Travel energy learning device, and method

• US 8,600,672 B2
• Filed: 04/08/2009
• Issued: 12/03/2013
• Est. Priority Date: 05/27/2008
• Status: Expired due to Fees

• Current Assignee: Aisin AW Company Limited (Aisin Corp.)
• Original Assignee: Aisin AW Company Limited (Aisin Corp.)
• Inventors: Hidaka, Tatsuya
• Primary Examiner(s): Nguyen, John Q
• Assistant Examiner(s): WHALEN, MICHAEL F
• Application Number:
  US12/385,448
• Publication Number:
  US 20090299558A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,700 Days
• Field of Search: 701/22, 701/23, 701/25, 701/29, 701/35, 701/123, 701/490, 701/26, 701/34.1, 903/903, 711/133, 711/135, 711/159, 702/179, 702/187, 702/197
• US Class Current: 701/490
• CPC Class Codes: B60K 6/48 Parallel type
• CPC Class Codes: B60L 2240/486 Operating parameters
• 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 20/00 Control systems specially adapted for hybrid vehicles hybrid vehicle design, B60K6/00; electric vehicles B60L
• CPC Class Codes: B60W 20/12 using control strategies taking into account route information estimation or calculation of non-directly measurable driving parameters B60W40/00
• CPC Class Codes: B60W 2510/104 Output speed
• CPC Class Codes: B60W 2510/105 Output torque
• CPC Class Codes: B60W 2510/244 Charge state
• CPC Class Codes: B60W 2520/10 Longitudinal speed
• 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: G01C 21/34 Route searching; Route guidance
• CPC Class Codes: G01C 21/3469 Fuel consumption; Energy use; Emission aspects
• CPC Class Codes: G16Z 99/00 Subject matter not provided for in other main groups of this subclass
• CPC Class Codes: Y02T 10/62 Hybrid vehicles
• CPC Class Codes: Y10S 903/903 having energy storing means, e.g. battery, capacitor

Abstract

A road section where the host vehicle is currently located is identified and the work rate of a transmission shaft, which transmits a driving force from a drive source of a host vehicle to a wheel, is derived based on a rotational speed and the torque transmitted by the transmission shaft. The energy required to travel through the road section is linked to the road section and accumulated based on the work rate derived while the host vehicle travels through the road section.

Claims

1. A travel energy learning device comprising:

a road section identifying unit that identifies a road section where a host vehicle is currently located, the host vehicle including an internal combustion engine and a motor;

a work rate information deriving unit that derives a work rate of a transmission shaft based on a rotational speed of the transmission shaft and a torque transmitted by the transmission shaft, the transmission shaft being configured to transmit a driving force from the internal combustion engine and the motor to a wheel of the host vehicle; and

an energy information accumulating unit that derives information that indicates the energy required for traveling the road section based on the derived work rate during travel of the host vehicle through the road section, links the derived information that indicates the energy required for traveling the road section to the road section, and accumulates the information that indicates the energy required for traveling the road section;

wherein;

the energy information accumulating unit accumulates plurality of information that indicates the derived energy required for traveling the specific road section, responsive to a plurality of travels by the host vehicle on the specific road section;

the energy information accumulating unit comprises a first accumulating unit, a second accumulating unit, and a deviation determining unit;

the first accumulating unit;

links the information that indicates energy required for current travel to the road section and accumulates such information if an accumulated quantity of information that indicates energy linked to a currently traveled road section and already accumulated by the first accumulating unit is below a predetermined quantity; and

links the information that indicates energy required for current travel to the road section and accumulates such information, and also discards the information that indicates the energy required for traveling the road section that corresponds to the oldest traveled road section accumulated by the first accumulating unit if the accumulated quantity of information that indicates energy linked to the currently traveled road section accumulated by the first accumulating unit has reached the predetermined quantity;

the second accumulating unit;

links the information that indicates energy required for current travel to the road section and accumulates such information if an accumulated quantity of information that indicates energy linked to the currently traveled road section and already accumulated by the second accumulating unit is below a predetermined quantity; and

