Vehicle and Control Method Thereof

• US 20090005924A1
• Filed: 12/20/2006
• Published: 01/01/2009
• Est. Priority Date: 01/27/2006
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Toyota Jidosha Kabushiki Kaisha (Toyota Motor Corporation)
• Original Assignee: Toyota Jidosha Kabushiki Kaisha (Toyota Motor Corporation)
• Inventors: Hasegawa, Keiko, Tomatsuri, Mamoru, Ando, Daigo, Inoue, Toshio, Fukui, Keita
• Granted Patent: US 8,108,089 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 701/22
• CPC Class Codes: B60K 6/445 Differential gearing distribution type
• CPC Class Codes: B60L 2240/12 Speed
• CPC Class Codes: B60L 2240/44 related to combustion engines
• CPC Class Codes: B60L 2240/486 Operating parameters
• CPC Class Codes: B60L 2240/507 Operating parameters
• CPC Class Codes: B60L 2250/24 by lever actuation
• CPC Class Codes: B60L 2260/26 Transition between different drive modes
• CPC Class Codes: B60L 2260/28 Four wheel or all wheel drive
• CPC Class Codes: B60L 2260/46 by self learning
• CPC Class Codes: B60L 50/16 with provision for separate direct mechanical propulsion
• CPC Class Codes: B60L 50/61 by batteries charged by engine-driven generators, e.g. series hybrid electric vehicles
• CPC Class Codes: B60W 10/06 including control of combustion engines
• CPC Class Codes: B60W 10/10 including control of change-speed gearings
• CPC Class Codes: B60W 20/00 Control systems specially adapted for hybrid vehicles hybrid vehicle design, B60K6/00; electric vehicles B60L
• CPC Class Codes: B60W 20/30 Control strategies involving selection of transmission gear ratio control of change speed gearings, together with other vehicle sub-units B60W10/10; HEV transmission gearing B60K6/36; gearings and control thereof F16H
• CPC Class Codes: B60W 2520/28 Wheel speed
• CPC Class Codes: B60W 2540/16 Ratio selector position
• CPC Class Codes: B60W 2710/06 Combustion engines, Gas turbines
• CPC Class Codes: B60W 2710/065 Idle condition
• CPC Class Codes: B60W 30/18054 at stand still, e.g. engine in idling state hill holding B60W30/18118
• CPC Class Codes: B60W 40/10 : related to vehicle motion
• CPC Class Codes: F02D 41/08 : for idling F02D41/06, F02D41/16 take precedence
• CPC Class Codes: F02D 41/2441 : characterised by the learning conditions
• CPC Class Codes: F02D 41/2451 : characterised by what is learned or calibrated
• CPC Class Codes: F16H 2037/0873 : with switching, e.g. to change ranges
• CPC Class Codes: Y02T 10/62 : Hybrid vehicles
• CPC Class Codes: Y02T 10/70 : Energy storage systems for electromobility, e.g. batteries
• CPC Class Codes: Y02T 10/7072 : Electromobility specific charging systems or methods for batteries, ultracapacitors, supercapacitors or double-layer capacitors

Abstract

When the engine being in an idling operation and it is in a running state (S410, S420), a value 1 is set to a learning-determination flag F1 (step S460) and the learning of the idling control value is performed when the transmission is in the state of Lo gear and it is not immediately after a Hi-Lo shifting has been performed (S430 to S450).

Claims

1. A vehicle comprising:

an internal combustion engine which can output power to an axle side;

an electric motor which can input and output power;

a transmission unit connected to a rotating shaft of said electric motor and said axle side, said transmission unit transmitting power between said rotating shaft and said axle side accompanied by a change of shift range;

a driving-force demand setting module which sets a driving force demand required for said axle;

a learning-determination module which determines whether or not to learn an idling control value, which is a control value of idling operation of said internal combustion engine, based on a predetermined learning condition including a condition that said internal combustion engine is in an idling operation and a condition that the shift range of said transmission unit is a predetermined shift range;

a learning-execution module which executes the learning of said idling control value based on the determination result by said learning-determination module; and

a control unit which, when it is determined not to learn the idling control value by said learning-determination module, controls said internal combustion engine, said electric motor, and said transmission unit such that driving force based on said set driving force demand is output to said axle accompanied by an intermittent operation of said internal combustion engine and a change of shift range of said transmission unit, and when it is determined to learn the idling control value by said learning-determination module, controls said internal combustion engine, said electric motor, and said transmission unit such that driving force based on said set driving force demand is output to said axle accompanied by a continuation of the idling operation of said internal combustion engine within a range in which the idling operation of said internal combustion engine is permitted based on a running condition of the vehicle.

