VEHICLE CONTROL APPARATUS AND VEHICLE CONTROL METHOD

• US 20120108387A1
• Filed: 10/28/2011
• Published: 05/03/2012
• Est. Priority Date: 11/01/2010
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Jatco Limited (Nissan Motor Co., Ltd.), Nissan Motor Co., Ltd.
• Original Assignee: Jatco Limited (Nissan Motor Co., Ltd.)
• Inventors: AKEBONO, Hiromichi, YAMAMOTO, Hideharu, MIURA, Kota, SAITO, Hisashi
• Granted Patent: US 8,393,998 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 477/12
• CPC Class Codes: B60W 10/02 including control of driveline clutches
• CPC Class Codes: B60W 10/08 including control of electric propulsion units, e.g. motors or generators
• 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 20/40 Controlling the engagement or disengagement of prime movers, e.g. for transition between prime movers power-up or power-down of the driveline B60W30/192
• CPC Class Codes: B60W 2510/0241 Clutch slip, i.e. difference between input and output speeds
• CPC Class Codes: B60W 2510/081 Speed
• CPC Class Codes: B60W 2510/083 Torque
• CPC Class Codes: B60W 2520/04 Vehicle stop
• CPC Class Codes: B60W 2520/10 Longitudinal speed
• CPC Class Codes: B60W 2540/10 Accelerator pedal position
• CPC Class Codes: B60W 2540/12 Brake pedal position
• CPC Class Codes: B60W 2552/15 Road slope, i.e. the inclination of a road segment in the longitudinal direction
• CPC Class Codes: B60W 2710/023 Clutch engagement rate
• CPC Class Codes: B60W 2710/025 Clutch slip, i.e. difference between input and output speeds
• CPC Class Codes: B60W 2710/027 Clutch torque
• CPC Class Codes: B60W 2710/0666 Engine torque
• CPC Class Codes: B60W 2710/083 Torque
• CPC Class Codes: B60W 30/18027 Drive off, accelerating from standstill
• CPC Class Codes: B60W 30/18054 at stand still, e.g. engine in idling state hill holding B60W30/18118
• CPC Class Codes: B60W 30/18063 Creeping
• CPC Class Codes: B60W 30/186 : excessive wear or burn out of friction elements, e.g. clutches

Abstract

A hybrid electric vehicle has a first mode in which slippage of a clutch between an electric motor and a driving wheel is allowed and controlled by rotational speed control of the electric motor and a second mode in which the slippage of the clutch is allowed and controlled by rotational speed control of an engine. When the vehicle is stationary in the first mode, a controller reduces a control setpoint of hydraulic pressure of the clutch from an initial point. The controller identifies a reference point of the control setpoint with which actual output torque of the electric motor is substantially constant with respect to the reduction of the control setpoint. Then, the controller increases the control setpoint to a precharge point, and reduces the control setpoint to a corrected point that is lower than or substantially equal to the initial point and higher than the reference point.

Claims

1. A vehicle control apparatus comprising:

an electric motor configured to output a torque for driving a vehicle;

a clutch including an electric motor side element and a driving wheel side element, wherein the electric motor side element is connected to the electric motor and the driving wheel side element is connected to a driving wheel of the vehicle, wherein the clutch is configured to set according to hydraulic pressure a transmitted torque capacity for torque transmission between the electric motor side element and the driving wheel side element, and wherein the hydraulic pressure is regulated to a control setpoint; and

a controller configured to set the control setpoint, wherein the controller is further configured to;

implement a drive mode by allowing slippage between the electric motor side element and the driving wheel side element of the clutch and controlling rotational speed of the electric motor in a manner that the electric motor side element of the clutch rotates faster by a controlled difference than the driving wheel side element of the clutch;

determine whether the vehicle is stationary;

obtain an actual value of the output torque of the electric motor; and

perform a procedure in response to determination that the vehicle is stationary when in the drive mode, wherein the procedure includes;

a first operation of reducing the control setpoint from an initial point;

a second operation of calculating a corrected point of the control setpoint based on a change of the actual value of the output torque of the electric motor with respect to the reduction of the control setpoint by the first operation;

a third operation of setting the control setpoint to a precharge point after the first operation, wherein the precharge point is higher than the corrected point; and

a fourth operation of setting the control setpoint to the corrected point after the third operation.

