Control system and method for electric vehicle
First Claim
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1. An electric traction vehicle comprising:
- a vehicle platform;
a communication network;
a power source mounted on the vehicle platform;
a plurality of drive wheels rotatably mounted on the vehicle platform;
a plurality of electric motors coupled to respective ones of the plurality of drive wheels;
a plurality of microprocessor-based interface modules coupled to each other by way of the communication network, the plurality of microprocessor-based interface modules also being coupled to the plurality of electric motors and being configured to process input information received by way of the communication network to control the plurality of electric motors.
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Abstract
An electric traction vehicle comprises a vehicle platform, a communication network, a power source mounted on the vehicle platform, a plurality of drive wheels rotatably mounted on the vehicle platform, a plurality of electric motors coupled to respective ones of the plurality of drive wheels, and a plurality of microprocessor-based interface modules coupled to the plurality of electric motors. The interface modules are configured to control the plurality of electric motors and are coupled to each other by way of the communication network.
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Citations
54 Claims
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1. An electric traction vehicle comprising:
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a vehicle platform;
a communication network;
a power source mounted on the vehicle platform;
a plurality of drive wheels rotatably mounted on the vehicle platform;
a plurality of electric motors coupled to respective ones of the plurality of drive wheels;
a plurality of microprocessor-based interface modules coupled to each other by way of the communication network, the plurality of microprocessor-based interface modules also being coupled to the plurality of electric motors and being configured to process input information received by way of the communication network to control the plurality of electric motors. - View Dependent Claims (2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12, 13, 14, 15, 16, 17, 18)
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19. A method of operating an electric traction vehicle, comprising:
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providing the electric traction vehicle, the electric vehicle comprising a vehicle platform, a communication network, a power source mounted on the vehicle platform and connected to an AC bus assembly, a drive wheel rotatably mounted on the vehicle platform, an electric motor coupled to the drive wheel, a first microprocessor-based interface module coupled to the electric motor, and a plurality of additional microprocessor-based interface modules including a second microprocessor-based interface module, the second interface module being coupled to a throttle input device, and the first and second interface modules being coupled to each other by way of the communication network;
receiving a throttle input from the throttle input device, the throttle input being received at the second interface module;
transmitting the throttle input from the second interface module to the first interface module by way of the communication network; and
controlling the electric motor using the first interface module, the first interface module controlling a speed of the electric motor in accordance with the throttle input received from the throttle input device. - View Dependent Claims (20, 21, 22, 23, 24, 25, 26, 27, 28, 29, 30, 31, 32, 33)
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34. A method of generating electric power comprising:
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providing an electric traction vehicle, the electric vehicle comprising a vehicle platform, a communication network, a power source mounted on the vehicle platform and connected to an AC bus assembly, a drive wheel rotatably mounted on the vehicle platform, an electric motor respectively coupled to the drive wheel, a first microprocessor-based interface module coupled to the electric motor, and a plurality of additional microprocessor-based interface modules including a second microprocessor-based interface module, the second interface module being coupled to a throttle input device, and the first and second interface modules being coupled to each other by way of the communication network;
producing electric power using the power source and providing the electric power to the AC bus assembly;
providing power to off-board, electric power-consuming devices using the AC bus assembly, the AC bus assembly providing the power to the off-board devices when the vehicle is stationary and the electric motor is consuming substantially no power from the AC bus assembly, and wherein the AC bus assembly provides three phase power having a frequency of either about 50 Hz or about 60 Hz and a voltage in a range of about 460-480 VAC, and wherein the AC bus assembly provides in excess of 250 kilowatts of power. - View Dependent Claims (35, 36)
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37. A vehicle comprising:
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(A) first and second drive wheels;
(B) a power source;
(C) a power transmission link;
(D) a plurality of input devices;
(E) a plurality of output devices, the plurality of output devices including first and second motor drive systems, the first and second motor drive systems including first and second electric motors, the first and second electric motors being respectively coupled to the first and second drive wheels and being capable of applying torque to the first and second drive wheels to drive motion of the vehicle;
(F) a communication network;
(G) a plurality of microprocessor-based interface modules, the plurality of interface modules being coupled to the power source by way of the power transmission link, the plurality of interface modules being interconnected to each other by way of the communication network, each of the plurality of interface modules being coupled to respective ones of the plurality of input devices and the plurality of output devices by way of respective communication links, the plurality of interface modules cooperating to control the plurality of output devices based on input status information from the plurality of input devices; and
wherein at least one of the plurality of interface modules controls power distribution to the first and second motor drive systems to control a speed of the vehicle.
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38. A vehicle comprising:
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(A) a first drive wheel, the first drive wheel being capable of contacting land and driving motion of the vehicle;
(B) a second drive wheel, the second drive wheel being capable of contacting land and driving motion of the vehicle in cooperation with the first drive wheel;
(C) a fuel cell, the fuel cell being capable of providing electric energy;
(D) a power transmission link;
(E) a plurality of input devices;
(F) a plurality of output devices, the plurality of output devices including (1) a first motor drive system, the first motor drive system including a first servo drive and a first electric motor, the first electric motor being coupled to the first drive wheel and being capable of applying torque to the first drive wheel to drive motion of the vehicle, (2) a second motor drive system, the second motor drive system including a second servo drive and a second electric motor;
(G) a communication network;
(H) a plurality of microprocessor-based interface modules, the plurality of interface modules being coupled to the fuel cell by way of the power transmission link, the plurality of interface modules being interconnected to each other by way of the communication network, each of the plurality of interface modules being coupled to respective ones of the plurality of input devices and the plurality of output devices by way of respective communication links, the plurality of interface modules cooperating to control the plurality of output devices based on input status information from the plurality of input devices, the plurality of interface modules being distributed throughout the vehicle; and
wherein at least one of the plurality of interface modules controls power distribution to the first and second motor drive systems to control a speed of the vehicle.
