IP Library Granted Patent US 10,471,885
Granted Patent B2
US 10,471,885 · App. 15/533,145 · Granted Nov 12, 2019

Headlight optical axis control apparatus

View Patent ↗
Loading inventors, assignments & file history…
Monitor This Case
Get email alerts when status or documents change.
Order Certified Copies
Most orders are placed with the USPTO same day — all within 24 business hours.
Order via The Patent Place →
Pre-filled with this patent's details
Quick Facts
Patent No.
US 10,471,885
App. No.
15/533,145
Granted
Nov 12, 2019
Kind
B2
Abstract

A headlight optical axis control apparatus calculates an inclination angle of a vehicle with respect to a road surface from a ratio of a difference between acceleration signals in the front-and-rear direction measured at two time points (kn, kn+1) to a difference between acceleration signals in the up-and-down direction measured at the two time points (kn, kn+1), the two time points being in the vicinity of a time when the attitude of a vehicle body becomes equivalent to a stationary state, in a period from a time when the travelling vehicle stops to a time when the vehicle body comes to a halt.

Claims (12)

1. A headlight optical axis control apparatus comprising a controller which calculates an inclination angle of a vehicle with respect to a road surface on a basis of acceleration signals in an up-and-down direction and in a front-and-rear direction, the acceleration signals being measured by an acceleration sensor mounted on the vehicle and which generates control signals to operate a headlight optical axis,

wherein the controller calculates the inclination angle of the vehicle with respect to the road surface from a ratio of a difference between the acceleration signals in the up-and-down direction measured at two time points to a difference between the acceleration signals in the front-and-rear direction measured at the two time points, the two time points being selected from a period ranging from a time immediately before attitude of a vehicle body is identical to a stationary state to a time immediately after the attitude of the vehicle body is identical to the stationary state, from a time when the travelling vehicle stops to a time when the vehicle body comes to a halt.

2. The headlight optical axis control apparatus according to claim 1 , wherein the acceleration signals measured at the two time points from the time when the travelling vehicle stops to the time when the vehicle body comes to a halt are acceleration signals caused by vibration of the vehicle body from a time when wheels of the vehicle stop to the time when the vehicle body comes to a halt.

3. The headlight optical axis control apparatus according to claim 2 , wherein the time when the attitude of the vehicle body is identical to the stationary state corresponds to a time when the vehicle body passes through a center of amplitude in the up-and-down direction during a period in which the vehicle body vibrates after the wheels of the vehicle stop.

4. The headlight optical axis control apparatus according to claim 3 , wherein the time when the vehicle body passes through the center of the amplitude in the up-and-down direction during the period in which the vehicle body vibrates after the wheels of the vehicle stop corresponds to

a time when the acceleration signal in the up-and-down direction is at zero,

a time when jerk that is obtained by differentiating the acceleration signal in the up-and-down direction reaches a local maximum or a local minimum

a time when moving velocity that is obtained by integrating the acceleration signal in the up-and-down direction reaches a local maximum or a local minimum, or

a time when a moving amount that is obtained by integrating the moving velocity is a central value between a local maximum value of the moving amount and a local minimum value of the moving amount or a mean value of the moving amount.

5. The headlight optical axis control apparatus according to claim 1 , wherein

the acceleration sensor is integrally constituted.

6. The headlight optical axis control apparatus according to claim 1 , wherein vehicle-mounted electrical equipment mounted on the vehicle is integrally constituted.

Assignments (2)
COMPANY SPLIT Recorded Sep 4, 2024
From: MITSUBISHI ELECTRIC CORPORATION
To: MITSUBISHI ELECTRIC MOBILITY CORPORATION
Reel/Frame 068834/0585 →
ASSIGNMENT OF ASSIGNOR'S INTEREST Recorded Jun 6, 2017
From: OHSAWA, TAKASHI; TSUJITA, WATARU
To: MITSUBISHI ELECTRIC CORPORATION
Reel/Frame 042617/0276 →