2. The vehicle control apparatus as claimed in claim 1, wherein the controller is configured to implement the first operation by:

reducing the control setpoint from the initial point;

calculating a target point of the output torque of the electric motor based on the control setpoint; and

reducing the control setpoint based on a difference between the target point of the output torque of the electric motor and the actual value of the output torque of the electric motor after determination that the actual value of the output torque of the electric motor becomes substantially constant with respect to the reduction of the control setpoint from the initial point.

3. The vehicle control apparatus as claimed in claim 1, wherein the controller is configured to reduce the control setpoint from the precharge point to an intermediate point before the fourth operation after the third operation, wherein the intermediate point is lower than the precharge point and higher than the corrected point.

4. The vehicle control apparatus as claimed in claim 3, wherein the controller is configured to:

gradually increase the control setpoint after the reduction from the precharge point; and

set the control setpoint to the corrected point in response to a change in the actual value of the output torque of the electric motor with respect to the gradual increase of the control setpoint.

5. The vehicle control apparatus as claimed in claim 1, wherein the controller is configured to:

identify a reference point of the control setpoint, wherein with the control setpoint set to the reference point, the actual value of the output torque of the electric motor is substantially constant with respect to the reduction of the control setpoint by the first operation; and

determine that the dutch is completely disengaged, in response to the identification of the reference point.

6. The vehicle control apparatus as claimed in claim 5, wherein the controller is configured to:

implement the first operation by reducing the control setpoint from the initial point in a stepwise manner; and

set the control setpoint to the corrected point in response to the identification of the reference point, wherein the corrected point is lower than or substantially equal to the initial point and higher than the reference point.

7. The vehicle control apparatus as claimed in claim 1, wherein the controller is configured to set the corrected point of the control setpoint in manner that the corrected point decreases as the change of the actual value of the output torque of the electric motor with respect to the reduction of the control setpoint by the first operation increases.

8. The vehicle control apparatus as claimed in claim 1, wherein the controller is configured to set the corrected point of the control setpoint in a manner that the corrected point increases as temperature of working fluid of the clutch decreases.

9. A vehicle control method of controlling an object with a controller, wherein the object includes:

an electric motor configured to output a torque for driving a vehicle;

a clutch including an electric motor side element and a driving wheel side element, wherein the electric motor side element is connected to the electric motor and the driving wheel side element is connected to a driving wheel of the vehicle, wherein the clutch is configured to set according to hydraulic pressure a transmitted torque capacity for torque transmission between the electric motor side element and the driving wheel side element, and wherein the hydraulic pressure is regulated to a control setpoint, the vehicle control method comprising;

implementing a drive mode by allowing slippage between the electric motor side element and the driving wheel side element of the clutch and controlling rotational speed of the electric motor in a manner that the electric motor side element of the clutch rotates faster by a controlled difference than the driving wheel side element of the clutch;

determining whether the vehicle is stationary;

obtaining an actual value of the output torque of the electric motor; and

performing a procedure in response to determination that the vehicle is stationary when in the drive mode, wherein the procedure includes;

a first operation of reducing the control setpoint from an initial point;

a second operation of calculating a corrected point of the control setpoint based on a change of the actual value of the output torque of the electric motor with respect to the reduction of the control setpoint by the first operation;

a third operation of setting the control setpoint to a precharge point after the first operation, wherein the precharge point is higher than the corrected point; and

a fourth operation of setting the control setpoint to the corrected point after the third operation.