VEHICLE SYSTEM, AND METHOD

• US 20100305794A1
• Filed: 12/21/2007
• Published: 12/02/2010
• Est. Priority Date: 12/22/2006
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Nederlandse Organisatie Voor Toegepast-Natuurwetenschappelijk Onderzoek Tno
• Original Assignee: Nederlandse Organisatie Voor Toegepast-Natuurwetenschappelijk Onderzoek Tno
• Inventors: Foster, Darren Leigh
• Granted Patent: US 8,825,242 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 701/22
• CPC Class Codes: B60L 1/003 to auxiliary motors, e.g. for pumps, compressors
• CPC Class Codes: B60L 15/20 for control of the vehicle or its driving motor to achieve a desired performance, e.g. speed, torque, programmed variation of speed
• CPC Class Codes: B60L 2200/26 Rail vehicles
• CPC Class Codes: B60L 2240/36 Temperature of vehicle components or parts
• CPC Class Codes: B60L 2240/62 Vehicle position
• CPC Class Codes: B60L 2250/10 by alarm
• CPC Class Codes: B60L 2260/56 Temperature prediction, e.g. for pre-cooling
• CPC Class Codes: B60L 50/16 with provision for separate direct mechanical propulsion
• CPC Class Codes: B60L 50/51 characterised by AC-motors
• CPC Class Codes: B60L 58/26 by cooling
• CPC Class Codes: B60L 7/14 for vehicles propelled by ac motors
• CPC Class Codes: B60P 3/20 Refrigerated goods vehicles air treatment of goods space B60H; air-conditioning means for freight cars, isothermic wagons B61D27/0027; superstructures for refrigerated goods vehicles B62D33/048
• CPC Class Codes: B60W 10/06 including control of combustion engines
• CPC Class Codes: B60W 10/08 including control of electric propulsion units, e.g. motors or generators
• CPC Class Codes: B60W 10/30 including control of auxiliary equipment, e.g. air-conditioning compressors or oil pumps
• 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 20/10 Controlling the power contribution of each of the prime movers to meet required power demand
• CPC Class Codes: B60W 2552/20 Road profile, i.e. the change in elevation or curvature of a plurality of continuous road segments
• CPC Class Codes: B60W 2556/50 of positioning data, e.g. GPS [Global Positioning System] data
• CPC Class Codes: B60W 30/18127 Regenerative braking
• CPC Class Codes: Y02T 10/62 : Hybrid vehicles
• CPC Class Codes: Y02T 10/64 : Electric machine technologies in electromobility
• 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
• CPC Class Codes: Y02T 10/72 : Electric energy management in electromobility
• CPC Class Codes: Y02T 90/16 : Information or communication technologies improving the operation of electric vehicles

Abstract

Vehicle system, comprising:—a hybrid powertrain (E, EMG, B) to drive the vehicle system and configured to generate electric energy; and—at least one electrically operable refrigerator unit (R) configured to cool at least one storage compartment of the system; wherein the refrigerator unit (R) is powered by electric energy generated by the hybrid powertrain.

Claims

1. A vehicle system, comprising:

a hybrid powertrain to drive the vehicle system and configured to generate electric energy; and

at least one electrically operable refrigerator unit configured to cool at least one storage compartment of the system;

wherein the refrigerator unit is powered by electric energy generated by the hybrid powertrain,

wherein the storage compartment is different from a driver'"'"'s cabin of the vehicle system, wherein the electrically operable refrigerator unit is configured to cool the storage compartment to a temperature below 10°

C.,

wherein the system comprises a controller configured to control electric power generating and/or consuming components of the hybrid vehicle system, wherein the controller is a modular controller, and the controller is configured such that different control modules can indicate demand for execution of their respective function at the same time, and

wherein the controller is configured to associate at least one refrigerator priority with each refrigerator unit, such that refrigerator priority determines whether or not, or to what extent, the refrigerator unit is allowed to be active during operation.

4. The system according to claim 1, wherein the controller is a modular controller that comprises a plurality of control modules that are configured to control the components to carry out a plurality of respective electric power generating and consuming functions, wherein each control module is associated with one or more respective input variables.

9. The system according to claim 4, wherein the controller is configured to assign or associate an energy budget wo/with each of the control modules, and to alter an amount of energy that is available to a function in the case that the function has used up at least part of its energy budget.

10. The system according to claim 4, wherein the controller is configured such that the control modules are associated with different mutual priorities, wherein each of the control modules is configured to request execution of the respective function depending on the one or more respective input variables, wherein, in the case that more than one module request its function'"'"'s execution, the controller is configured to allow the control module to execute its function that has the highest priority of those control modules requesting their function'"'"'s execution wherein the controller is also configured to schedule operation of the at least one refrigerator unit.

12. The system according to claim 1, wherein the controller is configured to assign a regular refrigeration priority to a first refrigeration function relating to regular refrigeration conditions, and to assign a hybrid powertrain priority to a hybrid powertrain mutex scheduler, the regular refrigeration priority being lower than the hybrid powertrain priority.

13. The system according to claim 12, wherein the controller is configured to assign an emergency refrigeration priority to a second refrigeration function relating to emergency refrigerating conditions, the emergency refrigeration priority being higher than the hybrid powertrain priority.

14. The system according to claim 1, wherein the controller comprises a scheduler to schedule a plurality of power related functions.

15. The system according to claim 14, wherein the scheduler is a mutex scheduler.

16. The system according to claim 14, wherein one of the power related functions has a parallel scheduler configured for scheduling a regular refrigerating function and a powertrain related function.

17. System according to claim 1, wherein the hybrid powertrain has a maximum electric power consumption capacities of all of the vehicles components, that are to be powered by the power generated by the powertrain, wherein the controller is configured to allow or allocate electric power to the various vehicle components such that the maximum amount of available electric power will never be exceeded by the amount of power that is actually allowed or allocated.

19. The system according to claim 1, wherein the refrigerator unit is configured to consume at least 10 kW of powertrain generated energy during its operation, and is configured to cool the storage compartment to a temperature below 10°

C.

24. A method to distribute electric power in a hybrid vehicle system, the method comprising utilizing a system according to claim 1, wherein the refrigerator unit is only electrically powerable.

25. The method according to claim 24, further comprising:

scheduling vehicle functions based on priorities assigned to those functions, to distribute at least part of available electric power, generated by a hybrid drivetrain, to at least one electrically operable refrigerator unit to cool at least one storage compartment.

29. The system of claim 16 wherein the powertrain function is an eDrive function.

2-3. -3. (canceled)

5-8. -8. (canceled)

11. (canceled)

18. (canceled)

20-21. -21. (canceled)

22. A vehicle system comprising:

a powertrain to drive the vehicle system and configured to generate electric energy; and

at least one electrically operable refrigerator unit configured to cool at least one storage compartment of the system;

wherein the refrigerator unit can be powered by electric energy generated by the powertrain, characterised in that the system is configured to estimate or determine future driving conditions that will require above-average electric power consumption in the powertrain during operation. wherein the system is configured to activate the refrigerator unit to provide extra cooling of the compartment before those driving conditions are experienced.

23. The system according to claim 22, wherein the control system is configured to utilize Global Positioning System data to predict the future driving conditions.

26-28. -28. (canceled)