Patent Publication Number: US-2022219676-A1

Title: System and Method For Vehicle Turning Radius Reduction

Description:
TECHNICAL FIELD 
     Example embodiments generally relate to vehicle control technology and, more particularly, relate to a system and method for providing a reduced vehicle turning radius. 
     BACKGROUND 
     Vehicles with a relatively long wheelbase, such as trucks, often also have large turning radiuses. This can make such vehicles difficult to park or maneuver in relatively tight spaces. Such vehicles may also struggle to complete a U-turn in certain situations. Larger front wheel drive vehicles may also face similar issues. 
     Accordingly, it may be desirable to define a strategy for providing turning radius reduction that can be implemented to provide a more satisfying user experience for drivers of these and other vehicles. 
     BRIEF SUMMARY OF SOME EXAMPLES 
     In accordance with an example embodiment, a vehicle control system for a vehicle may be provided. The system may include a controller and a torque control module operably coupled to the controller and to front wheels of a front axle of the vehicle and rear wheels of a rear axle of the vehicle. The controller may also be operably coupled to components and/or sensors of the vehicle to receive information including vehicle wheel speed and steering wheel angle. The torque control module may be operable, responsive to control by the controller, to apply a negative torque to an inside rear wheel during a turn and apply a positive torque to the front axle during the turn to compensate for the negative torque applied to the inside rear wheel to reduce the turn radius based on the steering wheel angle and the vehicle speed. 
     In another example embodiment, a method of providing automated application of turn radius reduction in a driver assist mode is provided. The method may include receiving a mode selection selecting a turning radius reduction mode, receiving steering wheel angle and vehicle speed information to determine if turn radius reduction criteria are met during a turn, in response to the turn radius reduction criteria being met, applying a negative torque to an inside rear wheel, and applying a positive torque to front wheels of the vehicle to compensate for the negative torque applied to the inside rear wheel. 
    
    
     
       BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE SEVERAL VIEWS OF THE DRAWING(S) 
       Having thus described the invention in general terms, reference will now be made to the accompanying drawings, which are not necessarily drawn to scale, and wherein: 
         FIG. 1  illustrates a block diagram of a vehicle control system in accordance with an example embodiment; 
         FIG. 2  illustrates a block diagram of some components of the vehicle control system of  FIG. 1  in accordance with an example embodiment; 
         FIG. 3  illustrates a front wheel drive vehicle performing a reduced radius turn in accordance with an example embodiment; 
         FIG. 4  illustrates a plot of battery electric vehicle tracks during a normal turn and during a turn employing brake-steering of an example embodiment; 
         FIG. 5  illustrates a different battery electric vehicle than that of  FIG. 4  conducting the normal turn and reduced radius turn in accordance with an example embodiment; and 
         FIG. 6  illustrates a method of controlling a vehicle in accordance with an example embodiment. 
     
    
    
     DETAILED DESCRIPTION 
     Some example embodiments now will be described more fully hereinafter with reference to the accompanying drawings, in which some, but not all example embodiments are shown. Indeed, the examples described and pictured herein should not be construed as being limiting as to the scope, applicability or configuration of the present disclosure. Rather, these example embodiments are provided so that this disclosure will satisfy applicable legal requirements. Like reference numerals refer to like elements throughout. Furthermore, as used herein, the term “or” is to be interpreted as a logical operator that results in true whenever one or more of its operands are true. As used herein, operable coupling should be understood to relate to direct or indirect connection that, in either case, enables functional interconnection of components that are operably coupled to each other. 
     As noted above, it may be desirable to define strategies that enable turning radius reduction for large vehicles. That said, strategies that may work in a large vehicle context may also work for other vehicles. Thus, example embodiments are not strictly limited to application in large vehicles. 
     It may be possible to use brake torque to assist in turning radius reduction via what is often referred to as brake-steer, or brake-assisted turning. However, it may be desirable to provide a system capable of improving the performance of brake-steer or brake-assisted turning. Example embodiments may provide such improvement by enabling strategic control of both positive and negative torque applied to the wheels of front and rear axles during a turn. By applying a negative torque to the rear inside wheel during a turn, and applying positive torque to the front wheels to pull the vehicle through the turn, not only can the vehicle turning radius be reduced, but the user experience during the application of the turning radius reduction may also be improved. In this regard, the positive torque may offset the negative torque so that no overall reduction in torque, speed or handling is noticed. In effect, a feed forward value of positive torque may be applied to front wheels to compensate for the negative torque that is applied to the inside rear wheel during a turn. Example embodiments may provide strategic control of the application of torque (both positive and negative) to improve turning radius reduction in terms both of the quantitative changes to the turning radius itself, and also the qualitative changes that are associated with the experience of employing the strategy. 
