Vehicle Drivability Tuning via Virtual Pedal Command Mapping
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Solution Overview
Problem
Existing vehicle systems lack flexibility in drivability parameter tuning, requiring arduous and costly alterations to match customer preferences, as pre-set modes often fail to complement individual drivability demands, necessitating extensive redesign and complex reprogramming.
Innovation Solution
A vehicle system featuring a vehicle control unit (VCU) that electronically communicates with a human machine interface (HMI) to send virtual acceleration or deceleration commands to a transmission control unit (TCU), allowing users to adjust drivability parameters such as tractive torque constraints and progressivity curves through a user interface, thereby enabling customizable drivability settings without complex reprogramming.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Adaptability or versatility
If pre-set drivability modes are provided in vehicle controllers, then different selectable performance maps between accelerator pedal position and acceleration are delivered, but customer flexibility to alter tractive performance parameters is limited and mismatch between customer preferences and selected modes occurs
Solution Approach 1:
The system transitions from static pre-set drivability modes to dynamic customer-adjustable parameters. The VCU provides an interface that allows customers to modify tractive performance parameters in real-time, making the system adaptable to individual preferences rather than being locked into fixed modes.
Solution Approach 2:
The VCU acts as an intermediary between the customer and the TCU. It receives customer input through its interface and translates it into virtual pedal position commands that the TCU can execute, enabling customer control without requiring direct access to complex transmission control programming.
2Adaptability or versatility
If drivability parameters are altered in vehicle and transmission controllers to conform to driver habits, then customer-specific drivability characteristics are achieved, but arduous, time consuming, and costly alterations to drivability programs during manufacturing are required
Solution Approach 1:
The system extracts the customer-specific parameter adjustment capability from the complex transmission control programming. By isolating a subset of drivability parameters that can be adjusted through the VCU interface, it removes the need for time-consuming reprogramming of the entire transmission control system for each customer.
Solution Approach 2:
Instead of modifying the actual transmission control programs during manufacturing, the system creates virtual copies of pedal position commands through the VCU. These virtual commands replicate the effect of parameter changes without requiring physical reprogramming of the TCU.
3Adaptability or versatility
If multiple consumers have varying demands for selected drivability characteristics, then individual customer preferences are accommodated, but development time and cost issues are exacerbated
Solution Approach 1:
The VCU interface serves multiple functions: it provides pre-set mode selection, allows custom parameter adjustment, and translates customer inputs into TCU commands. This multi-functional approach accommodates diverse customer preferences through a single universal interface rather than requiring separate control systems for each customer type.
Solution Approach 2:
The system enables customer-specific drivability by allowing adjustment of key parameters such as virtual pedal position correlation and tractive torque constraints. By focusing on modifying these specific parameters rather than entire control programs, the system efficiently accommodates parameter variations across different customers.
4Ease of manufacture
If a subset of drivability parameters is made user-adjustable at the VCU, then customer tuning efficiency is improved and development costs are reduced, but the remaining parameters must be executed as fixed in the TCU
Solution Approach 1:
The control system is segmented into two functional parts: parameters that require customer customization are handled by the VCU, while core transmission control parameters remain fixed in the TCU. This segmentation allows easy customer tuning of specific parameters without complicating the overall system architecture.
Data Source
AI summary
Methods and systems for tuning vehicle drivability are provided. The vehicle system includes, in one example, a vehicle control unit (VCU) that is designed to electronically communicate with a human machine interface (HMI). In the system, the VCU is designed to, in reaction to receiving an acceleration or deceleration request from the HMI, send a virtual acceleration or deceleration command to a transmission control unit (TCU), where the virtual acceleration or deceleration command correlates to the acceleration or deceleration request and the correlation is user adjustable via a user interface (UI) of the VCU.