Brake-by-wire system

Patent metadata

Field	Value
Publication number	US-10501063-B2
Application number	US-201615250411-A
Country	US
Kind code	B2
Filing date	Aug 29, 2016
Priority date	Aug 29, 2016
Publication date	Dec 10, 2019
Grant date	Dec 10, 2019

Abstract

A vehicle includes a plurality of brake assemblies and a plurality of electrical power circuits. Each brake assembly includes an electro-mechanical actuator configured to adjust a torque force applied to a wheel of the vehicle. The electrical power circuits are located remotely from one another. Each power circuit is configured to drive a respective actuator. The vehicle further includes a first electronic brake system (EBS) controller and a second EBS controller. The first EBS controller is configured to output a first data command signal to control a first group of power circuits among the plurality of power circuits. The second EBS controller is configured to output a second data command signal to control a second group of power circuits among the plurality of power circuits. The second group excludes the power circuits from the first group.

First claim

What is claimed is:

1. A vehicle including a fault tolerant electronic brake-by-wire (BBW) system, the vehicle comprising:
a plurality brake assemblies, each brake assembly including an electro-mechanical actuator configured to decelerate a respective wheel of the vehicle;
a plurality of electrical power circuits located remotely from one another, each power circuit being configured to drive a respective actuator; and
a plurality of electronic brake system (EBS) controllers, each EBS controller among the plurality of EBS controller being in electrical communication with each power circuit among the plurality of power circuits,
wherein each electrical power circuit is in electrical communication with a respective actuator, and is configured to output a high-frequency switched high-power signal that drives the respective actuator, the high-frequency switched high-power signal having an upper frequency value that reaches 65 kilohertz and an upper current value that reaches 200 amps.

2. The vehicle of claim 1 , wherein the power circuits are located remotely from the brake assemblies, the first EBS controller, and the second EBS controller.

3. The vehicle of claim 2 , wherein any EBS controller among the plurality of EBS controller is configured to output a data control signal to control any power circuit among the plurality of electrical power circuits.

4. The vehicle of claim 1 , wherein the plurality of EBS controllers includes a first EBS controller and a second EBS controller remotely located from the first EBS controller, the first and second EBS controllers configured to selectively operate in a split topology mode and a full topology mode based on diagnostic results generated by at least one of the first and second EBS controllers.

5. The vehicle of claim 4 , wherein:
when operating in the split topology mode, the first EBS controller controls a first group of power circuits among the plurality of power circuits and the second EBS controller controls a second group of power circuits among the plurality of power circuits, the second group excluding power circuits from the first group, and
when operating in the full topology mode, one of the first EBS controller and the second EBS controller controls both the first group of power circuits and the second group of power circuits.

6. The vehicle of claim 5 , wherein:
the first EBS controller performs a first self-diagnostic operation and communicates first diagnostic results to the second EBS controller, the second EBS controller performs a second self-diagnostic operation and communicates second diagnostic results to the first EBS controller; and
at least one of the first and second EBS controllers initiate the full topology mode when at least one of the first and second diagnostic results indicate an error.

7. A method of controlling a fault tolerant electronic brake-by-wire (BBW) system, the method comprising:
detecting a brake request to brake at least one wheel of a vehicle;
outputting, via a first electronic brake system (EBS) controller, a first data command signal to control a first group of power circuits among a plurality of power circuits;
outputting, via a second EBS controller, a second data command signal to control a second group of power circuits among the plurality of power circuits, the second group excluding the power circuits from the first group;
outputting a first high-power drive signal from at least one power circuit included in the first group, and outputting a second high-power drive signal from at least one power circuit included in the second group, the first and second high-power drive signal each having an upper current value that reaches 200 amps;
controlling at least one actuator based on at least one of the first and second high-power drive signals so as to brake the at least one wheel according to the brake request; and
selectively operating the first and second EBS controllers in a split topology mode and a full topology mode based on diagnostic results generated by at least one of the first and second EBS controllers, wherein in the split topology mode the first EBS controller controls only the first group of power circuits and the second EBS controller controls only the second group of power circuits, and in the full topology mode each of the first and second EBS controllers are configured to independently control both the first group of power circuits and the second group of power circuits.

8. The method of claim 7 , further comprising controlling a first actuator based on the first high-power drive signal and controlling a second actuator independently from the first actuator based on the second high-power drive signal.

9. The method of claim 8 , further comprising controlling the first group of power circuits independently from the second group of power circuits.

10. The method of claim 9 , further comprising controlling a first power circuit included in the first group independently from a second power circuit included in the first group, and controlling a third power circuit included in the second group independently from a fourth power circuit included in the second group.

Assignees

• Gm Global Tech Operations Llc

Inventors

• Krueger Eric E
• Pennala Brandon C
• Chappell Christopher C
• Houtman Alan J
• Kidston Kevin S
• Monsere Patrick J
• Roberts Michael C
• Kilmurray Paul A
• Weber Steven J

Classifications

• B60T8/3255 Primary

  Systems in which the braking action is dependent on brake pedal data · CPC title

• B60T8/17 Primary

  Using electrical or electronic regulation means to control braking {(detecting or indicating faulty operation B60T8/885)} · CPC title

• B60T2270/413

  Plausibility monitoring, cross check, redundancy · CPC title

• B60T8/885

  using electrical circuitry · CPC title

• B60T8/321

  deceleration (B60T8/34, B60T8/52, B60T8/54, B60T8/56, B60T8/58, B60T8/72, B60T8/86, B60T8/88 take precedence) · CPC title