     Some example embodiments may therefore provide a system that is not only capable of providing reductions in vehicle turning radius, but is further capable of doing so in an automatic fashion that seamless for the driver. In this regard, for example, when enabled by the driver, a controller of the system of example embodiments may be configured to automatically apply negative torque to a rear inside wheel during a tight turn, and apply positive torque to front wheels. The application of such balanced torque may, in some cases, be determined based on or otherwise incorporate or consider wheel slip, which is a measure of the difference in speed between certain wheels. For example, wheel slip may be determined for the rear inside wheel, and may be controlled during application of the turning radius reduction strategy. 
       FIG. 1  illustrates a block diagram of a control system  100  of an example embodiment. The components of the control system  100  may be incorporated into a vehicle  110  (e.g., via being operably coupled to a chassis of the vehicle  110 , various components of the vehicle  110  and/or electronic control systems of the vehicle  110 ). Of note, although the components of  FIG. 1  may be operably coupled to the vehicle  110 , it should be appreciated that such connection may be either direct or indirect. Moreover, some of the components of the control system  100  may be connected to the vehicle  110  via intermediate connections to other components either of the chassis or of other electronic and/or mechanical systems or components. 
     The control system  100  may have a normal mode of operation that includes an input device in the form of control pedals and the steering wheel (or hand wheel). The pedals may include a brake pedal and an accelerator pedal pivotally mounted to the floor of the vehicle  110 , and operable by an operator  125 . The brake pedal may generally be used to provide inputs for control of braking torque, and the accelerator pedal may be used to provide inputs for control of propulsive torque. However, the normal mode of operation may not be desirable for all cases. Moreover, selectable other modes of operation, including one or more off-road driver assistance modes, parking modes, turn assist modes, etc., may also exist. Accordingly, the control system  100  of some example embodiments may further include a user interface  120 . The operator  125  may operate the user interface  120 , which may include or define a mode selector to shift out of the normal mode of operation and into any of the other modes of operation. In one example embodiment, the other modes of operation that can be selected by the operator  125  via the user interface  120  may include a turn assist mode, in which turn radius reduction may be initiated as described in greater detail below. 
     Of note, although the term turn assist mode will generally be referred to herein as being the mode in which example embodiments are performed, the name of the mode in which example embodiments may be applied is not important, and certainly not limiting. As noted above, other terms like brake-steering mode, parking mode, or any other mode in which the functionality described herein is applied, are also possible. 
     The control system  100  of example embodiments may also include the torque control module  130 , which may be part of or otherwise operably coupled to a controller  140 . The torque control module  130  may be configured to determine positive torque (e.g., propulsive torque) and/or negative torque (e.g., brake torque, regenerative torque, etc.) to be applied to the wheels, individually, in pairs or collectively (e.g., depending on driveline state and/or vehicle type) as described herein based on inputs from any or all of the controller  140 , the user interface  120  or other components of the vehicle  110 . In some cases, the controller  140  may be part of an electronic control system of the vehicle  110  that is configured to perform other tasks related or not related to propulsive and braking control or performance management. However, the controller  140  could be a dedicated or standalone controller in some cases. 
     In an example embodiment, the controller  140  may receive information that is used to determine vehicle status from various components or subassemblies  150  of the vehicle  100 . Additionally or alternatively, various sensors that may be operably coupled to the components or subassemblies  150  may be included, and may provide input to the controller  140  that is used in determining vehicle status. Such sensors may be part of a sensor network  160  and sensors of the sensor network  160  may be operably coupled to the controller  140  (and/or the components or subassemblies  150 ) via a vehicle communication bus (e.g., a controller area network (CAN) bus)  165 . 
