Vehicle Assembly Drive Control for Sensorless Servo Adjustment
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Solution Overview
Problem
Existing drive devices for vehicle assemblies lack a cost-effective way to provide both automatic and servo modes of adjustment, with the servo mode requiring expensive sensor systems to maintain a consistent user force during manual adjustment.
Innovation Solution
A control device with speed, servo, and current regulation modules that determine setpoint current values to regulate the adjustment drive, allowing switching between automatic and servo modes without additional sensors, using load calculations to maintain a consistent user force in the servo mode.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Measurement precision
If an additional sensor system is used to measure user force in servo mode, then measurement precision is improved, but device complexity and cost increase
Solution Approach 1:
The patent replaces the mechanical sensor system with an electrical measurement approach. The control device determines the actual current of the adjustment drive and uses this electrical parameter to calculate the user force, substituting complex mechanical sensing with simpler electrical measurements that are already available in the drive system.
Solution Approach 2:
The adjustment drive itself provides the measurement capability through its current sensor. The system uses the drive's own current consumption data to determine user force, eliminating the need for separate measurement devices. The drive serves both actuation and measurement functions.
2Ease of operation
If a sensor system is added to provide servo mode, then ease of operation is improved, but manufacturing cost increases
Solution Approach 1:
The control device is designed to perform multiple functions: it controls the adjustment drive in both automatic mode (speed regulation) and servo mode (force regulation). The same control unit processes current data for both speed control and user force determination, making the system multi-functional without requiring separate dedicated components for each mode.
Solution Approach 2:
The system changes the regulation parameter based on operating mode. In automatic mode, the control device regulates speed using a first setpoint current value. In servo mode, it switches to regulating user force using a second setpoint current value derived from actual current measurement. This parameter switching enables dual functionality without additional hardware.
3Productivity
If speed regulation is used in automatic mode, then productivity is improved, but adaptability to manual control decreases
Solution Approach 1:
The control device dynamically adapts its regulation strategy based on the selected operating mode. It can switch between speed-oriented control in automatic mode and force-oriented control in servo mode. This dynamic adaptability allows the system to optimize for either productivity or user comfort depending on the situation, without being locked into a single control approach.
Data Source
AI summary
A drive device for adjusting a vehicle assembly an electromotive adjustment drive for adjusting the vehicle assembly and a control device for controlling the adjustment drive the control device actuates the adjustment drive in an automatic mode for adjusting the vehicle assembly with a predetermined rotational speed and in a servo mode for providing a supporting force during a manual adjustment of the vehicle assembly by a user. The control device includes a speed regulation module for determining a first setpoint current value in dependence on a rotational speed of the adjustment drive, a servo regulation module for determining a second setpoint current value in dependence on a load acting on the vehicle assembly and a current regulation module for regulating a current of the adjustment drive.