Method for controlling a system for a motor vehicle

Patent metadata

Field	Value
Publication number	US-11932081-B2
Application number	US-201916978413-A
Country	US
Kind code	B2
Filing date	Mar 5, 2019
Priority date	Mar 6, 2018
Publication date	Mar 19, 2024
Grant date	Mar 19, 2024

Abstract

A method for controlling a system for a motor vehicle is disclosed. The system includes an actuator, a volatile memory (RAM) in which an item of position information of the actuator (IP RAM ) is stored, and a long-term memory (EPROM). The following are stored in the long-term memory (EPROM): at least one item of position information (IP ROM ) of the actuator and an item of information relating to the powering down of the actuator (I HT ), which assumes a first value (v 1 ) when the system has been powered down in a controlled manner and assuming assumes a second value (v 2 ) when the system has suffered a fault causing the current value of the position of the actuator stored in the volatile memory (RAM) to be deleted.

First claim

The invention claimed is:

1. A method for controlling a system for a motor vehicle, said system comprising:
an actuator,
a volatile memory (RAM) storing at least one item of actuator position information,
a long-term memory (EPROM) storing:
at least one item of actuator position information,
information relating to a shutdown of the actuator, the information taking a first value when the system was shut down in a controlled manner and taking a second value when the system experienced a fault that caused the erasure of the current value of the position of the actuator stored in the volatile memory (RAM), when the system inadvertently stopped being supplied with electric power or communication between the system and a computer was disconnected,

said method comprising:
when the system is activated following shutdown, determining whether the position value stored in the long-term memory (EPROM) is considered to be correct on the basis of the shutdown information;
when the position value is considered to be correct, using this value to command the actuator;
when the position value is considered to be incorrect, determining a value of the position of the actuator before commanding the actuator again; and
when the shutdown information is equal to the second value, then the position value stored in the long-term memory (EPROM) is considered to be incorrect, and the computer sends a position value of the actuator to the system.

2. The method as claimed in claim 1 , further comprising:
reading the shutdown information,
when the shutdown information is equal to the first value, then considering the position value stored in the long-term memory (EPROM) to be correct,
when the shutdown information is equal to the second value, then considering the position value stored in the long-term memory (EPROM) to be incorrect.

3. The method as claimed in claim 1 , wherein the computer sends a position value of the actuator to the system that is calculated on the basis of a plurality of positions stored in a computer memory of the computer.

4. The method as claimed in claim 3 , wherein when at least the last 5 positions stored in the computer memory are identical, then the last stored position value is considered to be correct and is sent to the system as the position value of the actuator so that this value is stored in the volatile memory (RAM).

5. The method as claimed in claim 3 , wherein when the last 7 positions stored in the computer memory are different, the computer calculates the difference between the maximum stored position value and the minimum stored position value, on a sample of at least the last 7 stored position values, and when this difference is less than 1% of the total number of steps of the actuator, then the last recorded position is considered to be correct.

6. The method as claimed in claim 3 , wherein when the last 7 positions stored in the computer memory are different, the computer calculates the difference between the maximum stored position value and the minimum stored position value, specifically on a sample of at least the last 7 stored position values, and when this difference is between 1% and 3% of the total number of steps of the actuator, then the actuator performs simple self-calibration.

7. The method as claimed in claim 3 , wherein when the last 7 positions stored in the computer memory are different, the computer calculates the difference between the maximum stored position value and the minimum stored position value, on a sample of at least the last 7 stored position values, and when this difference is greater than 3% of the total number of steps of the actuator, then the actuator performs full self-calibration.

8. The method as claimed in claim 1 , wherein when the system is shut down in a controlled manner, then the value of the position of the actuator is stored in the long-term memory.

9. The method as claimed in claim 1 , wherein when the system is shut down in a controlled manner, then the value of the shutdown information takes a value equal to the first value.

10. The method as claimed in claim 1 , wherein the position value written to the volatile memory is equal to the last position value stored in the long-term memory, when the system was shut down in a controlled manner.

11. The method as claimed in claim 1 , wherein when the system is activated, the information value relating to the shutdown of the actuator takes the second value.

Assignees

• Valeo Systemes Thermiques

Inventors

• Porto Muriel
• Guenet Thomas
• Liu Jin-Ming
• Nouainia Wissem

Classifications

• B60H1/00835 Primary

  Damper doors, e.g. position control (construction or arrangement of damper doors B60H1/00664; B60H1/00864 takes precedence) · CPC title

• B60H1/00028

  Constructional lay-out of the devices in the vehicle · CPC title

• B60H1/00485

  Valves for air-conditioning devices, e.g. thermostatic valves · CPC title

• B60R16/0231

  Circuits relating to the driving or the functioning of the vehicle (monitoring tyres B60C23/00; indicating overspeed B60K31/00; for dash boards B60K37/00, B60Q3/10; for indicating emergencies B60Q1/52; brake control systems B60T; registering or indicating the working of vehicles G07C5/00; measuring distance G01C, e.g. combinations of speed and distance G01C23/00; engine indicators G01L; measuring speed or acceleration G01P) · CPC title

• B60H2001/00178

  comprising an air passage from the HVAC box to the exterior of the cabin · CPC title