     The components or subassemblies  150  may include, for example, the steering wheel of the vehicle, a brake assembly, a propulsion system and/or a wheel assembly of the vehicle  110 . The brake assembly may be configured to provide braking inputs to braking components of the vehicle  110  (e.g., friction brakes and electrical methods of braking such as regenerative braking) based on a braking torque determined by the controller  140  and/or torque control module  130 . In some cases, the brake assembly may include an electric brake boost (EBB) system, which uses electric brake boosters to sense driver input and reduce the amount of pedal pressure needed for braking. The propulsion system may include a gas engine, electric motor, or any other suitable propulsion device. 
     The controller  140  and/or torque control module  130  may be configured to determine positive and negative torque inputs for provision to components of a driveline  170  (e.g., driveshaft, differential(s), axle shaft(s), etc.) and wheels  180  of the vehicle  110 . Thus, for example, the torque control module  130  may determine positive torque inputs for provision to the propulsion system to apply propulsive torque to the wheels  180  of the wheel assembly of the vehicle  110  via the driveline  170 , and determine negative torque inputs for provision to the wheels  180  in the form of braking torque, regenerative torque, or the like. Moreover, one or more corresponding sensors of the sensor network  160  that may be operably coupled to the brake assembly and/or the wheel assembly may provide information relating to brake torque, brake torque rate, vehicle velocity, vehicle acceleration, individual wheel speeds, front/rear wheel speeds, vehicle pitch, etc. Other examples of the components or subassemblies  150  and/or corresponding sensors of the sensor network  160  may provide information relating to yaw, lateral G force, steering wheel angle, throttle position, selector button positions associated with chassis and/or vehicle control selections, etc. 
     Accordingly, for example, the controller  140  may be able to receive numerous different parameters, indications and other information that may be related to or indicative of different situations or conditions associated with vehicle status. The controller  140  may also receive information indicative of the intent of the operator  125  (e.g., based on mode selection, steering wheel angle, speed, etc.) relative to control of various aspects of operation of the vehicle  110  and then be configured to use the information received in association with the execution of one or more control algorithms that may be used to provide instructions to the torque control module  130  in order to control application of positive and negative torque to the wheels of the wheel assembly of the vehicle  110 . 
     In an example embodiment, the operator  125  may use the user interface  120  to select the turn assist mode. The user interface  120  may be embodied by an interactive display in the vehicle  110 , and may therefore be a soft switch provided on the display. However, in other examples, the user interface  120  may include a hard switch, a button, key, or other selectable operator located in the cockpit of the vehicle  110 . Selection of the turn assist mode may correspondingly activate the torque control module  130  to provide the automated turning control described herein based on information provided by the components or subassemblies  150  and/or corresponding sensors of the sensor network  160 . More specifically, selection of the turn assist mode may enable control of turning capabilities based on vehicle speed, steering wheel position, and a control of negative torque to an inner rear wheel, while providing a feed forward offsetting positive torque to the front wheels. Operation of the torque control module  130  will be described in greater detail below in reference to  FIG. 2 . 
     As noted above, when the torque control module  130  is active, and automated turning controls have been activated, outputs of the torque control module  130  may be provided to components of the driveline  170  of the vehicle  110 . The controller  140  may therefore receive information to enable the controller  140  to determine a state of the driveline  170  of the vehicle  110 , or the specific driveline characteristics for the type of vehicle involved may be programmed into the algorithms that are executable by the controller  140 . The driveline  170  may include front and rear axles and various drive components for the front and rear axles and/or the components that provide coupling therebetween. Thus, for example, the driveline  170  may include a differential (e.g., a front differential for a front wheel drive vehicle) and gears and/or clutch components that operably couple the front and rear axles (and/or their driving components). In some examples, such as when the vehicle  110  is a battery electric vehicle (BEV), the driveline  170  may include individual electric motors for either each axle or even each wheel. 
     Referring now to  FIG. 2 , operation of the controller  140  and the torque control module  130  will be described in greater detail.  FIG. 2  illustrates a block diagram of various components of the control system  100  in greater detail. In this regard, for example,  FIG. 2  illustrates example interactions between the controller  140  and the torque control module  130  relative to information received thereby (e.g., from the sensor network  160 , from various ones of the components/subassemblies  150 , and/or from the user interface  120 ). Processing circuitry (e.g., a processor  210  and memory  220 ) at the controller  140  may process the information received by running one or more control algorithms. The control algorithms may include instructions that can be stored by the memory  220  for retrieval and execution by the processor  210 . In some cases, the memory  220  may further store one or more tables (e.g., look up tables) and various calculations and/or applications may be executed using information in the tables and/or the information as described herein. 
