Engine control system for hybrid vehicle

• US 6,621,175 B1
• Filed: 03/07/2000
• Issued: 09/16/2003
• Est. Priority Date: 03/09/1999
• Status: Expired due to Fees

• Current Assignee: Honda Giken Kogyo Kabushiki Kaisha (Honda Motor Company)
• Original Assignee: Honda Giken Kogyo Kabushiki Kaisha (Honda Motor Company)
• Inventors: Matsubara, Atsushi, Izumiura, Atsushi, Kitajima, Shinichi, Kuroda, Shigetaka
• Primary Examiner(s): Tamai, Karl
• Assistant Examiner(s): Cuevas, Pedro J.
• Application Number:
  US09/520,164
• Time in Patent Office: 1,288 Days
• Field of Search: 303/191-193, 303/113, 290/40-D-
• US Class Current: 290/40.00D
• CPC Class Codes: B60K 6/48 Parallel type
• CPC Class Codes: B60K 6/543 the transmission being a continuously variable transmission
• CPC Class Codes: B60L 50/15 with additional electric power supply with capacitors charged by engine-driven generators B60L50/40; with batteries charged by engine-driven generators B60L50/61
• 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 10/18 including control of braking systems
• CPC Class Codes: B60W 10/30 including control of auxiliary equipment, e.g. air-conditioning compressors or oil pumps
• 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 20/11 using model predictive control [MPC] strategies, i.e. control methods based on models predicting performance utilising navigation and traffic information in the control strategy B60W20/12
• CPC Class Codes: B60W 2510/182 Brake pressure, e.g. of fluid or between pad and disc
• CPC Class Codes: B60W 2540/12 Brake pedal position
• 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: Y10S 903/903 having energy storing means, e.g. battery, capacitor
• CPC Class Codes: Y10S 903/905 Combustion engine
• CPC Class Codes: Y10S 903/917 with transmission for changing gear ratio
• CPC Class Codes: Y10S 903/918 Continuously variable
• CPC Class Codes: Y10S 903/947 Characterized by control of braking, e.g. blending of regeneration, friction braking

Abstract

An engine control system for a hybrid vehicle having an internal combustion engine and an electric motor as driving force sources, for permitting stopping and starting of the engine in accordance with predetermined drive conditions. The system includes a booster for receiving a negative pressure supplied by an operation of the engine, a pressure detector for detecting a pressure supplied to the brake booster, a throttle-opening state detector for detecting a throttle opening state and an engine-operation enable/disable determining device for determining whether or not to operate the engine when the engine is stopped, based on the throttle opening state detected by the throttle-opening-state detector and the pressure detected by the pressure detector.

Claims

1. An engine control system for a hybrid vehicle having an internal combustion engine and an electric motor as driving force sources, for permitting stopping and starting of said engine in accordance with predetermined drive conditions, comprising:

brake booster for receiving negative pressure supplied by an operation of said engine;

pressure detector for detecting a pressure supplied to said brake booster;

throttle-opening-state detector for detecting a throttle opening state; and

engine-operation enable/disable determining device for determining whether or not to operate said engine when said engine is stopped, based on said throttle opening state detected by said throttle-opening-state detector and said pressure detected by said pressure detector,

wherein said engine-operation enable/disable determining device;

permits said engine to operate when said throttle opening state is other than completely closed;

causes said engine to stop when said throttle opening state is completely closed and said pressure detected by said pressure detector is equal to or less than a predetermined negative pressure which is equal to or less than an atmospheric pressure; and

permits said engine to operate when said throttle opening state is completely closed and said pressure detected by said pressure detector is closer to the atmospheric pressure than the predetermined negative pressure which is equal to or less than the atmospheric pressure.

2. The engine control system according to claim 1, wherein after said engine is restarted, said engine is not stopped until a vehicle speed exceeds a predetermined speed.