Steering Sensor Disturbance Detection for Stable Autonomous Control
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Solution Overview
Problem
Steering control systems in vehicles are prone to errors due to disturbances affecting steering sensors, leading to safety risks, especially in autonomous driving scenarios, and existing systems lack effective methods for predicting and preventing breakdowns on specific travel roads, while also requiring inefficient software updates in legacy vehicles.
Innovation Solution
A steering control system that detects disturbances in steering torque and angle sensors, maintains stable control in the presence of errors, provides map data for unpredictable road conditions, and includes an over-the-air (OTA) function for wireless software updates in legacy ECUs.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Device complexity
If steering control is performed using only steering torque sensor data in autonomous driving, then autonomous driving control can be simplified, but the system becomes highly vulnerable to sensor disturbances causing dangerous situations
Solution Approach 1:
The system performs preliminary disturbance determination by comparing steering torque sensor data with steering angle sensor data before executing autonomous driving control. This preliminary check allows the system to detect potential sensor disturbances in advance and switch to safe mode, preventing dangerous situations while maintaining simplified control architecture.
Solution Approach 2:
The system implements feedback control by continuously monitoring both steering torque and steering angle sensor data, comparing their consistency, and adjusting control mode accordingly. When disturbance is detected, the system provides feedback to switch from autonomous control to safe mode, ensuring reliability without significantly increasing control complexity.
2Reliability
If multiple sensors are used to detect disturbances in steering torque and angle, then steering control reliability is improved, but the system complexity and cost increase
Solution Approach 1:
The system uses steering angle sensor data as an intermediary to verify the validity of steering torque sensor data. By comparing the relationship between torque and angle changes, the system can detect disturbances without requiring additional specialized sensors, thus improving reliability while limiting complexity increase.
Solution Approach 2:
The system monitors changes in steering torque and steering angle parameters over time and compares their rates of change to detect inconsistencies. This parameter-based disturbance detection method achieves improved reliability using existing sensor data without adding complex hardware.
3Reliability
If map data is prepared for all possible breakdown situations on specific travel roads, then vehicle safety in autonomous driving is improved, but data storage requirements and processing complexity increase
Solution Approach 1:
The system prepares alternative map data in advance for specific travel roads where breakdowns may occur, allowing the vehicle to switch to pre-planned alternative routes when disturbances are detected. This preliminary preparation improves safety without requiring exhaustive data for all possible situations, as only high-risk road segments are preprocessed.
4Reliability
If wired software updates are performed for each ECU in legacy vehicles, then software can be updated reliably, but huge human and material resources are required
Solution Approach 1:
The patent applies OTA update capability to legacy ECUs that originally lacked this function, enabling wireless software updates across multiple ECUs simultaneously. This universal update mechanism maintains reliability through proper update protocols while dramatically improving efficiency by eliminating the need for individual wired connections to each ECU.
Data Source
AI summary
Provided are a steering control system and method. The steering control system includes a control unit configured to perform steering control using a steering torque and a steering angle detected by a steering torque sensor and a steering angle sensor of a vehicle, wherein the control unit performs the steering control in consideration that the steering torque or the steering angle is changeable by a disturbance.