determines that the forcing force due to the wind disturbance is zero.

[0055] FIG. 8 shows an example of signals from the first sensor 31 and the second sensor 32 during actual driving, and an example of signal processing by the control unit 50. As can be seen from the figure, first, up to time t1, the phases of the unsprung signal Fz1 and the sprung signal Fz2 are roughly aligned, but if the sprung signal Fz2 is relatively large, the cross-spectrum (or coherence) value is less than the threshold and it is determined that the forcing force due to wind disturbance is zero, and if the unsprung signal Fz1 is relatively large, it is determined that the forcing force due to wind disturbance is zero, as described above.

[0056] During the period from time t1 to t2, when road disturbances become dominant due to the influence of the steering operation described above (tire input event in FIG. 8), the unsprung signal Fz1 and the sprung signal Fz2 are generally out of phase with each other. Thereafter, during the period from time t2 to t3, the unsprung signal Fz1 and the sprung signal Fz2 are generally in phase, and the value of the cross spectrum (or coherence) of the unsprung signal Fz1 and the sprung signal Fz2 is also equal to or greater than a threshold. In this case (the wind disturbance event in FIG. 8), the force-causing calculation unit 55 detects the load obtained by the second sensor 32 that acquires this sprung signal Fz2 as described above (the sprung signal Fz2 when the vertical direction is used) as a force-causing force due to a wind disturbance.

[0057] From time t3 onwards in Figure 8, the events up to time t1 described above are repeated, so similarly, when the sprung signal Fz2 is relatively large, the cross spectrum (or coherence) value is less than the threshold and it is determined that the forcing force due to wind disturbance is zero, and when the unsprung signal Fz1 is relatively large, it is determined that the forcing force due to wind disturbance is zero, as described above.

[0058] According to the wind disturbance force detection device 100 and the wind disturbance force detection method mounted on the vehicle 200 in the present embodiment described above, it is possible to accurately and quickly detect the wind disturbance force, distinguishing it from road surface disturbances that the vehicle receives while traveling.

[0059] The above-described method for detecting a coercive force due to wind disturbance can be realized by a program executable by the coercive force detection device 100. A computer program applied to a force detection device capable of detecting a force due to such wind disturbance causes one or more processors to execute processing including acquiring the above-mentioned road disturbance force from a first sensor 31 arranged lower in the direction of gravity than the damper 4 supporting the wheel 3 of the vehicle 200, acquiring the above-mentioned body disturbance force from a second sensor 32 arranged higher in the direction of gravity than the damper 4, and detecting the force due to wind disturbance that the vehicle 200 receives based on the acquired body disturbance force and road disturbance force.

[0060] Second Embodiment 9 and 10, a wind disturbance-causing force detection device 110 mounted on a vehicle 200 according to a second embodiment and a wind disturbance-causing force detection method therefor will be described. The second embodiment, as compared to the wind disturbance-causing force detection device 100 of the first embodiment, is characterized mainly in that a pair of wind disturbance-causing force detection sensors 30 are provided for each of a plurality of wheels 3, such as the left front wheel 3LF and the right front wheel 3RF. Therefore, the following will describe differences from the first embodiment, while the same reference numerals will be used to designate components similar to those already described, and their description will be omitted where appropriate.

[0061] That is, the control unit 50 in the second embodiment is configured to include a first unsprung signal acquirer 51A, a second unsprung signal acquirer 51B, a first sprung signal acquirer 52A, and a second sprung signal acquirer 52B, instead of the unsprung signal acquirer 51 and the sprung signal acquirer 52 in the first embodiment. Note that the body resonance component acquirer 54 in the present embodiment is not necessarily required and may be omitted as appropriate.

[0062] The sensors SR in the second embodiment include a first sensor 31LF provided at the lower end (specifically, the wheel hub) of the damper 4LF corresponding to the left front wheel 3LF, and a second sensor 32LF provided at the upper end (specifically, the top mount) of this damper 4LF. The sensors SR in the second embodiment also include a first sensor 31RF provided at the lower end (specifically, the wheel hub) of the damper 4RF corresponding to the right front wheel 3RF, and a second sensor 32RF provided at the upper end (specifically, the top mount) of this damper 4RF.

[0063] In this embodiment, two pairs of wind-disturbance-causing-force detection sensors 30 are provided corresponding to the front-left wheel 3LF and the front-right wheel 3RF, but the present invention is not limited to this. That is, a total of two or more pairs of wind-disturbance-causing-force detection sensors 30 may be provided corresponding to the front-left wheel 3LF and the rear-left wheel 3LR on one side of the vehicle 200, or a total of two or more pairs of wind-disturbance-causing-force detection sensors 30 may be provided corresponding to the rear-left wheel 3LR and the rear-right wheel 3RR on the rear wheel side of the vehicle 200.