     The processor  210  may be configured to execute the control algorithms in series or in parallel. However, in an example embodiment, the processor  210  may be configured to execute multiple control algorithms in parallel (e.g., simultaneously) and substantially in real time. The control algorithms may be configured to perform various calculations based on the information received/generated regarding specific conditions of vehicle components. The control algorithms may therefore execute various functions based on the information received, and generate outputs to drive the control of torque applied at the wheels of the vehicle  110  (e.g., individually or in pairs). The torque control module  130  may itself be a control algorithm, or may include control algorithms in the form of functional modules (or sub-modules) configured to perform specific functions for which they are configured relating to control of the vehicle  110  in the manner described herein. Thus, for example, the controller  140  may actually function as the torque control module  130  responsive to executing the control algorithms. However, in other cases, the torque control module  130  may be a component or module of the controller  140 , or an entirely separate component (e.g., including its own corresponding processing circuitry). 
     In an example embodiment, the torque control module  240  may include a turn enhancer or yaw generator  230  that defines a negative torque value  232  for application to an inside rear wheel  234  (e.g., via a braking system  236  of the vehicle  110 ) to generate increased yaw for the vehicle  110  during a turn. The yaw generator  230  may be configured to generate the negative torque value  232  only when a mode selection  240  has been made to place the vehicle  110  (e.g., via its controller  140 ) in the turn assist mode (or other similar mode), and when certain other qualifying conditions have been met (e.g., a trigger event or trigger condition). For example, the yaw generator  230  may further receive inputs including vehicle speed  242  and steering wheel angle  244 . The turn assist mode may, for example, only be operable below a certain or threshold speed (e.g., below 12 miles per hour (mph), or another suitable speed value). Moreover, in some cases, the turn assist mode may only be operable (and therefore the yaw generator  230  only active), when a turn of sufficient magnitude (at the low speed defined by the threshold value for vehicle speed  242 ). For example, the yaw generator  230  may only operate when the steering wheel has been turned to a maximum extent (or to a predetermined angle proximate to the maximum angle) in one direction or the other. Thus, the steering wheel angle  244  and the vehicle speed  242  may only be enabling factors or trigger criteria in some cases for operation of the yaw generator  230 . However, in other cases, the yaw generator  230  may generate the negative torque value  232  based on one or both of the vehicle speed  242  and the steering wheel angle  244 . Thus, for example, a table of torque values may be indexed to corresponding vehicle speed  242  and/or steering wheel angle  244  values to determine the amount of the negative torque value  232 . 
     In some embodiments, alternatively or additionally, the negative torque value  232  may be generated may be generated based on additional or other criteria. For example, a slip table  250  may be provided in some cases in order to generate a slip value  252 . The slip table  250  may include a series of output values that are determined based on respective input values. Based on the respective input values, the slip table  250  may be referenced in order to determine the slip value  230 . As shown in  FIG. 2 , the slip table  250  may consider the vehicle speed  242  and/or the steering wheel angle  244  in order to determine the slip value  252 . The slip value  252  itself may be defined at a value that is just below a peak tire coefficient of friction (which may be referred to as tire Mu). In such examples, if the turn assist mode is selected, if the vehicle speed  242  is below the threshold speed (e.g., 12 mph) and the steering wheel is turned to maximum angle for a given period of time (e.g., held at lock, thereby indicating that the driver is providing steering torque to hold the wheel against the end stop for at least the given period of time), then the slip value  252  may be used by the yaw generator  230  to define the negative torque value  232  to be applied to the inside rear wheel  234 . 
