Control device of a vehicle, control method and recording medium bearing a program implementing the method

• US 8,088,038 B2
• Filed: 12/17/2007
• Issued: 01/03/2012
• Est. Priority Date: 02/13/2007
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Toyota Jidosha Kabushiki Kaisha (Toyota Motor Corporation)
• Original Assignee: Toyota Jidosha Kabushiki Kaisha (Toyota Motor Corporation)
• Inventors: Yamazaki, Makoto
• Primary Examiner(s): PANG, ROGER L
• Application Number:
  US12/514,833
• Publication Number:
  US 20100069197A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,478 Days
• Field of Search: 477/3, 477/107, 477/111, 180/65.28, 701/52
• US Class Current: 477/111
• CPC Class Codes: B60K 6/445 Differential gearing distribution type
• CPC Class Codes: B60L 15/20 for control of the vehicle or its driving motor to achieve a desired performance, e.g. speed, torque, programmed variation of speed
• CPC Class Codes: B60L 2270/145 Structure borne vibrations
• CPC Class Codes: B60L 50/16 with provision for separate direct mechanical propulsion
• CPC Class Codes: B60L 50/61 by batteries charged by engine-driven generators, e.g. series hybrid electric vehicles
• CPC Class Codes: B60W 10/06 including control of combustion engines
• 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 20/15 Control strategies specially adapted for achieving a particular effect
• CPC Class Codes: B60W 2510/0642 Idle condition
• CPC Class Codes: B60W 2710/0644 Engine speed
• CPC Class Codes: B60W 2710/065 Idle condition
• CPC Class Codes: B60W 2710/0666 Engine torque
• CPC Class Codes: F02D 29/02 peculiar to engines driving vehicles; peculiar to engines driving variable pitch propellers
• CPC Class Codes: Y02T 10/62 Hybrid vehicles
• CPC Class Codes: Y02T 10/64 Electric machine technologies in electromobility
• 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: Y02T 10/72 Electric energy management in electromobility

Abstract

An ECU executes a program including a step of determining whether a manual shift mode is active or not, a step of calculating a lower limit revolution speed based on a vehicle speed and a gear selected by a driver when the manual shift mode is active, a step of changing a target idle revolution speed from a predetermined revolution speed to the lower limit revolution speed when a required engine torque is substantially zero and the engine is not in a fuel cut state, and a step of transmitting a control signal corresponding to the target idle revolution speed to the engine.

Claims

1. A control device of a vehicle having an internal combustion engine and a rotating electric machine connected to said internal combustion engine as running sources, and being configured to allow gear shifting in a shift mode selected from between an automatic shift mode and a manual shift mode by a driver, comprising:

a sensing unit that senses the shift mode selected from between said automatic shift mode and said manual shift mode by the driver; and

a controller that controls said running sources to change an idle revolution speed of said internal combustion engine when said manual shift mode is selected, as compared with an idle revolution speed attained when said automatic shift mode is selected.

2. The control device according to claim 1, wherein

said controller controls said running sources to increase said idle revolution speed when said manual shift mode is selected, as compared with an idle revolution speed attained when said automatic shift mode is selected.

3. The control device according to claim 1, further comprising:

a vehicle speed sensor that senses a vehicle speed;

a gear sensing unit that senses a manual shift gear selected by said driver when said manual shift mode is selected; and

a calculating unit that calculates the lower limit revolution speed of said internal combustion engine based on said vehicle speed and said manual shift gear, wherein

said controller controls said running sources to change said idle revolution speed based on said lower limit revolution speed when said manual shift mode is selected.

4. The control device according to claim 3, wherein

said controller controls said running sources to change said idle revolution speed to a value corresponding to said lower limit revolution speed, when said manual shift mode is selected.

5. A control device of a vehicle having an internal combustion engine and a rotating electric machine connected to said internal combustion engine as running sources, and being configured to allow gear shifting in a shift mode selected from between an automatic shift mode and a manual shift mode by a driver, comprising:

means for sensing the shift mode selected from between said automatic shift mode and said manual shift mode by the driver; and

control means for controlling said running sources to change an idle revolution speed of said internal combustion engine when said manual shift mode is selected, as compared with an idle revolution speed attained when said automatic shift mode is selected.

6. The control device according to claim 5, wherein

said controller includes means for controlling said running sources to increase said idle revolution speed when said manual shift mode is selected, as compared with an idle revolution speed attained when said automatic shift mode is selected.

7. The control device according to claim 5, further comprising:

means for sensing a vehicle speed;

means for sensing a manual shift gear selected by said driver when said manual shift mode is selected; and

means for calculating the lower limit revolution speed of said internal combustion engine based on said vehicle speed and said manual shift gear, wherein

said control means includes means for controlling said running sources to change said idle revolution speed based on said lower limit revolution speed when said manual shift mode is selected.

8. The control device according to claim 7, wherein

said control means controls said running sources to change said idle revolution speed to a value corresponding to said lower limit revolution speed, when said manual shift mode is selected.

9. A control method of a vehicle having an internal combustion engine and a rotating electric machine connected to said internal combustion engine as running sources, and being configured to allow gear shifting in a shift mode selected from between an automatic shift mode and a manual shift mode by a driver, comprising:

a step of sensing the shift mode selected from between said automatic shift mode and said manual shift mode by the driver; and

a control step of controlling said running sources to change an idle revolution speed of said internal combustion engine when said manual shift mode is selected, as compared with an idle revolution speed attained when said automatic shift mode is selected.

10. The control method according to claim 9, wherein

said control step includes a step of controlling said running sources to increase said idle revolution speed when said manual shift mode is selected, as compared with an idle revolution speed attained when said automatic shift mode is selected.

11. The control method according to claim 9, further comprising:

a step of sensing a vehicle speed;

a step of sensing a manual shift gear selected by said driver when said manual shift mode is selected; and

a step of calculating the lower limit revolution speed of said internal combustion engine based on said vehicle speed and said manual shift gear, wherein

said control step includes a step of controlling said running sources to change said idle revolution speed based on said lower limit revolution speed when said manual shift mode is selected.

12. The control method according to claim 11, wherein

said control step includes a step of controlling said running sources to change said idle revolution speed to a value corresponding to said lower limit revolution speed, when said manual shift mode is selected.

13. A recording medium computer-readably bearing a program for causing a computer to execute the control method according to claim 9.