Drive control device for hybrid electric vehicle

• US 8,527,122 B2
• Filed: 07/22/2010
• Issued: 09/03/2013
• Est. Priority Date: 07/23/2009
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: DENSO Corporation
• Original Assignee: DENSO Corporation
• Inventors: Yamada, Kazunao, Mizuno, Yusuke, Sakai, Tadashi
• Primary Examiner(s): To, Tuan C.
• Assistant Examiner(s): SMITH, JELANI A
• Application Number:
  US12/804,483
• Publication Number:
  US 20110022255A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,139 Days
• Field of Search: 701/22, 701/102, 701/101, 701/99, 701/110, 701/95, 701/533, 701/532, 180/169, 340/439, 477/3, 477/62, 477/80, 123/399
• US Class Current: 701/22
• CPC Class Codes: B60K 6/46 Series type
• CPC Class Codes: B60L 2210/40 DC to AC converters
• CPC Class Codes: B60L 2240/12 Speed
• CPC Class Codes: B60L 2240/622 by satellite navigation
• CPC Class Codes: B60L 2240/642 Slope of road
• CPC Class Codes: B60L 2240/68 Traffic data
• CPC Class Codes: B60L 2250/16 by display
• CPC Class Codes: B60L 2260/46 by self learning
• CPC Class Codes: B60L 3/12 Recording operating variables ; Monitoring of operating variables
• CPC Class Codes: B60L 50/62 charged by low-power generators primarily intended to support the batteries, e.g. range extenders
• CPC Class Codes: B60L 58/13 Maintaining the SoC within a determined range
• 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 10/26 for electrical energy, e.g. batteries or capacitors
• 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 2540/10 Accelerator pedal position
• CPC Class Codes: B60W 2552/15 Road slope, i.e. the inclination of a road segment in the longitudinal direction
• CPC Class Codes: B60W 2556/10 Historical data
• CPC Class Codes: B60W 2556/50 of positioning data, e.g. GPS [Global Positioning System] data
• CPC Class Codes: B60W 30/1882 characterised by the working point of the engine, e.g. by using engine output chart
• CPC Class Codes: B60W 50/0097 : Predicting future conditions
• CPC Class Codes: Y02T 10/40 : Engine management systems
• 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: Y02T 10/72 : Electric energy management in electromobility
• CPC Class Codes: Y02T 10/84 : Data processing systems or methods, management, administration
• CPC Class Codes: Y02T 90/16 : Information or communication technologies improving the operation of electric vehicles

Abstract

A drive control device is mounted to a hybrid electric vehicle that has an engine and a motor as a running power source, wherein the hybrid electric vehicle runs under a plurality of running modes that is switched in accordance with accelerator operation. The drive control device specifies a present position of the vehicle. The drive control device defines a schedule of the accelerator operation for each of a plurality of sections in a route from an origin to a destination in order to achieve an enhanced fuel efficient running of the vehicle. The drive control device displays a recommended accelerator operation for a present section of the plurality of sections, in which section the vehicle is presently located, in accordance with the schedule of the accelerator operation and the present position of the vehicle.

Claims

1. A drive control device mounted to a hybrid electric vehicle that has an engine and a motor as a running power source, wherein the hybrid electric vehicle runs under a plurality of running modes that are switched in accordance with accelerator operation, wherein the drive control device performs a drive control of the engine and the motor, the drive control device comprising:

means for specifying a present position of the vehicle;

means for defining a schedule of a control index, which is a target value of a battery charge amount for a battery that drives the motor, for each of a plurality of sections in a route from an origin to a destination in order to achieve an enhanced fuel efficient running of the vehicle,

means for defining a schedule of a recommended accelerator operation for each of the plurality of sections in the route from the origin to the destination based on the schedule of the control index in order to achieve the enhanced fuel efficient running of the vehicle, the recommended accelerator operation being defined as a recommended accelerator pedal position; and

means for displaying the recommended accelerator pedal position for a present section of the plurality of sections, in which section the vehicle is presently located, in accordance with the schedule of the accelerator operation and the present position of the vehicle;

wherein

the plurality of sections includes a battery charge section, in which the target value of the battery charge amount is increased;

the defining means defines the schedule of the recommended accelerator operation for the battery charge section such that the accelerator operation is executed in order to allow the battery to be charged in the battery charge section;

the displaying means includes an indicator configured to display an area indicating an accelerator pedal position of the vehicle, the area increases with an increase of the accelerator pedal position in order to indicate the accelerator pedal position of the vehicle to an operator; and

the recommended accelerator pedal position and the accelerator pedal position displayed by the displaying means guide the operator to depress an accelerator pedal of the vehicle so that the accelerator pedal position of the vehicle is equal to the recommended accelerator pedal position for the present section.

2. The drive control device according to claim 1, wherein:

the plurality of sections includes a battery consumption section, in which the target value of the battery charge amount is reduced; and

the means for defining the schedule of the recommended accelerator operation defines the schedule of the accelerator operation for the battery consumption section such that the accelerator operation is executed in order to limit the battery from being charged in the battery consumption section.

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

means for collecting running information, which is used for defining the control index, for each of the plurality of sections while the vehicle runs and for causing a storage device to store therein the running information, wherein;

the means for defining the schedule of the control index defines the schedule of the control index for each of the plurality of sections based on the running information stored in the storage device in order to achieve the enhanced fuel efficient running of the vehicle.

4. The drive control device according to claim 1, wherein:

the displaying means highlights a range of the recommended accelerator operation for the present section, on the indicator.

5. The drive control device according to claim 1, wherein:

the displaying means includes an indicator configured to display an area indicating the accelerator pedal position, which area changes with a change of the accelerator pedal position at a rate different for each of the plurality of running modes, in order to indicate the accelerator pedal position of the vehicle; and

the displaying means always displays a range of the recommended accelerator operation for the present section, at a predetermined position on the indicator.

6. The drive control device according to claim 1, wherein the control index for each section in the route is a specific battery charge amount for the battery at an end point of the section in the route.

7. The drive control device according to claim 1, wherein the recommended accelerator pedal position is the accelerator pedal position which will achieve the enhanced fuel efficient running of the vehicle.