Development of the Non-Contact Torque Sensor for EPAS Using Maluss Polarization Law

Abstract

Among the automotive steering systems, an Electric Power Assisted steering (EPAS) system utilizes an electronically controlled electric motor to provide steering assistance to the driver. The key components of the EPAS system are torque sensor, ECU (Electronic Control Unit), and DC Motor. The most important component of the EPAS is the torque sensor. The conventional torque sensor has complicated mechanical mechanism of torque detection. However, we suggest a non-contact torque sensor for EPAS using Maluss polarization law. It was found that the sensor exhibited not only excellent linearity but also superior characteristics of hysteresis, temperature and vibration.