Patent ID: 9630623
Date: 2017-04-25
CPC Classifications: B60L,B60T,B60W,B60Y,F16H,Y02T

Claim:
1. A method of operating a speed control system of a vehicle, comprising: detecting an external force acting on the vehicle wherein the external force has a accelerating or decelerating effect on the vehicle; automatically adjusting a rate of change of at least one component of a net torque being applied to one or more wheels of the vehicle to compensate for the accelerating or decelerating effect of the external force on the vehicle, wherein the adjusting step comprises applying a predetermined gain to at least one component of the net torque being applied to one or more wheels of the vehicle, thereby increasing or decreasing the rate at which the at least one component of the net torque is changed, the method further comprising receiving a command to change a set-speed of the speed control system from a first set-speed to a target set-speed that is lower than the first set-speed, the adjusting step comprising adjusting the rate of change of said at least one component of the net torque to decelerate the vehicle to the target set-speed, wherein, where the external force has a decelerating effect as a result of the vehicle ascending a gradient, and if the received command to change the set-speed would result in a rate of change of at least one component of the net torque being applied such that the net torque would be insufficient to maintain vehicle progress up the gradient, the method further comprises decreasing the rate of change of at least one component of the net torque being applied to prevent movement of the vehicle down the gradient.