2. A vehicle according to claim 1, wherein said learning-determination module is a module which determines whether or not to learn said idling control value by supposing that said predetermined learning condition is not satisfied when a condition that a predetermined time has not elapsed since the shift range of said transmission unit being changed to said predetermined shift range is satisfied, even when the condition that said internal combustion engine is in an idling operation and the condition that the shift range of said transmission unit is the predetermined shift range are both satisfied.

3. A vehicle according to claim 2, wherein said learning-determination module is a module which determines whether or not to learn said idling control value based on the said predetermined learning condition regardless of whether or not the condition that said predetermined time has not elapsed since the shift range of said transmission unit being changed to said predetermined shift range is satisfied, when a condition that said vehicle is at a standstill is satisfied.

4. A vehicle according to claim 1, wherein said learning-determination module is a module which determines whether or not to learn said idling control value based on said predetermined learning condition regardless of whether or not the condition that the shift range of said transmission unit is the predetermined shift range is satisfied, when a condition that said vehicle is at a standstill is satisfied.

5. A vehicle according to claim 1,

said vehicle comprises an operation-continuation instruction module which determines whether or not it is in a shift-predicted state in which the shift range of the transmission unit is predicted to be changed to the predetermined shift range within a second predetermined time based on the running sate of said vehicle when the shift range of said transmission unit is not the predetermined shift range, and which instructs the continuation of the operation of said internal combustion engine when determining that it is in the shift-predicted state, and wherein

said control unit is a unit which performs control such that the operation of said internal combustion engine is continued when the continuation of the operation of an internal combustion engine is instructed by said operation-continuation instruction module.

6. A vehicle according to claim 5, said vehicle comprising:

a navigation apparatus which outputs a traveling route to a destination instructed by an operator, wherein said operation-continuation instruction module is a module which determines whether or not it is in said shift-predicted state based on at least one of the vehicle speed, vehicle-speed change amount which is the change amount of the vehicle speed, and said output traveling route.

7. A vehicle according to claim 1,

said vehicle comprises a vehicle-speed detection module which detects a vehicle speed;

wherein

said transmission unit is a unit which can change said predetermined shift range with a speedup-side shift range which is a shift range on the speedup side of said predetermined shift range with respect to the vehicle speed,

said vehicle comprising a shift-instruction module which instructs an upshift of the shift range of said transmission unit such that the shift range of said transmission unit is changed from said predetermined shift range to said speedup-side shift range as the detected vehicle speed increases exceeding a first vehicle speed, as well as instructs a downshift of the shift range of said transmission unit such that the shift range of said transmission unit is changed from said speedup-side shift range to said predetermined shift range as the vehicle speed decreases exceeding a second vehicle speed which is not larger than said first vehicle speed, when the learning of the idling control value by said learning-execution module has been finished; and

instructs an upshift of the shift range of said transmission unit as the vehicle speed increases exceeding a third vehicle speed which is larger than said first vehicle speed, as well as instructs a downshift of the shift range of said transmission unit as the vehicle speed decreases exceeding a fourth vehicle speed which is larger than said second vehicle speed and not larger than said third vehicle speed, when the learning of the idling control value by said learning-execution module has not been completed; and

wherein

said control unit is a unit which performs control such that the shift range of said transmission unit is changed based on the instruction by said shift-instruction module.

8. A vehicle according to claim 1, said vehicle comprises an electric power-mechanical power input output mechanism which is connected to an output shaft of said internal combustion engine and said axle side, and inputs and outputs power into and from said output shaft and said drive shaft accompanied by an input and output of electric power and mechanical power.

