AUTOMOTIVE ELECTRONICS EC Department

MODULE 4
Automotive Networking –Bus Systems – Classification, Applications in the
vehicle, Coupling of networks, Examples of networked vehicles
(Text 2: Pg. 85-91),
Buses - CAN Bus, LIN Bus, MOST Bus, Bluetooth, Flex Ray, Diagnostic
Interfaces. (Text 2: Pg. 92-151)
Vehicle Motion Control – Typical Cruise Control System, Digital Cruise
Control System, Digital Speed Sensor, Throttle Actuator, Digital Cruise Control
configuration, Cruise Control Electronics (Digital only), Antilock Brake System
(ABS) (Text 1: Chapter 8)

Text Books:
1. William B. Ribbens, “Understanding Automotive Electronics”, 6th Edition,

Elsevier Publishing.
2. Robert Bosch Gmbh (Ed.) Bosch Automotive Electrics and Automotive
Electronics Systems and Components, Networking and Hybrid Drive, 5th
edition, John Wiley& Sons Inc., 2007.
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VEHICLE MOTION CONTROL

INTRODUCTION

 The term vehicle motion refers to its translation along and rotation about all three axes
(i.e., longitudinal, lateral, and vertical). By the term longitudinal axis, we mean the
axis that is parallel to the ground (vehicle at rest) along the length of the car.
 The lateral axis is orthogonal to the longitudinal axis and is also parallel to the ground
(vehicle at rest).
 The vertical axis is orthogonal to both the longitudinal and lateral axes. Rotations of
the vehicle around these three axes correspond to angular displacement of the car
body in roll, yaw, and pitch.
 Roll refers to angular displacement about the longitudinal axis; yaw refers to angular
displacement about the vertical axis; and pitch refers to angular displacement about
the lateral axis.
CRUISE CONTROL SYSTEM

 A cruise control is a closed-loop system that uses feedback of vehicle speed to adjust
throttle position.
 The momentary contact (pushbutton) switch that sets the command speed is denoted
S1

Fig: Cruise Control Configuration

 Also shown in this figure is a disable switch that completely disengages the cruise
control system from the power supply such that throttle control reverts back to the
accelerator pedal. This switch is denoted S2.
 In an actual cruise control system the disable function can be activated in a variety of
ways, including the master power switch for the cruise control system, and a brake
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pedal–activated switch that disables the cruise control any time that the brake pedal is
moved from its rest position.
 The throttle actuator opens and closes the throttle in response to the error between the
desired and actual speed.
 Whenever the actual speed is less than the desired speed the throttle opening is
increased by the actuator, which increases vehicle speed until the error is zero, at
which point the throttle opening remains fixed until either a disturbance occurs or the
driver calls for a new desired speed.

Fig: Cruise Control Block Diagram

 In the cruise control depicted in this figure above, a proportional integral (PI) control
strategy has been assumed. However, there are many cruise control systems still on
the road today with proportional (P) controllers.
 The PI controller is representative of good design for such a control system since it
can reduce speed errors due to disturbances to zero.
 In this strategy an error e is formed by subtracting (electronically) the actual speed Va
from the desired speed Vd :

The controller then electronically generates the actuator signal by combining a term
proportional to the error (KPe) and a term proportional to the integral of the error:

The actuator signal u is a combination of these two terms:

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 The throttle opening is proportional to the value of this actuator signal.

 Assume that the driver has reached the desired speed (say, 60 mph) and activated the
speed set switch.
 If the car is travelling on a level road at the desired speed, then the error is zero and
the throttle remains at a fixed position.
 If the car were then to enter a long hill with a steady positive slope (i.e., a hill going
up) while the throttle is set at the cruise position for level road, the engine will
produce less power than required to maintain that speed on the hill.
 The hill represents a disturbance to the cruise control system.
 The vehicle speed will decrease, thereby introducing an error to the control system.
 This error, in turn, results in an increase in the signal to the actuator, causing an
increase in engine power.
 This increased power results in an increase in speed.
 However, in a proportional control system the speed error is not reduced to zero since
a nonzero error is required so that the engine will produce enough power to balance
the increased load of the disturbance (i.e., the hill).

