Electric cooling fan control based on known vehicle load conditions

• US 8,015,953 B2
• Filed: 03/25/2008
• Issued: 09/13/2011
• Est. Priority Date: 03/25/2008
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Denso International America Incorporated (DENSO Corporation)
• Original Assignee: Denso International America Incorporated (DENSO Corporation)
• Inventors: Stramecki, Bryan Anthony
• Primary Examiner(s): Cuff; Michael
• Assistant Examiner(s): Nguyen; Hung Q
• Application Number:
  US12/079,137
• Publication Number:
  US 20090241865A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,267 Days
• Field of Search: 123/198.D, 123 4101- 4151, 701/48, 340/440, 340/441, 340/431, 340/438
• US Class Current: 123/41.12
• CPC Class Codes: F01P 2025/62 Load
• CPC Class Codes: F01P 7/048 using electrical drives

Abstract

A method of controlling a cooling fan for an engine of a vehicle may entail determining an engine coolant temperature, providing a normal load operation mode for the cooling fan and a high load operation mode for the cooling fan, determining whether a tow-haul operation is selected within the vehicle, determining a vehicle load of the vehicle by detecting whether a towing load sensor is activated or not activated, determining whether a vehicle load threshold is reached based upon activation of the towing load sensor, and operating the cooling fan. Operating the cooling fan may be based on the coolant temperature and one of the normal load operation mode and the high load operation mode. Operating the cooling fan in the normal load operation mode may mean reducing a cooling fan operation frequency and decreasing a cooling fan operation percentage over a predetermined coolant temperature range.

Claims

1. A method of controlling a cooling fan for an engine of a vehicle, the method comprising:

determining an engine coolant temperature;

providing a normal load operation mode for the cooling fan and a high load operation mode for the cooling fan;

determining whether a tow-haul operation is selected or is not selected within the vehicle by determining if a user controlled manual switch is activated or not activated; and

determining a vehicle load of the vehicle;

determining whether the vehicle load exceeds a vehicle load threshold; and

turning the cooling fan on and off depending upon a temperature of the engine coolant temperature.

2. The method of controlling a cooling fan according to claim 1, wherein the method step of determining a vehicle load of the vehicle comprises determining if a towing load sensor is activated or not activated.

3. The method of controlling a cooling fan for an engine of a vehicle according to claim 2, wherein after the method step of determining whether a vehicle load exceeds a vehicle load threshold, the method further comprising:

determining an operation percentage of the cooling fan based on the engine coolant temperature and the high load operation mode for the cooling fan.

4. The method of controlling a cooling fan for an engine of a vehicle according to claim 3, further comprising:

determining an operation frequency of the cooling fan based on the engine coolant temperature and the high load operation mode for the cooling fan.

5. The method of controlling a cooling fan for an engine of a vehicle according to claim 2, wherein after the method step of determining whether a vehicle load exceeds a vehicle load threshold, the method further comprising:

determining an operation percentage of the cooling fan based on the engine coolant temperature and the normal load operation mode for the cooling fan.

6. The method of controlling a cooling fan for an engine of a vehicle according to claim 5, further comprising:

determining an operation frequency of the cooling fan based on the engine coolant temperature and the normal load operation mode for the cooling fan.