ELECTRIC VEHICLE AND METHOD OF CONTROLLING THE SAME

• US 20140180520A1
• Filed: 07/09/2012
• Published: 06/26/2014
• Est. Priority Date: 08/08/2011
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Panasonic Intellectual Property Management Co., Ltd. (Panasonic Holdings Corporation)
• Original Assignee: Panasonic Corporation (Panasonic Holdings Corporation)
• Inventors: Kume, Yohei, Shimoda, Tomohiro, Ohta, Akihiro, Tsukada, Shohei, Kawakami, Hideo, Nakamura, Tohru
• Granted Patent: US 8,938,328 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 701/22
• CPC Class Codes: A61G 2203/14 Joysticks
• CPC Class Codes: A61G 5/043 Mid wheel drive
• CPC Class Codes: A61G 5/046 at least three driven wheels
• 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 15/2036 Electric differentials, e.g. for supporting steering vehicles
• CPC Class Codes: B60L 2200/16 Single-axle vehicles
• CPC Class Codes: B60L 2200/34 Wheel chairs
• CPC Class Codes: B60L 2220/46 Wheel motors, i.e. motor connected to only one wheel
• CPC Class Codes: B60L 2240/12 Speed
• CPC Class Codes: B60L 2240/547 Voltage
• CPC Class Codes: B60L 2250/10 by alarm
• CPC Class Codes: B60L 2250/24 by lever actuation
• CPC Class Codes: B60L 2260/28 Four wheel or all wheel drive
• CPC Class Codes: B60L 2260/34 Stabilising upright position of vehicles, e.g. of single axle vehicles
• CPC Class Codes: B60L 2270/145 Structure borne vibrations
• CPC Class Codes: B60L 3/0007 Measures or means for preventing or attenuating collisions
• CPC Class Codes: B60L 3/0023 Detecting, eliminating, remedying or compensating for drive train abnormalities, e.g. failures within the drive train
• CPC Class Codes: B60L 58/12 responding to state of charge [SoC]
• CPC Class Codes: B62B 5/0069 Control
• CPC Class Codes: B62D 51/001 characterised by the vehicle control device mechanical features of control devices in general G05G; arrangements of vehicle control devices in general B60K20/00, B60K23/00, B60K26/00
• CPC Class Codes: B62D 51/002 : comprising safety arrangements safety devices for vehicle propulsion unit control B60K28/00
• CPC Class Codes: B62D 51/04 : the driver walking
• 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 10/72 : Electric energy management in electromobility

Abstract

An electric vehicle which travels by driving actuators includes: a monitor unit which monitors external environment or internal environment of the electric vehicle; an alarm unit which outputs, based on monitoring information obtained by the monitoring unit, a vibration velocity signal indicating velocity which changes in a cycle; a travel information generation unit which calculates a target travel velocity based on a steering direction and a control input provided by an operator of the electric vehicle, and generates travel control information for controlling the actuators based on the target travel velocity; and a control unit which controls the actuators based on the travel control information. The travel information generation unit regenerates the travel control information by adding the vibration velocity signal to the target travel velocity upon receiving the vibration velocity signal.

Claims

1-12. -12. (canceled)

13. An electric vehicle which travels by driving actuators, the electric vehicle comprising:

a monitor unit configured to monitor external environment or internal environment of the electric vehicle;

an alarm unit configured to output a vibration velocity signal indicating velocity and vibration, based on monitoring information obtained by the monitor unit, the velocity being changeable in a cycle, and the vibration being larger when the vibration velocity signal is based on the monitoring information on the external environment of the electric vehicle than when the vibration velocity signal is based on the monitoring information on the internal environment of the electric vehicle;

a travel information generation unit configured to calculate a target travel velocity based on a steering direction and a control input provided by an operator of the electric vehicle, and generate travel control information for controlling the actuators based on the target travel velocity; and

a control unit configured to control the actuators based on the travel control information,

wherein the travel information generation unit is configured to regenerate the travel control information by adding the vibration velocity signal to the target travel velocity upon receiving the vibration velocity signal.