Fig: Cruise Control Speed Performance

 When the disturbance occurs, the speed drops off and the control system reacts
immediately to increase power.
 However, a certain amount of time is required for the car to accelerate toward the
desired speed.
 As time progresses, the speed reaches a steady value that is less than the desired
speed, thereby accounting for the steady error (es).
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 If the speed increases too rapidly, however, overshoot will occur and the actual speed
will oscillate around the desired speed.
 The amplitude of oscillations decreases by an amount determined by a parameter
called the damping ratio.
 The damping ratio that produces the fastest response without overshoot is called
critical damping.
 A damping ratio less than critically damped is said to be under damped, and one
greater than critically damped is said to be overdamped.

Digital Cruise Control

Fig:Digital Cruise Control System

 The vehicle speed sensor is digital. When the car reaches the desired speed, Sd, the
driver activates the speed set switch.
 At this time, the output of the vehicle speed Sensor is transferred to a storage register.
 The computer continuously reads the actual vehicle speed, Sa, and generates an error,
en, at the sample time, tn (n is an integer). en = Sd - Sa at time tn.
 A control signal, d, is computed that has the following form:
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 This sum, which is computed in the cruise control computer, is then multiplied by the
integral gain KI and added to the most recent error multiplied by the proportional gain
KP to form the control signal.
 This control signal is actually the duty cycle of a square wave (Vc) that is applied to
the throttle actuator.
 The throttle opening increases or decreases as d increases or decreases due to the
action of the throttle actuator.

CRUISE CONTROL ELECTRONICS

Cruise control can be implemented electronically
 with a microcontroller with special-purpose digital electronics or
 with analog electronics
 an electromechanical speed governor.
microprocessor-based cruise control

Fig: Digital Cruise Control Configuration

 The actual program that causes the various calculations to be performed is stored in
read-only memory (ROM).
 Small capacity RAM memory is provided to store the command speed and to store
any temporary calculation results.
 Input from the speed sensor and output to the throttle actuator are handled by the I/O
interface.

Stepper Motor-Based Actuator

 The basic idea for this circuitry is to continuously drive the stepper motor to advance
or retard the throttle in accordance with the control signal that is stored in memory.
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 As the controller periodically updates the actuator control signal, the stepper motor
driver electronics continually adjusts the throttle by an amount determined by the
actuator signal.

Fig: Stepper Motor Actuator for Cruise Control

 This signal is, in effect, a signed number. Sign bit indicates the direction of the
throttle movement (advance or retard).
 The numerical value determines the amount of advance or retard.
 The magnitude of the actuator signal (in binary format) is loaded into a parallel load
serial down-count binary counter.
 The direction of movement is in the form of the sign bit (SB of Figure above).
 The stepper motor is activated by a pair of quadrature phase signals (i.e., signals that
are a quarter of a cycle out of phase) coming from a pair of oscillators.
 To advance the throttle, phase A signal is applied to coil 1 and phase B to coil 2.
 To retard the throttle these phases are each switched to the opposite coil.
 The amount of movement in either direction is determined by the number of cycles of
A and B, one step for each cycle.
 The number of cycles of these two phases is controlled by a logical signal (Z in Figure
above This logical signal is switched high, enabling a pair of AND gates (from the set
A1, A2, A3, A4).
 The length of time that it is switched high determines the number of cycles and
corresponds to the number of steps of the motor.
 The logical variable Z corresponds to the contents of the binary counter being zero.
As long as Z is not zero, a pair of AND gates (A1 and A3, or A2 and A4) is enabled,
permitting phase A and phase B signals to be sent to the stepper motor.
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 The pair of gates enabled is determined by the sign bit.