     Since the application of the negative torque value  232  to the inside rear wheel  234  will increase the yaw rate of the vehicle  110  during the turn in progress, the turn radius of the vehicle  110  may be decreased, as desired. However, the provision of the negative torque value  232  (e.g., via regenerative braking or applying friction braking to the inside rear wheel  234  only), will tend to slow the vehicle  110  during the resulting turn, the slowing sensation is felt by the driver, and therefore makes the feeling of the turn less seamless. To generate a more seamless turn, example embodiments may provide a positive torque value  260  to a propulsion system  262  of the vehicle  110  via a compensator  264 . The compensator  264  may be configured to generate a feed forward torque value to offset the negative torque value  232  to thereby make the turn more seamless. The positive torque value  260  may be provided to the propulsion system  262  to apply power, for example, to the front axle or front wheels  266  of the vehicle  110 . Thus, for example, the front wheels  266  of the vehicle  110  may pull the vehicle  110  through the turn while the inside rear wheel  234  has a negative torque applied thereto to increase the yaw rate that can be generated, and thereby also increase the turn rate while avoiding any noticeable change in speed during the turn. 
     In an example embodiment, the compensator  264  may receive an input value indicative of an amount of negative torque actually applied at the inside rear wheel  234 . For example, the compensator  264  may receive an indication of brake pressure  268  being applied at the inside rear wheel  234 . The positive torque value  260  generated by the compensator  264  may therefore be proportional to the brake pressure  268  being exerted at the inside rear wheel  234 . Thus, the positive torque value  260  and the negative torque value  232  may not be set to be equal values, but instead, the positive torque value  260  may be set for a given situation as a value that tends to make the slow down generated by the negative torque value  232  less noticeable while still increasing the rate of the turn (e.g., via increasing the yaw rate of the vehicle  110 ). However, in examples in which each of the front wheels  266  has an individual electric motor (e.g., in the case of some BEVs), the ratio could be set at a one to one ratio. Otherwise, for example, if the brake pressure is 1000 Nm, the amount of the positive torque value  260  may be lower than 1000 Nm. 
     As shown in  FIG. 2 , a brake pedal  270  of the vehicle  110  may be used to provide braking inputs to the braking system  236  (but to both wheels), and an accelerator pedal  272  may be used to provide propulsive inputs to the propulsion system  262  of the vehicle  110 . These inputs may exist in addition to the inputs that are automatically provided by the torque control module  130  described herein. Thus, to the extent the driver operates either or both of the brake pedal  270  and the accelerator pedal  272 , the torque control module  130  may provide its automatic modifications to positive and negative torque in an additive manner with manual inputs, while also being responsive to the changes made via manual inputs by the driver. 
     Of note, the propulsion system  262  of the vehicle could take numerous different forms.  FIGS. 3-5  each illustrate a corresponding different example of the forms that could be taken in some example embodiments. Referring first to  FIG. 3 , a front wheel drive vehicle  300  (as one example of vehicle  110 ) is shown while conducting a turn. A normal (unmodified) turn radius  310  is shown for comparison to a modified turn radius  320 . 
     The front wheel drive vehicle  300  has a front differential  330  and front axle  332  to which front wheels  334  are attached. Power from a drive shaft of the front wheel drive vehicle  300  is provided to the front wheels  334  responsive to the positive torque value  260  discussed above, while the negative torque value  232  is provided in inside rear brake  336 . 
     The modified turn radius  320  illustrates the expected decrease in turn radius that can be expected by applying the negative torque value  232  to the inside rear wheel  340  during the turn. Of note, slip in this example is determined by comparing the speed of the inside rear wheel  340  to a speed of the outside rear wheel  342 . But other ways of determining slip could be used in other examples. As shown in  FIG. 3 , the positive torque value  260  applied to the front wheels  334  pulls the vehicle  300  through the turn while the negative torque value  232  applied to the inside rear wheel  340  increases the yaw rate to cause turning at the modified turn radius  320 , which is smaller than the normal turn radius  310 . 
     Referring now to  FIG. 4 , a BEV  400  (as another example of vehicle  110 ) is shown while conducting a turn. A normal (unmodified) turn radius  410  is shown for comparison to a modified turn radius  420 . The BEV  400  has a front electric motor  430  that drives a front axle  432  (and the front wheels  434  attached thereto) and a rear electric motor  440  that drives a rear axle  442  (and rear wheels  444  attached thereto). The BEV  400  also has a controller  450  (e.g., an example of controller  140 ) that controls the application of power to the front and rear axles  432  and  442 . In an example embodiment, the controller  450  may execute control (e.g., via execution of management software applications) over balancing the application of power to the front electric motor  430  and the rear electric motor  440 . In other words, the controller  450  may provide for a connection (at least from a control perspective) between the front axle  432  and rear axle  442 . 
