A surface electromyography controlled steering assistance interface

Purpose–Two-handed automobile steering at low vehicle speeds may lead to reduced steering ability at large steering wheel angles and shoulder injury at high steering wheel rates(SWRs).As afirst step toward solving these problems,this study aims,firstly,to design a surface electromyography(sEMG)controlled steering assistance interface that enables hands-free steering wheel rotation and,secondly,to validate the effect of this rotation on path-following accuracy.Design/methodology/approach–A total of 24 drivers used biceps brachii sEMG signals to control the steering assistance interface at a maximized SWR in three driving simulator scenarios:U-turn,908 turn and 458 turn.For comparison,the scenarios were repeated with a slower SWR and a game steering wheel in place of the steering assistance interface.The path-following accuracy of the steering assistance interface would be validated if it was at least comparable to that of the game steering wheel.Findings–Overall,the steering assistance interface with a maximized SWR was comparable to a game steering wheel.For the U-turn,908 turn and 458 turn,the sEMG-based human–machine interface(HMI)had median lateral errors of 0.55,0.3 and 0.2 m,respectively,whereas the game steering wheel,respectively,had median lateral errors of 0.7,0.4 and 0.3 m.The higher accuracy of the sEMG-based HMI was statistically significant in the case of the U-turn.Originality/value–Although production automobiles do not use sEMG-based HMIs,and few studies have proposed sEMG controlled steering,the results of the current study warrant further development of a sEMG-based HMI for an actual automobile.

Study on Characteristic of Electric Power Assist Steering System

A pinion-type electric power steering (EPS) equipped on a sedan is reached in this paper. A three-freedom dynamic model of this system is created. The variables affecting assist character is analyzed. The formulas of simpled steering resistance force and the relationship between assist gain and vehicle speed are presented for the first time. Assist character is found based on the parameters of a sedan at last. This assist character is fit for the control rule of the EPS system through analyzing this character. The assist character figure offers reference for system design and control. Furthermore, this research method has generality for assist character of different kinds of vehicles.

Electrical power assisted steering for EVs and HEVs

Electrical power assisted steering (EPAS) is one of the key components, especially for electrical vehicle. It has attracted much attention for their advantages with respect to improved fuel economy and has been widely adopted as automotive power-steering equipment in recent years. EPS (electrical power steering) controllers contain MCU (microprocessor control unit) to implement the complex control algorithms. EPS control strategy development is the core technology of the whole system. To achieve the better performance of driving, both mechanical structures and electrical structures are totally designed as a whole. Model-based development is recommended to software design. There are several trends about EPS’ future, such as high power EPS development, high voltage EPS development and steering-by-wire technology.

Primary studies on integration optimization of differential steering of electric vehicle with motorized wheels based on quality engineering

The model of the differential steering system(DSS) of electric vehicle with motorized wheels and the three-degree-of-freedom dynamic model of vehicle are built.Based on these models,the concepts and quantitative expressions of steering road feel,steering portability and steering stability are proposed.Through integrating the Monte Carlo descriptive sampling,elitist non-dominated sorting genetic algorithm(NSGA-II) and Taguchi robust design method,the system parameters are optimized with steering road feel and steering portability as optimization targets,and steering stability and steering portability as constraints.The simulation results show that the system optimized based on quality engineering can improve the steering road feel,guarantee steering stability and steering portability and thus provide a theoretical basis for the design and optimization of the electric vehicle with motorized wheels system.