 When the sign bit is high, A1 and A3 are enabled and the stepper motor advances the
throttle as long as Z is not zero.
 Similarly, when the sign bit is low, A2 and A4are enabled and the stepper motor
retards the throttle.
 To control the number of steps, the controller loads a binary value into the binary
counter.
 With the contents not zero the appropriate pair of AND gates is enabled. When loaded
with data, the binary counter counts down at the frequency of a clock.
 When the countdown reaches zero, the gates are disabled and the stepper motor stops
moving.

Vacuum-Operated Actuator
The driver electronics for a cruise control based on a vacuum-operated system
generates a variable-duty-cycle signal . The duty cycle at any time is proportional to the
control signal.

Fig: Cruise Control Electronics (Analog)

 Op amp 1 is used as an error amplifier.

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 The output of opamp 1 is proportional to the difference between the command speed
and the actual speed.
 The error signal is then used as an input to op amps 2 and 3. Op amp 2 is a
proportional amplifier with a gain of KP = -R2/R1.
 Notice that R1 is variable so that the proportional amplifier gain can be adjusted. Op
amp 3 is an integrator with a gain of KI = -1/R3C.
 Resistor R3 is variable to permit adjustment of the gain.
 The op amp causes a current to flow into capacitor C that is equal to the current
flowing into R3.
 The voltage across R3 is the error amplifier output voltage, Ve. The current in R3 is
found from Ohm’s law to be

 This is identical to the current flowing into the capacitor.

 If the error signal Ve is constant, the current I will be constant and the voltage across
the capacitor will steadily change at a rate proportional to the current flow.
 That is, the capacitor voltage is proportional to the integral of the error signal:

 The output of the integral amplifier, VI, increases or decreases with time depending
on whether Ve is above or below zero volts.
 The voltage VI is steady or unchanging only when the error is exactly zero
 Even a small error (e.g., due to a disturbance) causes VI to change to correct for the
error.
 The outputs of the proportional and integral amplifiers are added using a summing
amplifier, op amp 4.
 The summing amplifier adds voltages VP and VI and inverts the resulting sum.
 The inversion is necessary because both the proportional and integral amplifiers invert
their input signals while providing amplification.
 Inverting the sum restores the correct sense, or polarity, to the control signal.
 The summing amplifier op amp produces an analog voltage, Vs,that must be
converted to a duty-cycle signal before it can drive the throttle actuator. A voltage-to-
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duty-cycle converter is used whose output directly drives the throttle actuator
solenoid.

Figure 8.10b Typical Sample-and-Hold Circuit

 Two switches, S1 and S2, are shown in Figure 8.10a. Switch S1 is operated by the
driver to set the desired speed.
 It signals the sample-and-hold electronics sample the present vehicle speed and hold
that value. Voltage VI, representing the vehicle speed at which the driver wishes to set
the cruise controller, is sampled and it charges capacitor C.
 A very high input impedance amplifier detects the voltage on the capacitor without
causing the charge on the capacitor to “leak” off.
 The output from this amplifier is a voltage, Vs, proportional to the command speed
that is sent to the error amplifier.
 Switch S2 is used to disable the speed controller by interrupting the control signal to
the throttle actuator.
 Switch S2 disables the system whenever the ignition is turned off, the controller is
turned off, or the brake pedal is pressed.
 The controller is switched on when the driver presses the speed set switch S1.
TRIP INFORMATION COMPUTER
The trip information computer analyzes fuel flow, vehicle speed, and fuel tank
quantities, and then calculates information such as miles to empty, average fuel economy, and
estimated arrival time.
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Figure 9.27 Trip Information System

