The pressure required to increase the steering effort applied by the driver is supplied by a hydraulic pump. In traditional power steering, this pump is driven directly from the vehicle engine.
That is, part of the engine power is spent all the time driving the pump. At times when maximum power steering is required (when changing lanes), engine speed is at a minimum. The performance of the pump is designed precisely for such moments. The faster the driver turns the steering wheel, the higher the pump speed, and hence the volume of liquid pumped by it. At high engine speeds, excess fluid is diverted through the bypass channel. In the new hydraulic booster, the driver is assisted by the same hydraulic pump (gear), but it is only driven by a separate electric motor, and therefore, mechanically is not connected in any way with the engine of the vehicle. In addition, now the gain depends on the angle of the steering wheel. For this, a steering wheel angle sensor is additionally installed above the steering mechanism, which transmits information to the control unit about the angular velocity of the steering wheel. Used receives information about the value of the steering angle on a straight wire. When evaluating the situation in the control unit, the speed of the vehicle is also taken into account. This information is received via the CAN bus. The design of the system is shown in the adjacent diagram.
The power steering reservoir is located in the engine compartment on the left under the headlight.
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