Patent ID: 6144910
Filing Date: 2000-11-07
Classification: A01B,Y02P

Abstract:
Apparatus for controlling a land vehicle, comprising:a programmable controller including stored therein data representative of a reference model of the vehicle's performance, said data including vehicle tractive efficiency data which includes parameters on traction characteristics of a vehicle having a chosen wheel and tire combination when moving on a selected land surface;a slave controller operatively connectable to each of a plurality of controllable sub-systems of a said vehicle, and operatively connected to the programmable controller;one or more sensors, operatively connected to the programmable controller, for detecting the performance of said controllable sub-systems; anda comparator for comparing the detected performance of the said controllable sub-systems and the reference model, the controller being operable to control the said sub-systems in dependence on an output of the comparator, characterised in that the reference model is a steady-state model, whereby to permit co-ordinated, automated control of all the said sub-systems.