     Each of the front wheels  434  and rear wheels  444  may also have a corresponding friction brake and/or regenerative brake assembly associated therewith. The inside rear wheel for the turn demonstrated includes a brake assembly  460  that can be individually operated to provide the negative torque value  232  discussed above. When a reduced turning radius is desired, and conditions described above in reference to  FIG. 2  are met, the torque control module  130  described above may operate in similar fashion to the description above. However, since the front and rear axles  432  and  442  are connected (e.g., via software control provided by the controller  450 ), the front and rear axles  432  and  442  may initially be disconnected (e.g., by the controller  450 ) prior to initiating (or during execution of) the reduced turning radius turn. Accordingly, the controller  450  disconnects the front and rear axles  432  and  442  prior to application of the negative torque value  232  to the brake assembly  460  at the inside one of the rear wheels  444 . The controller  450  also manages the application of positive torque value  260  to the front wheels  434  via the front electric motor  430  to compensate for the negative torque value  232 . 
     The modified turn radius  420  illustrates the expected decrease in turn radius that can be expected by applying the negative torque value  232  to the inside one of the rear wheels  444  via the brake assembly  460  during the turn. As shown in  FIG. 4 , the positive torque value  260  applied to the front wheels  434  pulls the vehicle  400  through the turn while the negative torque value  232  applied to the inside one of the rear wheels  444  via the brake assembly  460  increases the yaw rate to cause turning at the modified turn radius  420 , which is smaller than the normal turn radius  410 . 
     Referring now to  FIG. 5 , a BEV  500  (as another example of vehicle  110 ) is shown while conducting a turn. A normal (unmodified) turn radius  510  is shown for comparison to a modified turn radius  520 . The BEV  500  has a separate instance of a front electric motor  530  on the front axle  532  for each respective one of the front wheels  534 . The BEV  500  also has a separate instance of a rear electric motor  540  on the rear axle  542  for each respective one of the rear wheels  544 . The BEV  400  also has a controller  550  (e.g., an example of controller  140 ) that controls the application of power to the front and rear axles  532  and  542 . In an example embodiment, the controller  550  may execute control (e.g., via execution of management software applications) over balancing the application of power to the front electric motors  530  and the rear electric motors  540 . In other words, the controller  550  may provide for a connection (at least from a control perspective) between the front axle  532  and rear axle  542 . 
     Each of the front wheels  534  and rear wheels  544  may also have a corresponding friction brake and/or regenerative brake assembly associated therewith. The inside rear wheel for the turn demonstrated includes a brake assembly  560  that can be individually operated to provide the negative torque value  232  discussed above. When a reduced turning radius is desired, and conditions described above in reference to  FIG. 2  are met, the torque control module  130  described above may operate in similar fashion to the description above. However, since the front and rear axles  532  and  542  are connected (e.g., via software control provided by the controller  550 ), the front and rear axles  532  and  542  may initially be disconnected (e.g., by the controller  550 ) prior to initiating (or during execution of) the reduced turning radius turn. Accordingly, the controller  550  disconnects the front and rear axles  532  and  542  prior to application of the negative torque value  232  to the brake assembly  560  at the inside one of the rear wheels  544 . The controller  550  also manages the application of positive torque value  260  to the front wheels  534  via the front electric motor  530  to compensate for the negative torque value  232 . 
     The modified turn radius  520  illustrates the expected decrease in turn radius that can be expected by applying the negative torque value  232  to the inside one of the rear wheels  544  via the brake assembly  560  during the turn. As shown in  FIG. 4 , the positive torque value  260  applied to the front wheels  534  pulls the BEV  500  through the turn while the negative torque value  232  applied to the inside one of the rear wheels  544  via the brake assembly  560  increases the yaw rate to cause turning at the modified turn radius  520 , which is smaller than the normal turn radius  510 . 
       FIG. 6  illustrates a block diagram of one example method of providing automated application of turn radius reduction in a driver assist mode. The method may include receiving a mode selection selecting a turning radius reduction mode at operation  600 . The method may further include receiving steering wheel angle and vehicle speed information to determine if turn radius reduction criteria are met during a turn at operation  610 . In response to the turn radius reduction criteria being met, the method may further include applying a negative torque to an inside rear wheel at operation  620 , and applying a positive torque to front wheels of the vehicle to compensate for the negative torque applied to the inside rear wheel at operation  630 . In some embodiments, (e.g., if the vehicle  110  is a BEV) the application of negative torque may not be accomplished until disconnection of the rear axle and the front axle at operation  615 . 