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39. A control method for a military vehicle having a plurality of input devices and a plurality of output devices, comprising:
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(A) determining desired output states of a first subset of the plurality of output devices based on I/O status information stored in an I/O status table, the determining step being performed by an interface module that comprises the I/O status table, the interface module being coupled to a first subset of the plurality of input devices and the first subset of the plurality of output devices, the first subset of the plurality of output devices including an electric motor that drives forward motion of the military vehicle, the interface module being further coupled to a plurality of additional interface modules by way of a communication network, the plurality of additional interface modules being coupled to a second subset of the plurality of input devices and a second subset of the plurality of output devices, the I/O status information stored in the I/O status table including input status information pertaining to input states of the first subset of the plurality of input devices and input status information pertaining to input states of the second subset of the plurality of input devices;
(B) controlling the first subset of the plurality of output devices including the electric motor in accordance with the desired output states, the controlling step being performed by the interface module; and
(C) maintaining the I/O status table, the maintaining step being performed by the interface module, the maintaining step including (1) acquiring the input status information pertaining to the input states of the first subset of the plurality of input devices, (2) storing the input status information pertaining to the input states of the first subset of the plurality of input devices in the I/O status table, (3) acquiring, from the plurality of additional interface modules by way of the communication network, the input status information pertaining to the input states of the second subset of the plurality of input devices, and (4) storing the input status information pertaining to the input states of the second subset of the plurality of input devices. - View Dependent Claims (40, 41, 42, 43)
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44. A vehicle comprising:
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(A) first and second drive wheels;
(B) a plurality of input devices;
(C) a plurality of output devices, the plurality of output devices including first and second motor drive systems, the first and second motor drive systems including first and second electric motors, the first and second electric motors being respectively coupled to the first and second drive wheels and being capable of applying torque to the first and second drive wheels to drive motion of the vehicle;
(D) a communication network;
(E) a plurality of microprocessor-based interface modules, the plurality of interface modules being interconnected to each other by way of the communication network, each of the plurality of interface modules being coupled to respective ones of the plurality of input devices and the plurality of output devices by way of respective communication links, the plurality of interface modules cooperating to control the respective ones of the plurality of output devices by processing the input status information from the plurality of input devices to determine output states of the respective ones of the plurality of output devices.
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45. A vehicle comprising:
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(A) first and second drive wheels;
(B) a plurality of input devices;
(C) a plurality of output devices, the plurality of output devices including first and second motor drive systems, the first and second motor drive systems including first and second electric motors, the first and second electric motors being respectively coupled to the first and second drive wheels and being capable of applying torque to the first and second drive wheels to drive motion of the vehicle;
(D) a communication network;
(E) a plurality of microprocessor-based interface modules, the plurality of interface modules being interconnected to each other by way of the communication network, each of the plurality of interface modules being coupled to respective ones of the plurality of input devices and the plurality of output devices by way of respective communication links;
wherein each of the plurality of interface modules collects input status information from the respective ones of the plurality of input devices and broadcasts the input status information over the communication network to each of the remaining ones of the plurality of interface modules, each of the remaining ones of the plurality of interface modules receiving the input status information and locally storing the input status information. - View Dependent Claims (46, 47)
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48. An electric traction vehicle comprising:
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a vehicle platform;
a communication network;
a power source mounted on the vehicle platform;
a plurality of drive wheels rotatably mounted on the vehicle platform;
a plurality of electric motors coupled to respective ones of the plurality of drive wheels;
a plurality of microprocessor-based interface modules coupled to each other by way of the communication network, the plurality of microprocessor-based interface modules also being coupled to the plurality of electric motors and being configured to control the plurality of electric motors; and
an electrical connector to allow an electrical power-consuming device off-board the vehicle to be connected to the vehicle and draw AC power from the vehicle. - View Dependent Claims (49, 50)
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51. An electric traction vehicle comprising:
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a vehicle platform;
a communication network;
a power source mounted on the vehicle platform;
a plurality of auxiliary drive modules, each of the plurality of auxiliary drive modules comprising a microprocessor-based interface module, an electric motor, and a drive wheel, the auxiliary drive modules being capable of being added to and removed from the vehicle as a unit to achieve a corresponding increase or decrease in the drive capacity of the vehicle;
wherein the microprocessor-based interface modules are communicatively coupled together by way of the communication network when the auxiliary drive modules are coupled to the vehicle.
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52. An electric traction vehicle comprising:
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a vehicle platform;
a communication network;
an electrical power storage device;
a plurality of drive wheels rotatably mounted on the vehicle platform;
a plurality of electric motors coupled to respective ones of the plurality of drive wheels, power being provided to the electric motors from the electrical power storage device; and
a plurality of microprocessor-based interface modules coupled to each other by way of the communication network, the plurality of microprocessor-based interface modules also being coupled to the plurality of electric motors and being configured to control the plurality of electric motors;
wherein one of the interface modules is used to selectively discharge the electrical power storage device in response to an operator input. - View Dependent Claims (53, 54)
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Specification