JPH038283B2 - - Google Patents

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION The present invention relates to a vehicle height adjustment device that has a vehicle height adjustment function and is capable of inspecting the performance of a switching solenoid valve and a pressure sensor each time the pressure of a gas chamber in a suspension system is adjusted.

Conventionally, many vehicle height adjustment devices have been proposed for automobiles, motorcycles, and the like. A vehicle height adjustment device improves vehicle comfort and riding comfort by adjusting the vehicle height to a certain standard height in order to prevent the vehicle height from changing depending on the magnitude of the load applied to the vehicle body. This is a device installed in vehicles to increase the By the way, to adjust the vehicle height, for example, it is done by supplying compressed high-pressure air to the gas chamber formed in the suspension system, but this requires air pipes, compressed air supply, and exhaust. Generally, a selected solenoid valve is used, and in a vehicle height adjustment device, the performance of parts that are involved in high-pressure gas, such as solenoid valves, has an important meaning. However, conventional devices have not been equipped with a diagnostic mechanism for inspecting the performance of such parts, and have been insufficient as vehicle height adjustment devices.

The purpose of the present invention is to improve the performance of the switching solenoid valve, the relief solenoid valve, and the pressure sensor themselves that detect the pressure state of the high-pressure air, which are involved in high-pressure air in a vehicle height adjustment device, and also to improve the normality of the air pipe that allows the high-pressure air to flow. The purpose of this system is to frequently inspect for abnormalities so that when an abnormality occurs, it can be dealt with quickly.

A feature of the present invention is to supply high-pressure air to the gas chamber in the suspension system or exhaust high-pressure air from the gas chamber by appropriately operating a compressor and a solenoid field based on vehicle height information provided by a vehicle height sensor. In the vehicle height adjustment device that changes the vehicle height by changing the height of the vehicle, a solenoid valve and a solenoid valve are provided between the compressor and the solenoid valve, which are opened to release the atmosphere for a certain period of time after adjusting the pressure in the gas chamber and the air pipe. A pressure sensor is provided to measure the internal pressure of the air pipe, and when an abnormality occurs in the internal pressure, an alarm is issued based on the detection signal of the pressure sensor, or the operation of the device is stopped. .

An embodiment of the present invention will be described in detail below based on the accompanying drawings.

FIG. 1 shows the configuration of a vehicle height adjustment device according to the present invention, and FIG. 2 shows the configuration of a control device.

In FIG. 1, the air circuit system will be explained first.
1 is a compressed air generator, which consists of a compressor 2 and a dryer 3. Reference numeral 4 denotes a switching valve unit, which consists of two switching solenoid valves 5 and 6. The switching valve unit 4 connects the air pipe 7 connected to the compressed air generator 1 to the air pipe connected to the vehicle height adjustment gas chamber formed in the front forks 8, 8 under predetermined control. It has a function of selectively communicating with an air pipe 11 connected to a vehicle height adjusting gas chamber formed in the vehicle height adjustment gas chamber 9 or the rear suspension 10, 10. Specifically, when the solenoid valve 5 opens, the air pipe 7 communicates with the air pipe 9.
When the solenoid valve 6 is opened, the air pipe 7 communicates with the air pipe 11. In the figure, 12 and 13 are 3
It is a directional socket.

As is clear from the above-mentioned front fork 8, 8 and rear action 10, 10, this embodiment will be described as a vehicle height adjustment device for a motorcycle, but the gist of the present invention is limited to a vehicle height adjustment device for a motorcycle. isn't it.

In the middle of the air pipe 7, that is, between the compressor 2 and the switching valve unit 4, there is a check valve 14, a relief solenoid valve 15 that allows release to the atmosphere, and a pressure sensor that can measure the pressure inside the air pipe 7. 16 are installed. In this embodiment, the check valve 14, solenoid valve 15, and pressure sensor 16 are constructed as a unit.

Next, the electric circuit system will be explained. 17 is a control device. The input side elements of the control device 17 include a vehicle height sensor 18 and a voltage abnormality detection sensor 1 as detectors.
9. A side stand release detection sensor 20, a main stand release detection sensor 21, a brake operating state detection sensor 22, and the pressure sensor 16 are provided at appropriate locations on the vehicle body, and a return type automatic Start switch 23, manual front/rear selection switch 24,
Manual up/neutral/down selection switch 25
is provided. On the other hand, the output side of the control device 17 includes the compressor 2, the solenoid valve 15, and the solenoid valves 5 and 6 forming the switching valve unit 4 as controlled objects, and the pressure sensor 16 and the solenoid valve 5 as display elements. , 6 and 15, a lamp 27 that flashes only during automatic vehicle height adjustment, and a pair of digital indicators 28 that separately display the pressure in each gas chamber of the front fork 8 and the rear suspension 10. Be prepared. In the figure, 29 is a power supply terminal, and 30 is a system start switch. The start switch 30 is normally in a closed state, and by opening and closing it once as necessary, the entire vehicle height adjustment system can be reset.

