Adaptive Cruise Control for Trailer Brake Torque Compensation
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Solution Overview
Problem
Existing adaptive cruise control systems face challenges in accurately maintaining a safe following distance and adjusting speed when towing a trailer with an active negative torque system, due to variations in vehicle and trailer mass and speed reduction rates.
Innovation Solution
The implementation of a motor vehicle system that includes a vehicle control system and a speed control system, which utilizes a negative torque system to reduce vehicle speed. The adaptive cruise control system generates speed reduction commands based on the estimated combined mass of the vehicle and trailer, and adjusts these commands to maintain a desired rate of speed reduction, ensuring a safe following distance.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Measurement precision
If the adaptive cruise control system uses standard speed reduction commands, then the system operates normally without trailer detection, but the actual rate of speed reduction deviates from expected rates when towing a trailer with active negative torque system
Solution Approach 1:
The system continuously monitors the actual rate of speed reduction and compares it to the expected rate. When a discrepancy is detected, the controller adjusts the negative torque commands to the trailer's active negative torque system to compensate for the difference, ensuring the actual speed reduction matches the desired rate despite the trailer's influence
Solution Approach 2:
The system automatically detects the presence of a trailer with active negative torque system through monitoring speed reduction characteristics, and self-adjusts the torque commands without requiring manual intervention or pre-programmed trailer parameters, adapting to unknown trailer configurations
2Reliability
If the system adjusts negative torque commands to compensate for trailer mass variations, then the following distance is maintained accurately, but the system complexity increases due to mass estimation and command adjustment mechanisms
Solution Approach 1:
The system uses feedback from actual speed reduction measurements to estimate trailer mass and adjust torque commands. The controller continuously compares expected versus actual speed changes, uses this information to infer trailer characteristics, and automatically modifies control commands to maintain accurate following distance without requiring complex pre-programmed trailer databases
Solution Approach 2:
The system replaces complex mechanical trailer detection and classification mechanisms with an electronic control approach that uses software-based mass estimation algorithms. Instead of physical sensors to detect trailer type, the system uses computational methods to estimate mass based on observed dynamic response to torque commands
3Measurement precision
If the adaptive cruise control system detects trailer presence and adjusts commands, then the speed reduction accuracy improves, but the detection and adjustment process takes additional time
Solution Approach 1:
The system performs preliminary mass estimation and command adjustment during normal cruise operation before critical situations arise. By continuously monitoring speed reduction characteristics and maintaining updated estimates of trailer mass and dynamics, the system is already prepared with adjusted torque commands when speed control is needed, reducing the time penalty of detection and adjustment
Data Source
AI summary
A motor vehicle includes an adaptive cruise control (“ACC”) that is configured to generate requests to actuate a speed reduction system of the vehicle and/or an active speed reduction system of a trailer. The actuation requests are based, at least in part, on sensor data from one or more sensors. The ACC may be configured to determine effects of an active speed reduction system of a trailer, and the ACC may adjust the speed reduction requests to the vehicle and/or the trailer based, at least in part, on measured effects of the speed reduction system of the trailer.