The vehicle inputs to this system come from the three sensors that measure the
following variables:
1. Quantity of fuel remaining in the tank
2. Instantaneous fuel flow rate
3. Vehicle speed
Other inputs that are obtained by the computer from other parts of the control system are
1. Odometer mileage
2. Time (from clock in the computer)
The driver enters inputs to the system through the keyboard. At the beginning of a trip, the
driver initializes the system and enters the total trip distance and fuel cost. At any time during
the trip, the driver can use the keyboard to ask for information to be displayed. The system
computes a particular trip parameter from the input data.

where
S is the speed in miles per hour
F is the fuel consumption rate in gallons per hour
Another important trip parameter that this system can display is the miles to empty fuel tank,
D. This can be found by calculating
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where Q is the quantity of fuel remaining in gallons. Since D depends on MPG, it also
changes as operating conditions change.
Another pair of parameters that can be calculated and displayed by this system are distance to
destination, Dd, and estimated time of arrival, ETA. These can be found by computing

where
DT is the trip distance (entered by the driver)
DP is the present position (in miles traveled since start)
S is the present vehicle speed
T1 is the start time
The average fuel cost per mile C can be found by calculatin

OCCUPANT PROTECTION SYSTEMS

The airbag system has a means of detecting when a crash occurs that is essentially
based on deceleration along the longitudinal car axis. Once a crash has been detected, a
flexible bag is rapidly inflated with a gas that is released from a container by electrically
igniting a chemical compound. Ideally, the airbag inflates in sufficient time to act as a
cushion for the driver (or passenger) as he or she is thrown forward during the crash.
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Figure 10.18 Airbag Deployment System

The switches SW1 and SW2 are placed in two separate locations in the car. Typically,
one is located near the front of the car and one in or near the front of the passenger
compartment Under normal driving conditions the spring holds the movable mass against a
stop and the switch contacts remain open. During a crash the force of acceleration acting on
the mass is sufficient to overcome the spring force and move the mass. For sufficiently high
car deceleration, the mass moves forward to close the switch contacts. In a real collision at
sufficient speed, both switch masses will move to close the switch contacts, thereby
completing the circuit and igniting the chemical compound to inflate the airbag. Figure
10.18b also shows a capacitor connected in parallel with the battery. This capacitor is
typically located in the passenger compartment. It has sufficient capacity that in the event the
car battery is destroyed early in the crash, it can supply enough current to ignite the squib.
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Figure 10.19 Accelerometer-Based Airbag System

The accelerometers A1 and A2 are placed at locations similar to where the switches
SW1 and SW2 described above are located. Each accelerometer outputs a signal that is
proportional to acceleration (deceleration) along its sensitive axis. However, during a
collision at a sufficiently high speed the signal increases rapidly. Signal processing can be
employed to
Enhance the collision signature in relation to the normal driving signal. Such signal
processing must be carefully designed to minimize time delay of the output relative to the
collision deceleration signal. After being processed, the deceleration signal is compared with
a threshold level. As long as the processed signal is less than this threshold the driver circuit
remains deactivated. However, when this signal exceeds the threshold, the driver circuit
sends a current of sufficient strength to activate the chemical and inflate the airbag.
Computer-Based Instrumentation System

 Fig: Computer-Based Instrumentation System

 The primary motivation for computer-based instrumentation is the great flexibility
offered in the design of the instrument panel.
 All measurements from the various sensors and switches are processed in a special-
purpose digital computer.
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 The processed signals are routed to the appropriate display or warning message.
 It is common practice in modern automotive instrumentation to integrate the display
or warning in a single module that may include both solid-state alphanumeric display,
lamps for illuminating specific messages, and traditional electromechanical indicators.
 For convenience, this display will be termed the instrument panel (IP).
 The inputs to the instrumentation computer include sensors (or switches) for
measuring (or sensing) various vehicle variables as well as diagnostic inputs from the
other critical electronic subsystems.
 The vehicle status sensors may include any of the following:
o 1.Fuel quantity
o 2. Fuel pump pressure
o 3. Fuel flow rate
o 4. Vehicle speed
o 5. Oil pressure
o 6. Oil quantity
o 7. Coolant temperature
o 8. Outside ambient temperature
o 9. Windshield washer fluid quantity
o 10. Brake fluid quantity
 An important function of modern instrumentation systems is to receive diagnostic
information from certain subsystems and to display appropriate warning messages to
the driver.
 The powertrain control system, for example, continuously performs self-diagnosis
operations.
 If a problem has been detected, a fault code is set indicating the nature and location of
the fault. This code is transmitted to the instrumentation system via a power train
digital data line (PDDL in Figure above).
 This code is interpreted in the instrumentation computer and a “Check Engine”
warning message is displayed.
INPUT AND OUTPUT SIGNAL CONVERSION