FIG. 2 is a block diagram showing a specific electric circuit of the control system. There is a CPU 31 in the center, and around the CPU 31 there are an input interface 32 for sensors, a vehicle height sensor input interface 33, and an analog input interface to exchange signals with various external sensors, operating means, and loads. Ace 34, A/D converter 35, load drive output circuit 36, lamp output circuit 37, pressure data output circuit 38, display data interface 39, etc. are provided, and these are incorporated into control device 17. In the figure, 40 is a display panel on which display elements are arranged.

Next, the operation of the vehicle height adjusting device having the above configuration will be explained. This operation is based on the control of the CPU 31.

First, the conditions for being able to adjust the vehicle height are that the side stand and main stand are released, the brakes are intact, and the voltage is normal. When these conditions are met and the ignition key is turned on to start the system, the solenoid valve 5,
6, 15 and the pressure sensor 16 are inspected for normality or abnormality. That is, the solenoid valve 15 is opened for about two seconds, for example, to open the air pipe 7 to the atmosphere, and then the pressure inside the air pipe 7 is measured by the pressure sensor 16. If the measured pressure is zero, the system moves to a state where manual vehicle height adjustment is possible, and if it is not zero, the lamp 26 is turned on to issue a warning and the operation of the entire system is stopped.

Note that before the above step, by selectively opening the solenoid valves 5 and 6 as appropriate, the pressure in each gas chamber of the front fork 8 and the rear reaction 10 is measured separately by the pressure sensor 16, and each is displayed on the digital display 28. It is assumed that a step is included to encourage the user. Such steps can be incorporated as part of the processing flow, or can be provided as a separate routine with separate interrupt means. Furthermore, for example, an average value is used as the pressure value to be displayed.

This vehicle height adjustment device can perform manual and automatic vehicle height adjustment, and unless the auto start switch 23 is turned on, the operating state is the manual method.

According to manual vehicle height adjustment, the vehicle height at the front and rear of the vehicle body can be arbitrarily changed within certain limits according to the load applied to the vehicle body. That is, in order to adjust the vehicle height at the front of the vehicle body, the solenoid valve 5 is turned on by setting the switch 24 to the front side.
Switch 24 is opened to connect air pipe 7 and air pipe 9, and to adjust the vehicle height at the rear of the vehicle body.
By setting the solenoid valve 6 to the rear side, the solenoid valve 6 is opened and the air pipe 7 and the air pipe 11 are made to communicate with each other. Then, in each communication state, switch 2
When 5 is set to "up", the compressor 2 is activated and high pressure air is supplied to each gas chamber through the air pipes 7, 9 (or 11), increasing the pressure in the gas chamber and raising the vehicle height. However, the upper limit for the pressure in the gas chamber is for each of the front fork 8 and the reaction 10 (for example, 1.0 for the front fork).
Kg/cm ² (6.4Kg/cm ² for rear suspension), and the vehicle height must be adjusted below the upper limit. The pressure state during adjustment is measured by the pressure sensor 16 at predetermined time intervals and displayed on the digital display 28 each time. Therefore, the driver can visually check changes in the pressure in each gas chamber via the digital display 28, and can therefore arbitrarily and appropriately adjust the vehicle height. On the other hand, when the switch 25 is set to "down", the relief solenoid valve 15
are opened intermittently at regular intervals, the high-pressure air in each gas chamber is gradually released, and the vehicle height is gradually lowered. In this case as well, a lower limit is determined; for example, in the case of the front fork 8 it is 0.0 kg/cm ² but in the case of the rear suspension 10 it is 2.0 kg/cm ² . The pressure state during adjustment is measured by the pressure sensor 16 in the same way as described above, and the pressure value is also displayed on the digital display 28.
will be displayed.

In the above, when the switch 25 is at the neutral position, the vehicle height is not adjusted, and when the switch 25 is set at the neutral position while the vehicle height is being adjusted, the adjustment is stopped. Further, when the switch 25 is in either the "up" or "down" position, the vehicle height adjustment is determined in the initially selected state and does not change even if the switch 24 is switched back and forth. When the vehicle height adjustment is completed, the solenoid valve 5 (or solenoid valve 6) is closed, and then a zero pressure test is performed on the performance of the solenoid valves 5, 6, 15 and the pressure sensor 16 as described above. This pressure zero test is performed every time the vehicle height is adjusted.

Automatic vehicle height adjustment is performed to automatically adjust the vehicle height to an appropriate height while the vehicle is running or stopped. In this vehicle height adjustment device, automatic vehicle height adjustment is applied only to the rear part of the vehicle body, that is, the rear suspension 10, and when the auto start switch 23 is turned on, automatic vehicle height adjustment becomes possible.