     Example embodiments may therefore also include a vehicle control system for reducing turn radius of a vehicle, which may include a controller and a torque control module operably coupled to the controller and to front wheels of a front axle of the vehicle and rear wheels of a rear axle of the vehicle. The controller may also be operably coupled to components and/or sensors of the vehicle to receive information including vehicle wheel speed and steering wheel angle. The torque control module may be operable, responsive to control by the controller, to apply a negative torque to an inside rear wheel during a turn and apply a positive torque to the front axle during the turn to compensate for the negative torque applied to the inside rear wheel to reduce the turn radius based on the steering wheel angle and the vehicle speed. The steering wheel angle and vehicle speed may be merely enabling, or may dictate values of the compensation or individual torque values in various example embodiments. The compensation need not be provided at a 1:1 ratio, although it could be in some cases. In many cases, less positive torque may be applied than the amount of negative torque, but more positive torque is also possible. 
     The system of some embodiments may include additional features, modifications, augmentations and/or the like to achieve further objectives or enhance performance of the system. The additional features, modifications, augmentations and/or the like may be added in any combination with each other. Below is a list of various additional features, modifications, and augmentations that can each be added individually or in any combination with each other. For example, the controller may be configured to control vehicle operation in any of a plurality of operator selectable modes of operation, and the torque control module may be configured to apply the braking torque during the turn responsive to operator selection of a corresponding one of the modes of operation and detection of a trigger event. In an example embodiment, the trigger event may include detecting the steering wheel angle being at a maximum angle that corresponds to a limit of rotation of the steering wheel, and detecting vehicle speed below a threshold speed (e.g., 12 mph). In some cases, the negative torque may be a brake torque applied by a brake assembly that includes a friction brake applied only to the inside rear wheel, while the vehicle is a front wheel drive, gas powered vehicle. In an example embodiment, the vehicle may be a battery electric vehicle, and the controller may disconnect the front axle from the rear axle prior to applying the negative torque to the inside rear wheel. In some cases, the negative torque may be a brake torque applied by a brake assembly including a friction brake applied only to the inside rear wheel. In an example embodiment, the negative torque may be a regenerative torque applied by a brake assembly comprising regenerative brakes. In some cases, the positive torque may be applied to a front electric motor that provides power to both of the front wheels. In an example embodiment, the positive torque may be applied to a first front electric motor that provides power to one of the front wheels and a second front electric motor that provides power to the other of the front wheels. In some cases, the controller may apply the negative torque based on a slip value determined for the inside rear wheel. In an example embodiment, the slip value may be a peak coefficient of friction for the inside rear wheel based on the vehicle speed. In some cases, a value of the positive torque may be determined based on a brake pressure applied to the inside rear wheel. In an example embodiment, the positive torque and the negative torque may be automatically applied additively with other torque applications initiated by the driver via a brake pedal or accelerator pedal of the vehicle. 
     Many modifications and other embodiments of the inventions set forth herein will come to mind to one skilled in the art to which these inventions pertain having the benefit of the teachings presented in the foregoing descriptions and the associated drawings. Therefore, it is to be understood that the inventions are not to be limited to the specific embodiments disclosed and that modifications and other embodiments are intended to be included within the scope of the appended claims. Moreover, although the foregoing descriptions and the associated drawings describe exemplary embodiments in the context of certain exemplary combinations of elements and/or functions, it should be appreciated that different combinations of elements and/or functions may be provided by alternative embodiments without departing from the scope of the appended claims. In this regard, for example, different combinations of elements and/or functions than those explicitly described above are also contemplated as may be set forth in some of the appended claims. In cases where advantages, benefits or solutions to problems are described herein, it should be appreciated that such advantages, benefits and/or solutions may be applicable to some example embodiments, but not necessarily all example embodiments. Thus, any advantages, benefits or solutions described herein should not be thought of as being critical, required or essential to all embodiments or to that which is claimed herein. Although specific terms are employed herein, they are used in a generic and descriptive sense only and not for purposes of limitation.