GENERATION CONTROL APPARATUS AND GENERATION CONTROL METHOD

• US 20130274982A1
• Filed: 12/12/2011
• Published: 10/17/2013
• Est. Priority Date: 12/27/2010
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Honda Motor Co., Ltd. (Honda Motor Company)
• Original Assignee: Honda Motor Co., Ltd. (Honda Motor Company)
• Inventors: Tagami, Hiroshi
• Granted Patent: US 8,948,948 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 701/22
• CPC Class Codes: B60K 6/442 Series-parallel switching type
• CPC Class Codes: B60K 6/46 Series type
• CPC Class Codes: B60L 50/61 by batteries charged by engine-driven generators, e.g. series hybrid electric vehicles
• CPC Class Codes: B60L 58/15 Preventing overcharging
• 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 10/26 for electrical energy, e.g. batteries or capacitors
• 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 20/13 in order to stay within battery power input or output limits; in order to prevent overcharging or battery depletion
• CPC Class Codes: B60W 2556/00 Input parameters relating to data
• CPC Class Codes: B60W 2710/244 Charge state
• CPC Class Codes: H02J 2310/48 for electric vehicles [EV] or hybrid vehicles [HEV]
• CPC Class Codes: H02J 7/1446 in response to parameters of a vehicle
• 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
• CPC Class Codes: Y02T 10/92 Energy efficient charging or discharging systems for batteries, ultracapacitors, supercapacitors or double-layer capacitors specially adapted for vehicles
• CPC Class Codes: Y10S 903/93 Conjoint control of different elements

Abstract

There is provided a generation control apparatus for a hybrid vehicle having a second generation mode which controls a generation unit so as to suppress the reduction of a state of charge of a battery, wherein the generation control apparatus activates the generation unit with a high load state in which an electric power that is consumed in the hybrid vehicle over a predetermined period of time becomes larger than a maximum output electric power of the generation unit, while controlling the generation unit to operate in the second generation mode unless the battery reaches the target state of charge and thereafter continues to drive the generation unit until the state of charge of the battery reaches a target state of charge of the battery, when the electric power over the predetermined period of time becomes smaller than the maximum output electric power.

Claims

1. A generation control apparatus for a hybrid vehicle comprising:

a rechargeable battery which supplies electric power to an electric motor which is a drive source of the hybrid vehicle; and

a generation unit having an internal combustion engine and a generator which generates electric power by operation of the internal combustion engine and adapted to supply generated electric power to the electric motor or the battery, wherein;

the generation control apparatus having a second generation mode which controls the generation unit so as to suppress the reduction of a state of charge of the battery; and

the generation control apparatus activates the generation unit with a high load state in which an electric power that is consumed in the hybrid vehicle over a predetermined period of time becomes larger than a maximum output electric power of the generation unit, while controlling the generation unit to operate in the second generation mode unless the battery reaches the target state of charge and thereafter continues to drive the generation unit until the state of charge of the battery reaches a target state of charge of the battery which is set at the high load state, when the electric power that is consumed in the hybrid vehicle over the predetermined period of time becomes smaller than the maximum output electric power of the generation unit.

2. The generation control apparatus as set forth in claim 1, wherein:

the generation control apparatus has a first generation mode for holding the state of charge of the battery; and

the generation control apparatus controls the operation of the generation unit based on the first generation mode after the battery has reached the target state of charge.

10. The generation control apparatus as set forth in claim 1, wherein

when the operation of the generation unit is controlled based on the second generation mode, the generation unit is activated before the battery reaches the target state of charge.

11. A generation control apparatus as set forth in claim 1, wherein

the consumed electric power over the predetermined period of time is an average or accumulated electric power that is consumed in the hybrid vehicle over the predetermined period of time.

3. A generation control apparatus for a hybrid vehicle comprising:

a rechargeable battery which supplies electric power to an electric motor which is a drive source of the hybrid vehicle; and

a generation unit having an internal combustion engine and a generator which generates electric power by operation of the internal combustion engine and adapted to supply generated electric power to the electric motor or the battery;

a zone determination module which determines whether or not an electric power that is consumed in the hybrid vehicle over a predetermined period of time belongs to a high load zone which is equal to or larger than a threshold;

a time counting module which counts a time that has elapsed from a point in time when the consumed electric power over the predetermined period of time departed from the high load zone;

a target state of charge setting module which sets different target states of charge for the battery according to the result of the determination of whether or not the consumed electric power over the predetermined period of time belongs to the high load zone;

a continuation flag setting module which sets a continuation flag to indicate that the determination continues to be held that the consumed electric power over the predetermined period of time belongs to the high load zone in the event that the battery has not yet reached the target state of charge even after the consumed electric power over the predetermined period of time has departed from the high load zone and the time counting module has finished counting the predetermined period of time; and

a generation control module which controls the operation of the generation unit so that the battery reaches the target state of charge by charging the battery using electric power from the generation unit, wherein;

the generation control apparatus has a second generation mode for controlling the generation unit so as to suppress the reduction of the state of charge of the battery;

when the continuation flag indicates that the determination continues to be held that the consumed electric power over the predetermined period of time belongs to the high load zone, the continuation flag setting module holds the state of the continuation flag until the state of charge of the battery reaches the target state of charge which is set by the target state of charge setting module when the zone determination module determines that the consumed electric power over the predetermined period of time belongs to the high load zone; and

the generation control apparatus controls the operation of the generation unit based on the second generation mode in the event that the battery has not yet reached the target state of charge when the zone determination module determines that the consumed electric power over the predetermined period of time belongs to the high load zone.