According to automatic vehicle height adjustment, a reference vehicle height that is an appropriate vehicle height is determined in advance, and based on this reference vehicle height, the vehicle height is determined to be "OK" according to a signal detected by the vehicle height sensor 18. ”, “HIGH”, “LOW”,
It is configured such that a "stretch cut" signal is input to the control device.

When the auto start switch 23 is turned on,
First, the lamp 27 starts flashing and the solenoid valve 6 opens. Thereafter, the pressure in the gas chamber of the reaction 10 is measured by the pressure sensor 16 and displayed on the digital display 28, and vehicle height information is input from the vehicle height sensor 18. When the vehicle height status is "OK", vehicle height adjustment is not performed. Under the condition that the pressure in the gas chamber does not drop below, for example, 2.0Kg/cm ² when the vehicle height state is "HIGH",
The solenoid valve 15 opens intermittently to gradually lower the vehicle height. When the vehicle height status becomes ``OK'', the vehicle height adjustment is stopped. Next, when the vehicle height state is "LOW", the pressure in the gas chamber is, for example, 6.4
Under the condition that the height does not exceed Kg/cm ² , the vehicle height is raised by activating the compressor 2 and supplying high pressure air to the gas chamber. When the vehicle height status becomes "OK", vehicle height adjustment will be stopped. When the vehicle height state is "extended", such a state may occur when the vehicle falls over, etc., but the CPU 31 is activated after confirming that the "extended" state has continued for a predetermined period of time (for example, 5 seconds or more). This will stop the operation of the entire system that makes up the vehicle height adjustment device.

After each of the above adjustment operations, the solenoid valve 6 is closed, and after that, the solenoid valve 15 is opened for a certain period of time, and then the above-mentioned zero pressure test is performed. When the automatic vehicle height adjustment is completed, the lamp 27 goes out and the vehicle returns to a state in which manual vehicle height adjustment can be performed again.

Note that FIG. 3 is a flowchart showing an example of the procedure of the above-mentioned zero pressure test. SOL15 in the diagram
means the relief solenoid valve 15. In this procedure, the zero pressure test process is repeated twice to be careful. Further, as a prerequisite for performing this zero pressure test, the switching solenoid valves 5 and 6 are in a closed state.

As described above, according to the vehicle height adjustment device according to the present invention, the vehicle height can be adjusted by arbitrarily adjusting the pressure of the gas chamber in the suspension device such as the front fork 8 and the rear suspension 10 under certain limits as necessary. . After that, each time the vehicle height adjustment is completed, the control device
The solenoid valve 5 (or 6) is closed, the relief solenoid valve 15 is then opened for a certain period of time, and the pressure sensor 16 measures the internal pressure of the air pipe 7. Therefore, when there is no gas leakage from the solenoid valves 5 and 6 and the solenoid valve 15 and pressure sensor 16 are normal, atmospheric pressure can be detected, but when atmospheric pressure cannot be detected, an abnormality has occurred in one of the above. There will be. In this way, according to the present invention, it is possible to frequently check whether the components involved in high-pressure air in the vehicle height adjustment device are normal or not.
Abnormalities can be inspected.

In the above, the present invention is applicable to gases other than air,
Of course, the invention can also be applied to vehicle height adjustment devices that use electromagnetic valves other than solenoid valves.

As is clear from the above description, according to the present invention, the performance of the valve member involved in the circulation/blocking of high-pressure air and the performance of the pressure sensor that detects the pressure of the gas chamber that realizes vehicle height adjustment are frequently inspected. This makes it possible to easily diagnose the failure of the vehicle height adjustment device, and to notify the driver in the event of a failure so that such a situation can be dealt with quickly.

[Brief explanation of the drawing]

FIG. 1 is a configuration diagram of a vehicle height adjustment device according to the present invention,
FIG. 2 is a block circuit diagram of the control device, and FIG. 3 is a flowchart of a zero pressure test. In the drawing, 2 is a compressor, 4 is a switching valve unit, 5 and 6 are switching solenoid valves, 8 is a front fork, 10 is a rear action, 15 is a relief solenoid valve, 16 is a pressure sensor,
17 is a control device.

Claims (1)

[Claims] 1. In a vehicle having a vehicle height adjustment function, a suspension system that includes a compressor that generates compressed air, a gas chamber that changes the vehicle height by changing the pressure, and an air system that connects the compressor and the gas chamber. a pipe, an electromagnetic valve provided in the middle of the air pipe for supplying compressed air from the compressor to the gas chamber or exhausting air from the gas chamber, and an electromagnetic valve provided on the upstream side of the electromagnetic valve to 1. A vehicle height adjustment device comprising: an electromagnetic valve that opens to open the atmosphere for a certain period of time after pressure adjustment; and a pressure sensor that measures the internal pressure of the air pipe after opening to the atmosphere.