Drive system for a pedal-operable vehicle and method for sensing the state of a pedal drive

Patent metadata

Field	Value
Publication number	US-10457351-B2
Application number	US-201415110375-A
Country	US
Kind code	B2
Filing date	Nov 17, 2014
Priority date	Jan 9, 2014
Publication date	Oct 29, 2019
Grant date	Oct 29, 2019

Abstract

A drive system for a pedal-operable vehicle, including a drive motor, pedals on pedal arms, a bottom bracket spindle on which the pedal arms are mounted, and a drive mechanism for transferring drive energy. A clearance is present in a transfer path between a pedal arm and a drive wheel, rotating with the bottom bracket spindle, of the drive mechanism. The system includes a return device with which the clearance-affected parts are transferable, at or below an idle pedal force within their clearance with respect to one another, into an idle position in which the clearance-affected parts assume a predefined relative position; the clearance-affected parts being removable, within the clearance, from the idle position by way of pedal force above the idle pedal force against the action of the return device; and information as to whether the clearance-affected parts are in an idle position being furnishable as electrical signals.

First claim

What is claimed is:

1. A drive system for a pedal-operable vehicle, comprising:
a drive motor with which a drive force for the vehicle is generatable;
pedals on pedal arms;
a bottom bracket spindle on which the pedal arms are mounted;
a drive mechanism for transferring drive energy from the bottom bracket spindle to a wheel of the vehicle, a clearance existing in a transfer path of drive energy between a pedal arm and a chainring, rotating with the bottom bracket spindle, of the drive mechanism; and
a return device with which clearance-affected parts are transferable, at or below an idle pedal force within their clearance with respect to one another, into an idle position in which the clearance-affected parts assume at least approximately a predefined relative position with respect to one another, the clearance-affected parts being removable, within the clearance, from the idle position by way of pedal force above the idle pedal force against the action of the return device, and information as to whether the clearance-affected parts are in an idle position being furnishable in a form of at least one electrical signal, wherein the clearance-affected parts are the bottom bracket spindle and the chainring, and wherein drive system is configured such that the drive motor delivers no drive energy for the vehicle and is switched off when in response to the clearance-affected parts being in the idle position.

2. The drive system as recited in claim 1 , wherein above an end stop pedal force with reference to one another, the clearance-affected parts are transferable into an end stop position in which the clearance-affected parts are in contact against respective end stop regions, information as to whether the clearance-affected parts are in the end stop position being furnishable in a form of at least one electrical signal.

3. The drive system as recited in claim 1 , wherein the drive motor is switched off after half a revolution of the bottom bracket spindle after the idle position is entered into.

4. The drive system as recited in claim 2 , wherein at least one of the idle position, the end stop position, or an intermediate position between the idle position and the end stop position, is detectable by way of a detection device not rotating with the bottom bracket spindle during rotation of the bottom bracket spindle, by the fact that a passage time of a passage indicator device of each of the clearance-affected parts is detectable with the detection device.

5. The drive system as recited in claim 4 , wherein one of the clearance-affected parts has two passage indicator devices that are both spatially associated with one passage indicator device of the other clearance-affected part.

6. The drive system as recited in claim 5 , wherein in the idle position, an angular distance around the bottom bracket spindle (rotation axis of the bottom bracket spindle), between one of the two passage indicator devices of one of the clearance-affected parts and the passage indicator device of the other clearance-affected part, and an angular distance (rotation axis of the bottom bracket spindle) between the other of the two passage indicator devices of the one of the clearance-affected parts and the same passage indicator device of the other clearance-affected part, are at least approximately of the same size.

7. The drive system as recited in claim 6 , wherein the clearance-affected parts have more than one set of passage indicator devices that are configured to detect at least one of the idle position, the end stop position, or an intermediate position of the clearance-affected parts, the angular distances of sets of passage indicator devices with respect to one another being of equal size with reference to the rotation axis of the bottom bracket spindle.

8. A method for detecting a drive state, with reference to a pedal drive, of a pedal-operable vehicle having a drive system including a drive motor with which a drive force for the vehicle is generatable, pedals on pedal arms, a bottom bracket spindle on which the pedal arms are mounted, a drive mechanism for transferring drive energy from the bottom bracket spindle to a wheel of the vehicle, a clearance existing in a transfer path of drive energy between a pedal arm and a chainring, rotating with the bottom bracket spindle, of the drive mechanism, and a return device with which clearance-affected parts are transferable, at or below an idle pedal force within their clearance with respect to one another, into an idle position in which the clearance-affected parts assume at least approximately a predefined relative position with respect to one another, the clearance-affected parts being removable, within the clearance, from the idle position by way of a pedal force, applied via at least one of the pedals, above the idle pedal force against the action of the return device, and information as to whether the clearance-affected parts are in an idle position being furnishable in a form of at least one electrical signal, wherein the clearance-affected parts are the bottom bracket spindle and the chainring, and wherein the drive motor delivers no drive energy for the vehicle and is switched off in response to the clearance-affected parts being in the idle position, the method comprising:
detecting a relative position of the clearance-affected parts with a detection device by the fact that a time interval between a passage time of a respective passage indicator device of one of the respective clearance-affected parts and a passage time of a respective passage indicator device of the other of the respective clearance-affected parts, is ascertained at the detection device, wherein the drive motor delivers at least approximately no drive power and is switched off in response to it is ascertained that the clearance-affected parts are in the idle position with respect to one another.

9. The method as recited in claim 8 , wherein in a pedaling mode of the vehicle, a change over time in pedaling torque is detected over at least a portion of a revolution of the bottom bracket spindle by repeatedly carrying out the detecting the relative position step.

Assignees

• Bosch Gmbh Robert

Inventors

• Kimmich Peter
• Schock Wolfram

Classifications

• B62M6/50 Primary

  characterised by detectors or sensors, or arrangement thereof · CPC title

• B62M6/55

  power-driven at crank shafts parts · CPC title