SPEED OPTIMALITY ANALYSIS FOR EVALUATING THE OPTIMALITY OF A POWERTRAIN
First Claim
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1. A vehicle, comprising:
- a powertrain;
an engine control unit (ECU);
one or more sensors configured to generate signals indicating one or more states of the powertrain and to transmit the signals to the ECU; and
a nontransitory computer-readable medium configured to provide a performance data store;
wherein the ECU is configured to;
receive the signals indicating one or more states of the powertrain from the one or more sensors;
calculate at least one fuel rate optimization value based on the received signals; and
store the at least one fuel rate optimization value for the time period in the performance data store.
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Abstract
Systems and methods for improving fuel economy in vehicles such as Class 8 trucks are provided. In some embodiments, signals indicating states of the powertrain are collected and used to generate fuel rate optimization values. Fuel rate optimization values may indicate a difference between optimum fuel flow rates and actual fuel flow rates during a vehicle drive cycle. Recorded fuel rate optimization values may be used to compare different vehicle configurations during testing, and may also be used to evaluate vehicle performance during real-world operation.
22 Citations
20 Claims
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1. A vehicle, comprising:
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a powertrain; an engine control unit (ECU); one or more sensors configured to generate signals indicating one or more states of the powertrain and to transmit the signals to the ECU; and a nontransitory computer-readable medium configured to provide a performance data store; wherein the ECU is configured to; receive the signals indicating one or more states of the powertrain from the one or more sensors; calculate at least one fuel rate optimization value based on the received signals; and store the at least one fuel rate optimization value for the time period in the performance data store. - View Dependent Claims (2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7)
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8. A system for improving fuel economy in a vehicle, the system comprising a vehicle test fixture configured to:
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receive a drive cycle record from a vehicle analysis system, wherein the drive cycle record indicates a time series of vehicle speed and road grade values; exercise a vehicle under test using the vehicle test fixture based on the drive cycle record; receive sensor data from the vehicle, wherein the sensor data indicates, for each time period of a plurality of time periods, at least an engine power and a fuel usage rate; and determine at least one fuel rate optimization value based on the sensor data. - View Dependent Claims (9, 10, 11, 12, 13, 14, 15, 16)
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17. A method for configuring a vehicle to have an optimized fuel usage rate over a drive cycle, the method comprising:
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receiving a set of vehicle configuration records; receiving a drive cycle record, wherein the drive cycle record includes a time series of road grade values and vehicle speed values; for each vehicle configuration record of the set of vehicle configuration records; configuring a test vehicle using the vehicle configuration record; exercising the test vehicle by executing the drive cycle record using a vehicle test fixture; collecting sensor data from the test vehicle while executing the drive cycle; calculating at least one fuel rate optimization value based on the sensor data; and storing the at least one fuel rate optimization value in a performance data store in association with the vehicle configuration record; comparing the fuel rate optimization values in the performance data store; and configuring the vehicle using the vehicle configuration record associated with the highest fuel rate optimization value. - View Dependent Claims (18, 19, 20)
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Specification