METHOD FOR A MORE EFFICIENT USE OF A COMBUSTION ENGINE IN A VEHICLE

• US 20100262343A1
• Filed: 10/26/2007
• Published: 10/14/2010
• Est. Priority Date: 10/26/2007
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Volvo Lastvagnar AB (Volvo AB)
• Original Assignee: Volvo Lastvagnar AB (Volvo AB)
• Inventors: Templin, Peter, Eriksson, Anders
• Granted Patent: US 10,330,029 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 701/54
• CPC Class Codes: B60W 10/06 including control of combustion engines
• CPC Class Codes: B60W 30/1882 characterised by the working point of the engine, e.g. by using engine output chart
• CPC Class Codes: B60W 50/0097 Predicting future conditions
• CPC Class Codes: B60W 50/087 where the control system corrects or modifies a request from the driver
• CPC Class Codes: F02D 2200/701 Information about vehicle position, e.g. from navigation system or GPS signal
• CPC Class Codes: F02D 2250/18 Control of the engine output torque
• CPC Class Codes: F02D 29/02 peculiar to engines driving vehicles; peculiar to engines driving variable pitch propellers
• CPC Class Codes: F02D 31/001 Electric control of rotation speed
• CPC Class Codes: F02D 41/0215 in relation with elements of the transmission
• CPC Class Codes: F16H 2059/363 Rate of change of input shaft speed, e.g. of engine or motor shaft
• CPC Class Codes: F16H 2059/366 Engine or motor speed
• CPC Class Codes: F16H 2061/161 by checking feasibility of shifts, i.e. determine if requested shift can be successfully completed and post shift values are in an acceptable range

Abstract

A method for a more efficient use of a vehicle combustion engine during driving, the vehicle including an automatic step geared transmission. The method includes the steps of sensing current engine rotational speed and engine rotational speed increase, estimating necessary minimum upshift engine rotational speed for a coming gear upshift, registering that the engine rotational speed stops increasing without reaching the minimum upshift engine rotational speed, and where the engine rotational speed stops increasing relatively close to a maximum engine rotational speed where engine efficiency is relatively low and, automatically controlling engine output torque in order to limit the engine rotational speed to a first predetermined engine speed where engine efficiency is relatively high.

Claims

1. A method for a more efficient use of a combustion engine in a vehicle during driving of the vehicle, the vehicle further comprising an automatic step geared transmission for automatic gear ratio adaptation of the gear ratio between the engine rotational speed and rotational speed of driving wheels of the vehicle, comprising:

sensing current engine rotational speed and engine rotational speed increase,

estimating necessary minimum upshift engine rotational speed for a coming gear upshift;

registering that the engine rotational speed stops increasing without reaching the minimum upshift engine rotational speed, and where the engine rotational speed stops increasing relatively close to a maximum engine rotational speed where engine efficiency is relatively low, and

automatically controlling engine output torque in order to limit the engine rotational speed to a first predetermined engine speed where engine efficiency is relatively high.

2. A method as in claim 1, wherein the step of registering that the engine rotational speed stops increasing without reaching the minimum upshift engine rotational speed is performed in advance before reaching the relatively high engine rotational speed where efficiency is relatively low.

3. A method as in claim 2, wherein the registering step performed in advance is done through an estimation based on present prevailing vehicle conditions.

4. A method as in claim 3, wherein the estimation is based on present prevailing vehicle conditions and vehicle conditions estimated likely to occur in near future of the vehicle.

5. A method as in claim 1, wherein the automatic controlling of the engine torque can only be active when a cruise control arranged in the vehicle is active.

6. A method as in claim 1, wherein the automatic controlling of the engine torque can only be active when a first vehicle driving mode is activated, which first driving mode differs from a second driving mode of the vehicle.

7. A method as in claim 1, wherein the automatic controlling of the engine torque is inactivated when a driver of the vehicle demands full power to the driving wheels.

8. A method as in claim 1, wherein the automatic controlling of the engine torque is inactivated when a predetermined vehicle condition is registered.

9. A method as in claim 8, wherein the predetermined vehicle condition is a decrease of vehicle travel resistance to under a first predetermined level.

10. A method as in claim 9, wherein the automatic controlling of the engine torque is activated when the vehicle travel resistance has increased to above a second predetermined level.

11. A method as in claim 1, wherein the automatic controlling of the engine torque is independent of if a driver of the vehicle demands maximum engine output torque or not.

12. A computer programmed with a program code for executing the method as claimed in claim 1.

13. A computer readable medium comprising a program code for executing the method as claimed in claim 1.

14. A computer program product directly loadable into an internal memory in a computer, which computer program product comprises a computer program for executing the method as claimed in claim 1.