Patent ID: 11865887
Assignee: DRIV AUTOMOTIVE INC.
Field: Transport (Mechanical engineering)
Classification: CPC B | IPC B

Claim 9:
10. A method of controlling a suspension system of a vehicle, comprising:
connecting a manifold assembly to a plurality of dampers via a plurality of hydraulic circuits and a pump assembly via a pump hydraulic line, the manifold assembly including at least one manifold valve configured to control fluid flow between the pump hydraulic line and the plurality of hydraulic circuits, and the pump assembly including a pump that is arranged in fluid communication with the pump hydraulic line;
setting a target roll stiffness, a target pitch stiffness, and a target pressure in a suspension control unit (SCU) of the suspension system;
monitoring real-time data from at least one onboard sensor or system, the real-time data including data reflecting at least one of fluid pressure within at least one of the hydraulic circuits, damper displacement for at least one of the dampers, lateral acceleration of the vehicle, and longitudinal acceleration of the vehicle;
determining an effective roll stiffness and an effective pitch stiffness of the suspension system based on the real-time data;
determining if the effective roll stiffness is below the target roll stiffness and determining if the effective pitch stiffness is below the target pitch stiffness;
setting a new target pressure in the suspension control unit (SCU) by making a stepwise increase to the target pressure if the effective roll stiffness is determined to be below the target roll stiffness or if the effective pitch stiffness is determined to be below the target pitch stiffness;
opening the at least one manifold valve if the new target pressure is incremented by the suspension control unit (SCU) and energizing the pump in a first direction to pump hydraulic fluid into the hydraulic circuits of the suspension system until the new target pressure is reached;
determining if the effective roll stiffness is above the target roll stiffness and determining if the effective pitch stiffness is above the target pitch stiffness;
setting a new target pressure in the suspension control unit (SCU) by making a stepwise decrease to the target pressure if the effective roll stiffness is determined to be above the target roll stiffness or if the effective pitch stiffness is determined to be above the target pitch stiffness;
opening the at least one manifold valve if the new target pressure is decremented by the suspension control unit (SCU) and energizing the pump in a second direction to pump hydraulic fluid out of the hydraulic circuits of the suspension system until the new target pressure is reached;
closing the at least one manifold valve when the new target pressure is reached; and
reiterating said steps of the method until the effective roll stiffness and the effective pitch stiffness fall within a pre-determined range of the target roll stiffness and the target pitch stiffness.