14. The electric vehicle according to claim 13,

wherein the target travel velocity includes a target translational travel velocity which is a target velocity of translational travel of the electric vehicle and a target rotational travel velocity which is a target velocity of rotational travel of the electric vehicle, and

the travel information generation unit is configured to regenerate the travel control information by adding the vibration velocity signal to the target translational travel velocity perpendicularly to a direction of the target velocity of the translational travel upon receiving the vibration velocity signal.

15. The electric vehicle according to claim 13,

wherein the target travel velocity includes a target translational travel velocity which is a target velocity of translational travel of the electric vehicle and a target rotational travel velocity which is a target velocity of rotational travel of the electric vehicle, and

the travel information generation unit is configured to regenerate the travel control information by adding the vibration velocity signal to the target translational travel velocity in a direction of the target translational travel velocity upon receiving the vibration velocity signal.

17. The electric vehicle according to claim 13,

wherein the electric vehicle includes two wheels which are driven independently of each other.

18. The electric vehicle according to claim 13, further comprising

a feedback unit configured to adjust rotation of the actuators, based on a difference between a travel velocity of the electric vehicle and the target travel velocity.

19. The electric vehicle according to claim 13,

wherein the alarm unit is configured to generate vibration velocity signals each having a different wave pattern.

20. The electric vehicle according to claim 13,

wherein the vibration velocity signal generated by the alarm unit oscillates around a reference value and has an even number of change regions on both sides of the reference value.

21. The electric vehicle according to claim 20,

wherein the change regions are each either a first change region or a second change region, the first change region being on one side of the reference value, and the second change region being on the other side of the reference value, and

the alarm unit is configured to generate the vibration velocity signal such that the first change region and the second change region have substantially equal areas.

22. The electric vehicle according to claim 13, further comprising:

a chair part in which the operator is seated and which is capable of vibrating based on the travel control information based on the vibration velocity signal; and

an operation input unit through which the operator provides the control input to the electric vehicle.

16. An electric vehicle which travels by driving actuators, the electric vehicle comprising:

a monitor unit configured to monitor external environment or internal environment of the electric vehicle;

an alarm unit configured to output a vibration velocity signal based on monitoring information obtained by the monitor unit, the vibration velocity signal indicating velocity which changes in a cycle;

a travel information generation unit configured to calculate a target travel velocity based on a steering direction and a control input provided by an operator of the electric vehicle, and generate travel control information for controlling the actuators based on the target travel velocity; and

a control unit configured to control the actuators based on the travel control information,

wherein the target travel velocity includes a target translational travel velocity which is a target velocity of translational travel of the electric vehicle and a target rotational travel velocity which is a target velocity of rotational travel of the electric vehicle, and

the travel information generation unit is configured to regenerate the travel control information by adding the vibration velocity signal to the target translational travel velocity in a direction of the target translational travel velocity upon receiving the vibration velocity signal,

the alarm unit is configured to shift a rotational center of the target rotational travel velocity left of the electric vehicle when the monitor unit detects an obstacle right of the electric vehicle, the obstacle right of the electric vehicle being an example of the external environment, and

the alarm unit is configured to shift the rotational center of the target rotational travel velocity right of the electric vehicle when the monitor unit detects an obstacle left of the electric vehicle, the obstacle left of the electric vehicle being an example of the external environment.

23. A method of controlling an electric vehicle which travels by driving actuators, the method comprising:

monitoring external environment or internal environment of the electric vehicle to obtain monitoring information;

outputting a vibration velocity signal indicating velocity and vibration, based on the monitoring information, the velocity being changeable in a cycle, and the vibration being larger when the vibration velocity signal is based on the monitoring information on the external environment of the electric vehicle than when the vibration velocity signal is based on the monitoring information on the internal environment of the electric vehicle;

calculating a target travel velocity based on a steering direction and a control input provided by an operator of the electric vehicle, generating travel control information for controlling the actuators based on the target travel velocity, and upon receiving the vibration velocity signal, regenerating the travel control information by adding the vibration velocity signal to the target travel velocity; and

controlling the actuators based on the travel control information.