IMU-based vehicle load estimation under normal driving conditions

In vehicle load detection and estimation, having an accurate estimate of the height of the Center of Gravity (CG) and the Roll Center (RC) is crucial. In this paper, taking advantage of the availability of Inertial Measurement Units (IMUs) in automotive vehicles, the nominal CG and RC heights are estimated and used for the main purpose of roof load detection. RC estimation is formulated as an Errors-in-Variables regression model. The Total and Corrected Least Squares (TLS and CLS) approaches are applied and a comparison is performed. Using the knowledge of the covariance matrix, CLS provides consistent estimates of the RC height. The estimated RC and CG heights are used to estimate the roof load using a greybox model and the method is applied to measurements from normal driving conditions.