[0064] More specifically, the first unsprung signal acquisition unit 51A receives the unsprung signal Fz corresponding to the left front wheel 3LF from the first sensor 31LF. 1a The present invention is configured to have a function of acquiring the above. The second unsprung signal acquisition unit 51B receives the unsprung signal Fz corresponding to the right front wheel 3RF from the first sensor 31RF. 1b The present invention is configured to have a function of acquiring the above.

[0065] The first sprung mass signal acquisition unit 52A also receives the sprung mass signal Fz corresponding to the left front wheel 3LF from the second sensor 32LF. 2a The present invention is configured to have a function of acquiring the above. The second sprung mass signal acquisition unit 52B receives the sprung mass signal Fz corresponding to the right front wheel 3RF from the second sensor 32RF. 2b The present invention is configured to have a function of acquiring the above.

[0066] <Method for detecting wind disturbance forcing force> Next, with reference to FIG. 10, a method for detecting a forcing force due to wind disturbance acting on the traveling vehicle 200 in this embodiment will be described. First, in step 10, the control unit 50 switches the sensor for detecting the forcing force due to wind disturbance depending on the driving state. More specific examples of driving states include when making a large turn to the right or left, when accelerating or decelerating, when driving on a slope, or when turning right or left.

[0067] For example, when the vehicle 200 is in a driving state in which it is making a large turn to the right, the control unit 50 switches to use the pair of wind disturbance-causing force detection sensors 30 (first sensor 31LF and second sensor 32LF) corresponding to the left front wheel 3LF, which has a relatively high load. Also, when the four-wheel-drive vehicle 200 is in a driving state in which the load on the rear wheels is relatively high, such as when it is continuously climbing a slope, the control unit 50 switches to use the pair of wind disturbance-causing force detection sensors 30 corresponding to one of the left rear wheel 3LR and the right rear wheel 3RR. The control unit 50 may switch between the plurality of wind disturbance forcing force detection sensor pairs 30 in accordance with the traveling state of the vehicle 200 based on route information obtained from the navigation system 40.

[0068] Thereafter, the control unit 50 uses the switched wind disturbance forcing force detection sensor pair 30 to execute the processes from step 11 onwards, which have been described in the first embodiment. In the embodiment, one of the pairs of wind disturbance forcing force detection sensors 30 provided for each of the plurality of wheels 3 (in this example, the left front wheel 3LF and the right front wheel 3RF) is selected and used, but it is also possible to use at least two pairs of wind disturbance forcing force detection sensors 30 in parallel.

[0069] According to the forcing force detection device 110 and forcing force detection method of the second embodiment described above, in addition to the effects of the first embodiment described above, it is possible to detect forcing forces due to wind disturbances using an appropriate wind disturbance forcing force detection sensor pair 30 in accordance with the running state.

[0070] While the preferred embodiments of the present disclosure have been described above with reference to the accompanying drawings, the present disclosure is not limited to such examples. In other words, it is clear that a person skilled in the art would attempt further modifications to the above-described embodiments, and it is understood that these modifications also fall within the technical scope of the present disclosure. [Explanation of symbols]

[0071] 200 vehicles 100, 110 Force detection device 30 Wind disturbance forcing force detection sensor pair 31 First Sensor 32 Second Sensor 33 Ambient environment sensor 35 Vehicle condition sensor 40 Navigation Devices 41 Vehicle control device 43 HMI 50 control section 51 Unsprung signal acquisition section 52 Spring signal acquisition unit 53 Signal comparison section 54 Body resonance component acquisition section 55 Force calculation part 56 Vehicle control unit

Claims

1. one or more processors; one or more memories communicatively coupled to the one or more processors; A wind disturbance force detection device that can be mounted on a vehicle, comprising: The processor: a first sensor disposed below a damper supporting a wheel of the vehicle in a direction of gravity, the first sensor detecting a road disturbance force received from the road surface on which the vehicle is traveling via the wheel; a body disturbance force applied to the body of the vehicle from a second sensor disposed above the damper in the direction of gravity; and detecting a forcing force due to a wind disturbance acting on the vehicle based on the body disturbance force and the road disturbance force stored in the memory; Vehicle force detection device.

2. The processor: Further acquiring a resonance load of the body as the body disturbance force via the second sensor; detecting the wind disturbance forcing force by further subtracting the resonant load from the body disturbance force; The vehicle-force detecting device according to claim 1 .

3. the first sensor is mounted on the hub of the wheel; The second sensor is provided at a fastening portion between the damper and the body.

3. The vehicle-force detecting device according to claim 1 or 2.

4. a first sensor disposed below a damper of the vehicle in a direction of gravity and configured to detect the road disturbance force; a second sensor disposed above the damper in the direction of gravity and configured to detect the body disturbance force; A force detection device according to any one of claims 1 to 3; A vehicle having:

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