Patent ID: 11945502
Assignee: FORD GLOBAL TECHNOLOGIES, LLC
Field: Transport (Mechanical engineering)
Classification: CPC B  G | IPC B  G

Claim 15:
16. A vehicle-to-vehicle in-flight energy transfer system, comprising:
a towing vehicle;
a towed vehicle;
a towing device that mechanically connects the towed vehicle and the towing vehicle to allow the towing vehicle to pull the towed vehicle during a towing event; and
a control module programmed to coordinate parking steering maneuvers for achieving a coupled movement of the towing vehicle and the towed vehicle when parking during the towing event,
wherein the control module is programmed to transmit a steering request signal to the towed vehicle during the parking,
wherein the steering request signal includes steering-related data associated with the towing vehicle for instructing the towed vehicle to match a drive wheel turn direction of the towing vehicle;
wherein, as part of the coordinating the parking steering maneuvers, the control module is programed to:
coordinate a first steering-related use case configured to:
instruct a user of the towing vehicle to turn a first set of drive wheels in a first direction toward a curb when parking on a downhill grade of a roadway; and
command the towed vehicle to turn a second set of drive wheels of the towed vehicle in the first direction toward a curb; or

coordinate a second steering-related use case configured to:
instruct the user of the towing vehicle to turn the first set of drive wheels in a second direction away from the curb when parking on an uphill grade of the roadway; and
command the towed vehicle to turn the second set of drive wheels of the towed vehicle in the second direction away from the curb.