A dual motor handwheel actuator assembly for a vehicle includes a housing. A shaft is rotatably mounted with respect to the housing and is configured for attachment of a steering wheel at one end. A first gear is connected to and configured to rotate with the shaft. Each of first and second motors has an output driving a respective output gear. The output gears are engaged with the first gear. Each motor includes a permanent magnet motor that has the same number of poles and stators such that each motor produces the same pattern of cogging torque over a complete mechanical revolution of the motor. The system is arranged so that in an unpowered condition where both motors are undriven at least one part of one of the phases of each motor is short circuited such that both motors provided a braking torque as the driver turns the wheel. The phases that include the short are selected according to the mechanical offset of the two motors relative to the output shaft whereby the effect of torque ripple applied to the output shaft in the braking torque by the first motor is at least partially cancelled by the effect of torque ripple applied to the shaft in the braking torque by the second motor.
DUAL MOTOR HANDWHEEL ACTUATOR ASSEMBLY
2025-01-16
Patent
Electronic Resource
English