Methods for Improved Equipment and Vehicle Performance and Energy Efficiency Through Interfaces and Enhanced Extrapolations Using Factors such as the Value of Potential and Kinetic Energy Changes

• US 20140350747A1
• Filed: 03/17/2014
• Published: 11/27/2014
• Est. Priority Date: 03/15/2013
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Michael Gerard Blum
• Original Assignee: Michael Gerard Blum
• Inventors: Blum, Michael Gerard
• Granted Patent: US 9,604,653 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 701/1
• CPC Class Codes: B60W 2556/45 External transmission of data to or from the vehicle
• CPC Class Codes: B60W 50/085 Changing the parameters of the control units, e.g. changing limit values, working points by control input
• CPC Class Codes: B60W 50/087 where the control system corrects or modifies a request from the driver

Abstract

Methods and systems are provided for improving vehicle performance and efficiency. The performance is improved by allowing the user to customize parameters and other features through the use of an interface accessible to the vehicle operator or owner, which enables and encourages development and rewards many stakeholders including vehicle producers and third party vendors (e.g. aftermarket), customers, maintenance service providers, and insurance companies. One form of performance improvement, a novel method of accomplishing an enhanced form of energy efficiency calculation for near real-time display to the operator, is provided in detail.

Claims

1. A method/algorithm allowing a user permission to override configurations or automated control decisions, comprising:

Providing a user access to control variables (e.g. switch states), a presentation of a contract and terms which warn them of general and feature-specific associated risks/consequences, subsystems for logging the response, authenticating, and propagating the information to locations where the vendor and other customers can verify the decisions made.

2. The method of claim 1 wherein the control variables include states of switches, relays, other actuators, output voltages or currents, or content on displays.

3. The method of claim 1 wherein a decision to be overridden involves diesel engine purge cycle timing.

4. The method of claim 1 wherein a decision to be overridden involves hybrid drivetrain battery charging.

5. The method of claim 1 wherein a decision to be overridden involves hybrid drivetrain changing the relative allocations of power to and from subsystems/subcomponents.

6. The method of claim 1 wherein a decision to be overridden involves redirection of energy into smaller capacity fast-charge, fast results storage or larger capacity zones.

7. The method of claim 1 wherein a decision to be overridden involves redirection of energy into different energy storage systems with different characteristics.

8. The method of claim 1 wherein the decision is made for economic or performance reasons

9. The method of claim 1 wherein the decision is made to alter the method of computing the energy usage for a vehicle

10. The method of claim 1 wherein the presentation estimates the degree of risk involved.

11. The method of claim 1 wherein the authentication system offers different levels of access to control. e.g. ‘

parental controls’

12. The method of claim 1 wherein the information is propagated to customers.

13. The method of claim 1 wherein the information is propagated to marketing representatives

14. The method of claim 1 wherein the information is propagated to locations to support manufacturer assertions of blame in the event of customer dissatisfaction.

15. A method for enhanced vehicle efficiency measurement and display, comprising the following steps:

measuring energy consumed over an interval;

measuring distance traveled over the interval,

calculating the extrapolated values (eg range in miles) due to changes in potential and in kinetic energy over the interval,

summing the measured and extrapolated distances,

dividing energy consumed by summed distance components to yield effective energy efficiency

displaying the effective energy efficiency compared to that which could be achieved under different conditions.

16. A method according to claim 15, wherein displaying includes comparison of the effective energy consumed to historical values.

17. A method according to claim 15, further comprising receiving other sensor input data, wherein displaying includes comparison of the effective energy consumed to historical sensor input data.

18. The method of claim 15 wherein the sensors include but are not limited to one of an odometer, speedometer, tachometer, compass, devices or techniques for measuring or estimating fuel or energy remaining, mass of vehicle, GPS, fuel or energy flow, engine or motor load, altitude measurement or estimation, moisture, water, ice or other road conditions.

19. The method of claim 15 wherein the sensors report data on other vehicles.

20. The method of claim 15 wherein the data includes performance data paramaterizing or simulating the performance of energy storage systems (e.g. different batteries) under different conditions,

21. The method of claim 15 wherein the data includes vehicle simulation parameters, and/or subsystem simulation parameters, terrain map(s), external data accessed remotely and which may change, road conditions, traffic conditions, weather conditions, driving profiles e.g. the EPA city cycle, vehicle mass, gear ratios, or engine/motor efficiency curves/data.

22. The method of claim 15 wherein the extrapolation techniques include or involve integration over time and distance, assumptions of constancy in time or distance derivatives of parameter or variables, over an interval, linear interpolation, piecewise integration, assumptions for conditions affecting the result but that are not readily available or convenient to obtain more directly, different units of measure and conversions, look-up tables, access to remote resources, traffic conditions, weather artifacts, reaction to other vehicles, or address vehicle or occupant health diagnostics, sending to one or more displays including any of:

numbers, text, graphics, storage, recall, remote connection, remote databases or personnel, filled black and white or colors, motion, blinking, highlighting, strip charts, graphs.