Vibration Damper Sensor Layout for Accurate Vehicle Speed Sensing
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Solution Overview
Problem
Existing vehicle speed and level sensors suffer from inaccuracies due to complex mechanics and dependencies on wheel diameter and air pressure, leading to unreliable speed information for highly automated vehicles.
Innovation Solution
A sensor system utilizing a vibration damper with an excitation coil and receiver coils, combined with an inertial measurement unit, measures vehicle level and acceleration to determine speed by correlating similar signals from sensors at different points on the vehicle, reducing mechanical complexity and enhancing accuracy.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Measurement precision
If complex mechanical components are used in level sensors to convert linear movement to rotary movement, then the sensor can measure vehicle level, but the system complexity increases and measurement accuracy decreases due to tolerances
Solution Approach 1:
The patent replaces complex mechanical components with a magnetic field-based sensor system. Instead of using mechanical levers and rotary converters, the invention uses a housing-mounted sensor that detects position changes through magnetic field interactions, eliminating mechanical tolerances and reducing system complexity while improving measurement accuracy.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent introduces a magnetic field as an intermediary between the mechanical movement and the measurement system. The sensor detects position changes through magnetic field variations rather than direct mechanical contact, serving as a mediator that converts physical displacement into measurable signals without requiring complex mechanical transmission components.
2Measurement precision
If wheel speed sensors with magnetic field sensors and ferromagnetic wheels are used to calculate vehicle speed, then speed can be measured, but accuracy decreases due to dependency on wheel diameter and air pressure
Solution Approach 1:
The patent replaces wheel-speed-based magnetic field sensing with a direct inertial measurement system using accelerometers and gyroscopes. This substitution eliminates the dependency on wheel diameter and air pressure by measuring vehicle motion directly through inertial forces, providing accurate speed calculation independent of wheel characteristics or tire pressure variations.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent changes the measurement parameters from wheel rotation frequency (which depends on wheel diameter and tire pressure) to direct acceleration and angular velocity measurements. By measuring fundamental inertial parameters rather than derived wheel parameters, the system achieves speed measurement accuracy that is independent of wheel and tire variations.
Applied Scientific Principles
This section explains which scientific principles are used to turn an abstract innovation direction into a practical engineering solution.
Function Achieved in This Case
The system provides accurate vehicle speed and level measurements by simplifying mechanics and using signal correlation, enabling reliable speed determination and suspension state assessment.
Implementation Method 1
The sensor has an excitation coil, at least one receiver coil and at least one electrically conductive element, wherein the excitation coil and the at least one receiver coil are arranged on the first part and the electrically conductive element on the second part of the vibration damper
Data Source
AI summary
An arrangement for a sensor system for vehicles, in particular motor vehicles, for detecting the vehicle speed, the vehicle level and/or the state of the vehicle suspension, having a sensor for measuring the level of a point on a vehicle body and a vibration damper, the vibration damper comprising a first part and a second part which are movable relative to each other, and wherein the level sensor has an excitation coil, at least one receiver coil and at least one electrically conductive element, wherein the excitation coil and the at least one receiver coil are arranged on the second part of the vibration damper and the electrically conductive element is arranged on the first part of the vibration damper or the first part comprises or forms the electrically conductive element.