4. The generation control apparatus as set forth in claim 3, wherein

the generation control apparatus has a first generation mode for holding the state of charge of the battery, and controls the operation of the generation unit based on the first generation mode after the battery has reached the target state of charge.

5. The generation control apparatus as set forth in claim 3, comprising:

a counting module which counts the number of cycles in which the battery is charged to the target state of charge which is set at the high load state by generated electric power from the generation unit, and characterized in that

when the number of cycles counted by the counting module is equal to or larger than a predetermined number of cycles, the target state of charge which is set at the high load state is set as the target state of charge of the battery.

6. The generation control apparatus as set forth in claim 3, wherein

the consumed electric power over the predetermined period of time which results when it is determined to belong to the high load zone by the zone determination module is larger than the maximum output electric power of the generation unit.

7. The generation control apparatus as set forth in claim 3, wherein

the target state of charge setting module calculates a target value which corresponds to the consumed electric power over the predetermined period of time by making use of a table or a calculation expression in relation to the target state of charge in which different target values are set according to electric power, and sets the previous target value as the target state of charge when a target value which is lower than the previous target value is calculated while it is determined by the zone determination module that the consumed electric power over the predetermined period of time belongs to the high load zone.

8. The generation control apparatus as set forth in claim 3, comprising:

a counting module which counts the number of cycles in which the battery is charged to the target state of charge which is set when it is determined that the consumed electric power over the predetermined period of time belongs to the high load zone by generated electric power from the generation unit, wherein

when the number of cycles counted by the counting module is equal to or larger than a predetermined number of cycles, the target state of charge setting module sets the target state of charge which results when it is determined that the consumed electric power over the predetermined period of time belongs to the high load zone.

9. The generation control apparatus as set forth in claim 7, comprising:

a counting module which counts the number of cycles in which the battery is charged to the target state of charge which is set when it is determined that the consumed electric power over the predetermined period of time belongs to the high load zone by generated electric power from the generation unit, wherein

the target value which differs according to the electric power is set so as to become high as the number of cycles increases in the table or the calculation expression, and in that

when the number of cycles counted by the counting module is equal to or larger than a predetermined number of cycles, the target state of charge setting module sets the target state of charge which results when it is determined that the consumed electric power over the predetermined period of time belongs to the high load zone.

12. A generation control method for a hybrid vehicle comprising

a rechargeable battery for supplying electric power to an electric motor which is a drive source of the hybrid vehicle, and a generation unit having an internal combustion engine and a generator which generates electric power by operation of the internal combustion engine and adapted to supply generated electric power to the electric motor or the battery, the method comprising:

activating the generation unit with a high load state in which an electric power that is consumed in the hybrid vehicle over a predetermined period of time becomes larger than a maximum output electric power of the generation unit and thereafter, driving continuously the generation unit until a state of charge of the battery reaches a target state of charge of the battery which is set at the high load state; and

controlling the operation of the generation unit based on a second generation mode for suppressing the reduction of the state of charge of the battery in the event that the battery has not yet reached the target state of charge and controlling the operation of the generation unit based on a first generation mode for holding the state of charge of the battery after the battery has reached the target state of charge.

13. A generation control method for a hybrid vehicle comprising a rechargeable battery for supplying electric power to an electric motor which is a drive source of the hybrid vehicle, and a generation unit having an internal combustion engine and a generator which generates electric power by operation of the internal combustion engine and adapted to supply generated electric power to the electric motor or the battery, the method comprising:

determining whether or not an electric power that is consumed in the hybrid vehicle over a predetermined period of time belongs to a high load zone which is equal to or larger than a threshold;

setting different target states of charge for the battery according to the result of the determination of whether or not the consumed electric power over the predetermined period of time belongs to the high load zone;

controlling the operation of the generation unit so that the battery reaches the target state of charge by charging the battery using electric power from the generation unit;

counting a time that has elapsed from a point in time when the consumed electric power over the predetermined period of time departed from the high load zone;

setting a continuation flag to indicate that the determination continues to be held that the consumed electric power over the predetermined period of time belongs to the high load zone in the event that the battery has not yet reached the target state of charge even after the consumed electric power over the predetermined period of time has departed from the high load zone and the counting of the predetermined period of time has been finished;

when the continuation flag indicates that the determination continues to be held that the consumed electric power over the predetermined period of time belongs to the high load zone, holding the state of the continuation flag until the state of charge of the battery reaches the target state of charge which is set when it is determined that the consumed electric power over the predetermined period of time belongs to the high load zone; and

when it is determined that the consumed electric power over the predetermined period of time belongs to the high load zone, controlling the operation of the generation unit based on a second generation mode for suppressing the reduction of the state of charge of the battery in the event that the battery has not yet reached the target state of charge, and controlling the operation of the generation unit based on a first generation mode for holding the state of charge of the battery after the battery has reached the target state of charge.