 Most sensors provide an analog output, whereas computers require digital inputs. A/D
converters convert analog signals to digital codes appropriate for signal processing by
the computer.
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Fig: Analog-to-Digital Conversion

 The analog inputs must all be converted to digital format using an analog to digital
(A/D) converter
 The conversion process requires an amount of time that depends primarily on the
A/D converter.
 After the conversion is complete, the digital output generated by the A/D converter is
the closest possible approximation to the equivalent analog voltage, using an M-bit
binary number (where M is chosen by the designer and is normally between 8 and 32).
 The A/D converter then signals the computer by changing the logic state on a separate
lead

Figure : Digital-to-Analog Conversion

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 When an analog output signal is required to drive an analog display, a D/A converter
is used.
 The D/A converter generates a voltage that is proportional to the binary number that
the computer sends to the converter
 The eight digital output leads (M = 8 in this example) transfer the results of the signal
processing to a D/A converter. When the transfer is complete, the computer signals
the D/A converter to start converting.
 The D/A output generates a voltage that is proportional to the binary number in the
computer output.
 A low-pass filter (which could be as simple as a capacitor) is often connected across
the D/A output to smooth the analog output between samples.
 The sampling of the sensor output, A/D conversion, digital signal processing, and
D/A conversion all take place during the time slot allotted for the measurement of the
variable in a sampling time sequence.
SAMPLING

This process of measuring a quantity intermittently is called sampling, and the time between
successive samples of the same quantity is called the sample period.

Figure: Sequential Sampling

 One possible scheme for measuring several variables by this process is to sample each
quantity sequentially,
 This method is satisfactory as long as the sample period is small compared with the
time in which any quantity changes appreciably.
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 Certain quantities, such as coolant temperature and fuel quantity, change very slowly
with time. For such variables, a sample period of a few seconds or longer is often
adequate.
 variables such as vehicle speed, battery charge, and fuel consumption rate change
relatively quickly and require a much shorter sample period, perhaps every second or
every few tenths of a second.
 To accommodate the various rates of change of the automotive variables being
measured, the sample period varies from one quantity to another.
 The most rapidly changing quantities are sampled with a very short sample period,
whereas those that change slowly are sampled with a long sample period.
 the time slot allotted for each quantity must be long enough to complete the
measurement and any A/D or D/A conversion required.
FUEL QUANTITY MEASUREMENT

 During a measurement of fuel quantity, the MUX switch functionally connects the
computer input to the fuel quantity sensor,
 This sensor output is converted to digital format and then sent to the computer for
signal processing.

Fig: Fuel Quantity Measurement

 .
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Fig: Fuel Quantity Sensor

 The sensor is mounted so that the float remains laterally near the centre of the tank for
all fuel levels.
 A constant current passes through the sensor potentiometer, since it is connected
directly across the regulated voltage source.
 The potentiometer is used as a voltage divider so that the voltage at the wiper arm is
related to the float position, which is determined by fuel level.
 The sensor output voltage is not directly proportional to fuel quantity in gallons
because of the complex shape of the fuel tank.
 The computer memory contains the functional relationship between sensor voltage (in
binary number equivalent) and fuel quantity for the particular fuel tank used on the
vehicle.

