Motor vehicles – Compensating devices
Patent
1990-11-12
1992-06-23
Hill, Mitchell J.
Motor vehicles
Compensating devices
180140, 180142, 280 91, 36442405, B62D 504
Patent
active
051234963
DESCRIPTION:
BRIEF SUMMARY
TECHNICAL FIELD
The present invention relates to a rear-wheel steering angle detecting apparatus for a vehicle capable of detecting the steering angle of the rear wheels of a vehicle with a high degree of resolution.
PRIOR ART
In a conventional rear-wheel steering angle detecting apparatus for a vehicle, a variable resistor is connected with a rear-wheel steering mechanism so that the output voltage of the variable resistor is input to an analog/digital converter (hereinafter referred to as an AD converter) where it is converted into a digital value which is then transmitted to a microcomputer.
In the following, the operation of the above conventional apparatus will be described. In accordance with the operation of the rear-wheel steering mechanism, the resistance of the variable resistor changes, and the output voltage of the variable resistor, varying according to such changes, is input to the AD converter where it is converted into a digital value. The digital value thus converted is input to the microcomputer for detection of the rear-wheel steering angle.
With the coventional rear-wheel steering angle detecting apparatus as constructed above, it is necessary to detect the rear-wheel steering angle with a high degree of resolution and at the correct positions of the rear wheels. In order to perform the detection of the rear-wheel steering angle with a high resolution, however, an AD converter having a multi-bit output is required. This poses a problem that such an AD converter with a multi-bit output is expensive.
The present invention is intended to obviate the above-described problem, and has for its object the provision of a rear-wheel steering angle detecting apparatus for a vehicle which is aable to perform the detection of the rear-wheel steering angle with a high degree of resolution at low costs.
DISCLOSURE OF THE INVENTION
The rear-wheel steering angle detecting apparatus for a vehicle according to the present invention includes an absolute value type rotary encoder operatively connected with a rear-wheel steering mechanism for detecting the steering angle of the rear wheels of a vehicle, a pulse generator for detecting the speed of a rear-wheel steering drive mechanism, and a controller for finely dividing the output of the absolute type rotary encoder by the output of the pulse generator for fine division of the rear-wheel steering angle.
The controller of the invention detects the rear-wheel steering angle with a high degree of resolution by dividing the rear-wheel steering angle, as detected by the rotary encoder, by the number of pulses generated by the pulse generator.
BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS
FIG. 1 is a block diagram showing the construction of a rear-wheel steering angle detecting apparatus for a vehicle in accordance with one embodiment of the present invention, and
FIG. 2 is an explanatory view for showing the relateionship between the rear-wheel steering angle and the rear-wheel angular signal for describing the operation of the above embodiment.
THE BEST MODE FOR IMPLEMENTING THE INVENTION
In the following, a preferred embodiment in accordance with a rear-wheel steering angle detecting apparatus of the present inveniton will be described in detail with reference to the drawings. FIG. 1 is a block diagram of the construction of the embodiment.
In FIG. 1, reference numeral 1 designates a steering wheel in accordance with the steering operation of which front wheels 6 of a vehicle are steered through the intermediary of a steering shaft 2 and a front-wheel steering mechanism 5.
Connected with the steering wheel 2 is a steering angle sensor 3. The steering angle sensor 3 generates a steering angle signal 3S for the front wheels 6 to a controller 14.
Similarly, connected with the steering wheel 2 is a steering speed sensor 4 which serves to generate a steering speed signal 4S for the front wheels 6 to the controller 14.
The controller 14 is input with vehicle speed signal 16S, the steeing angle signal 3S and the steering speed signal 4S, calculates and determines,
REFERENCES:
patent: 4679808 (1987-07-01), Ito et al.
patent: 5020619 (1991-06-01), Kanazawa et al.
Kashihara Masanobu
Onishi Masayoshi
Ozawa Hiromasa
Hill Mitchell J.
Mitsubishi Denki K.K.
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