9. A vehicle according to claim 8, wherein said electric power-mechanical power input output mechanism is a mechanism which comprises:

a three shaft-type power input output module which is connected to three shafts;

the output shaft of said internal combustion engine, said axle, and said rotating shaft, and inputs or outputs power to any one of said three shafts based on the power input or output into or from the remaining two of said three shafts; and

an electric motor which can input or output power into or from said rotating shaft.

10. A control method of a vehicle comprising an internal combustion engine which can output power to an axle side, an electric motor which can input and output power, and a transmission unit which is connected to a rotating shaft of said electric motor, and said axle side, and transmits power between said rotating shaft and said axle side accompanied by a change of a shift range, said control method of a vehicle comprises:

(a) determining whether or not to learn an idling control value which is a control value of the idling operation of said internal combustion engine based on a predetermined learning condition including a condition that said internal combustion engine is in an idling operation and a condition that the shift range of said transmission unit is a predetermined shift range; and

(b) when it is determined not to learn said idling control value, controlling said internal combustion engine, said electric motor, and said transmission unit such that driving force based on a driving force demand required for said axle is output to said axle accompanied by an intermittent operation of said internal combustion engine and a change of shift range of said transmission unit; and

when it is determined to learn said idling control value, controlling said internal combustion engine, said electric motor, and said transmission unit such that a driving force demand required for said axle is output to said axle accompanied by the continuation of the idling operation of said internal combustion engine within a range in which an idling operation of said internal combustion engine is permitted based on the running condition of the vehicle as well as executing the learning of said idling control value.

11. A control method of a vehicle according to claim 10, wherein said (a) is a step which determines whether or not to learn said idling control value by supposing that said predetermined learning condition is not satisfied when a condition that a predetermined time has not elapsed since the shift range of said transmission unit being changed to said predetermined shift range is satisfied, even when the condition that said internal combustion engine is in an idling operation and the condition that the shift range of said transmission unit is the predetermined shift range are both satisfied.

12. A control method of a vehicle according to claim 10, wherein said (a) is a step which determines whether or not to learn said idling control value based on said predetermined learning condition regardless of whether or not the condition that the shift range of said transmission unit is the predetermined shift range is satisfied, when a condition that said vehicle is at a standstill is satisfied.

13. A control method of a vehicle according to claim 10, said method comprising, before said step (b), a step (c) of instructing the continuation of the operation of said internal combustion engine when the shift range of said transmission unit is not the predetermined shift range, when it is determined whether or not to be in a shift-predicted state in which the shift range of said transmission unit is predicted to be changed to said predetermined shift range within a second predetermined time based on a running condition of said vehicle, wherein

said step (b) is a step of controlling the operation of said internal combustion engine to be continued when the continuation of the operation of the internal combustion engine is instructed through said step (c).

14. A control method of a vehicle according to claim 10, wherein

said transmission unit is a unit which can change between said predetermined shift range and a speedup-side shift range which is a shift range on the speedup side of said predetermined shift range with respect to the vehicle speed,

said method comprises a step (d) of:

instructing an upshift of the shift range of said transmission unit such that the shift range of said transmission unit is changed from said predetermined shift range to said speedup-side shift range as the vehicle speed increases exceeding a first vehicle speed, as well as instructing a downshift of the shift range of said transmission unit such that the shift range of said transmission unit is changed from said speedup-side shift range to said predetermined shift range as the vehicle speed decreases exceeding a second vehicle speed which is not larger than said first vehicle speed, when the learning of the idling control value by said step (b) has been completed; and

instructing an upshift of the shift range of said transmission unit as the vehicle speed increases exceeding a third vehicle speed which is larger than said first vehicle speed, as well as instructing a downshift of the shift range of said transmission unit as the vehicle speed decreases exceeding a fourth vehicle speed which is larger than said second vehicle speed and not larger than said third vehicle speed, when the learning of the idling control value by said step (b) has not been completed; and

said step (b) is a step of controlling the shift range of said transmission unit to be changed based on the instruction through said step (d).