METHOD AND SYSTEM FOR DETERMINING ENGINE STATE OF A HYBRID ELECTRIC VEHICLE
First Claim
1. A method for controlling on/off states of an engine in a hybrid electric vehicle powertrain, the method comprising the steps of:
- generating a plurality of request state variables based on a comparison of vehicle operating conditions and requirements, each variable indicating an active or inactive status of a plurality of engine requests;
combining at least two request state variables to form a combined request state variable that contains active requests in the at least two request state variables;
simplifying the combined request state variable to eliminate any redundant requests and to resolve any conflicting requests;
providing a final request state variable; and
evaluating the final request state variable to determine whether a change in engine state is desirable.
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Accused Products
Abstract
A method and system of engine state determination includes a plurality of requestors each of which compares vehicle or environmental conditions to a requirement and outputs a request state variable. The requestors are grouped according to function or component and the request state variables are combined and simplified at the output of each group. A state machine receives the final combined and simplified request state, and evaluates it according to the active or inactive status of the requests. The state machine carries out the proper state transition and outputs the desired engine state to engine control algorithms that start or stop the engine as necessary.
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Citations
18 Claims
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1. A method for controlling on/off states of an engine in a hybrid electric vehicle powertrain, the method comprising the steps of:
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generating a plurality of request state variables based on a comparison of vehicle operating conditions and requirements, each variable indicating an active or inactive status of a plurality of engine requests;
combining at least two request state variables to form a combined request state variable that contains active requests in the at least two request state variables;
simplifying the combined request state variable to eliminate any redundant requests and to resolve any conflicting requests;
providing a final request state variable; and
evaluating the final request state variable to determine whether a change in engine state is desirable.
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2. A method of controlling the on/off state of an engine in a hybrid electric vehicle powertrain comprising the following steps:
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generating a plurality of request state variables based on a comparison of vehicle operating conditions and requirements, each variable indicating the active or inactive status of each of a plurality of engine requests, the value of each request state variable being constrained to a set of fundamental request states;
combining at least two request state variables to form a combined request state variable that contains active requests in the at least two request state variables;
simplifying the combined request state variable to eliminate any redundant requests and to resolve any conflicting requests;
providing a final request state variable; and
evaluating the final request state variable to determine whether a change in engine state is desirable. - View Dependent Claims (3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12, 13)
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14. A system for controlling on/off states of an engine in a hybrid electric vehicle powertrain comprising:
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means for generating a plurality of request state variables based on conditions and requirements, each variable indicating the active or inactive states of each of a plurality of engine requests;
means for combining at least two request state variables to form a combined request state variable that contains active requests in the at least two request state variables;
means for simplifying the combined request state variable to eliminate redundant requests and to resolve any conflicting requests;
providing a final request state variable; and
means for evaluating the final request state variable to determine whether a change in engine state is desirable. - View Dependent Claims (16, 18)
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15. A system for controlling the on/off state of an engine in a hybrid electric vehicle powertrain comprising:
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means for generating a plurality of request state variables based on a comparison of vehicle operating conditions and requirements, each variable indicating the active or inactive status of each of a plurality of engine requests, the value of each request state variable being constrained to a set of fundamental request states;
means for combining at least two request state variables to form a combined request state variable that contains active requests in the at least two request state variables;
means for simplifying the combined request state variable to eliminate any redundant requests and to resolve any conflicting requests;
providing a final request state variable; and
means for evaluating the final request state variable to determine whether a change in engine state is desirable. - View Dependent Claims (17)
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Specification