COOLANT TEMPERATURE MEASUREMENT

 To measure coolant temperature, the sensor output from a thermistor is converted into
a digital signal and compared to a maximum safe value stored in memory.
 The coolant temperature sensor used in most cars is a solid-state sensor called a
thermistor
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Fig: Coolant Temperature Measurement

Fig: Coolant Temperature Sensor

 The sensor output voltage is sampled during the appropriate time slot and is converted
to a binary number equivalent by the A/D converter.
 The computer compares this binary number to the one stored in memory that
corresponds to the high temperature limit.
 If the coolant temperature exceeds the limit, an output signal is generated that
activates the warning indicator.
 If the limit is not exceeded, the output signal is not generated and the warning
message is not activated.
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 A proportional display of actual temperature can be used if the memory contains a

cross-reference table between sensor output voltage and the corresponding
temperature, similar to that described for the quantity table.
OIL PRESSURE MEASUREMENT

Fig: Oil Pressure Measurement

 Oil pressure warning systems use a variable resistance sensor as part of a voltage
divider.
 This arrangement provides a varying voltage that corresponds to changes in oil
pressure.
 Whenever the oil pressure is outside allowable limits, a warning message is displayed
to the driver.
 The simplest oil pressure warning system involves a spring-loaded switch connected
to a diaphragm.
 The switch assembly is mounted in one of the oil passage ways such that the
diaphragm is exposed directly to the oil pressure.
 The force developed on the diaphragm by the oil pressure is sufficient to overcome
the spring and to hold the switch open as long as the oil pressure exceeds the lower
limit.
 Whenever the oil pressure falls below this limit the spring force is sufficient to close
the switch.
 Switch closure is used to switch on the low oil pressure warning message lamp.
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 One of the deficiencies of this simple switch-based oil pressure warning system is that
it has a single fixed low oil pressure limit. In fact, the threshold oil pressure for safe
operation varies with engine load.
 Whereas a relatively low oil pressure can protect bearing surfaces at low loads (e.g.,
at idle), a proportionately higher oil pressure threshold is required with increasing
load.

Fig: Oil Pressure Sensor

 A voltage is developed across a fixed resistance connected in series with the sensor
that is proportional to oil pressure.
 It should be noted that this assumed pressure sensor is hypothetical and used only for
illustrative purposes.
 During the measurement time slot, the oil pressure sensor voltage is sampled through
the MUX switch and converted to a binary number in the A/D converter.
 The computer reads this binary number and compares it with the binary number in
memory for the allowed oil pressure limits.
 The oil pressure limit is determined from load or crankshaft speed measurements that
 are already available in the engine control system.
 These measurement data can be sent to the instrument subsystem via the PDDL .
 These measurements serve as the address for a ROM lookup table to find the oil
pressure limit.
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 If the oil pressure is below the allowed lower limit or above the allowed upper limit,
an output signal is generated that activates the oil pressure warning light through the
DEMUX.
VEHICLE SPEED MEASUREMENT

Fig: Vehicle Speed Measurement

 Digital measurement of vehicle speed is possible using a binary counter and a sensor
having an output signal frequency that is proportional to speed.
 A sensor of this type is assumed to be used for car speed measurements.
 The output of this sensor is a binary number, P, which is proportional to car speed S.
 This binary number is contained in the output of a binary counter.
 The computer reads the number P in the binary counter, and then resets the counter to
zero to prepare it for the next count.
 After performing computations and filtering, the computer generates a signal for the
display to indicate the vehicle speed.
 A digital display can be directly driven by the computer.
 Either mph or kph may be selected.
 If an analog display is used, a D/A converter must drive the display. Both mph and
kph usually are calibrated on an analog scale.
DISPLAY DEVICES
ABS: IN FIRST MODULE
ELECTRONIC SUSPENSION
ELECTRONIC STEERING