links the predetermined quantity of information that indicates energy to the road section and accumulates such information, and also excludes information that indicates energy that has a largest absolute value with respect to the difference of the information that indicates energy required among the predetermined quantity of information that indicates energy already accumulated by the second accumulating unit and the information that indicates energy required for current travel, with a median value of the predetermined quantity of information that indicates energy already accumulated by the second accumulating unit, if the accumulated quantity of information that indicates energy linked to the currently traveled road section and already accumulated by the second accumulating unit has reached the predetermined quantity; and

the deviation determining unit determines whether the median value of the information that indicates the energy required for traveling the road section linked to the currently traveled road section that is accumulated in the first accumulating unit deviates from the median value of the information that indicates the energy required for traveling the road section linked to the road section that is accumulated in the second accumulating unit by at least a predetermined value, wherein if there is deviation by at least the predetermined value, then the information that indicates the energy required for traveling the road section accumulated in the second accumulating unit is overwritten with the information that indicates the energy required for traveling the road section accumulated in the first accumulating unit.

2. The travel energy learning device according to claim 1, further comprising:

an energy efficiency deriving unit that derives an energy efficiency of the host vehicle, which is the ratio of energy output by the transmission shaft with respect to energy output from the motor, when the host vehicle travels using only driving force generated by a motor; and

an electric power consumption deriving unit derives the electric power consumption of the motor based on the derived energy efficiency and the accumulated information that indicates the energy required for traveling the road section, and which is linked to the road section when the host vehicle is traveling through the road section using only the driving force generated by the motor, the electric power consumption deriving unit using the median value of the information that indicates the energy required for traveling the road section accumulated in the second accumulating unit to derive the electric power consumption.

3. The travel energy learning device according to claim 2, further comprising:

a route information obtaining unit that obtains a route from a departure point to a destination;

wherein the electric power consumption deriving unit that derives changes in electric power consumption of the motor in traveling the route based on the accumulated information indicates the energy required for traveling the road section respectively linked to a plurality of road sections that comprise the route.

4. A travel energy learning method comprising:

identifying a road section where a host vehicle is currently located, the host vehicle including an internal combustion engine and a motor;

deriving a work rate of a transmission shaft based on a rotational speed of the transmission shaft and a torque transmitted by the transmission shaft, the transmission shaft being configured to transmit a driving force from the internal combustion engine and the motor to a wheel of the host vehicle;

deriving information that indicates the energy required for traveling the road section based on the derived work rate during travel of the host vehicle through the road section;

linking the derived information that indicates the energy required for traveling the road section to the road section and accumulating the linked information;

accumulating plurality of information that indicates the derived energy required for traveling the specific road section, responsive to a plurality of travels by the host vehicle on the specific road section;

with a first accumulating unit;

linking the information that indicates energy required for current travel to the road section and accumulates such information if an accumulated quantity of information that indicates energy linked to a currently traveled road section and already accumulated by the first accumulating unit is below a predetermined quantity;

linking the information that indicates energy required for current travel to the road section and accumulates such information, and also discarding the information that indicates the energy required for traveling the road section that corresponds to the oldest accumulated traveled road section if the accumulated quantity of information that indicates energy linked to the currently traveled road section has reached the predetermined quantity;

with a second accumulating unit;

linking the information that indicates energy required for current travel to the road section and accumulates such information if an accumulated quantity of information that indicates energy linked to the currently traveled road section and already accumulated is below a predetermined quantity; and

linking the predetermined quantity of information that indicates energy to the road section and accumulates such information, and also excluding information that indicates energy that has a largest absolute value with respect to the difference of the information that indicates energy required among the predetermined quantity of information that indicates energy already accumulated and the information that indicates energy required for current travel, with a median value of the predetermined quantity of information that indicates energy already accumulated, if the accumulated quantity of information that indicates energy linked to the currently traveled road section and already accumulated has reached the predetermined quantity;

determining whether the median value of the information that indicates the energy required for traveling the road section linked to the currently traveled road section that is accumulated in the first accumulating unit deviates from the median value of the information that indicates the energy required for traveling the road section linked to the road section that is accumulated in the second accumulating unit by at least a predetermined value; and

if there is deviation by at least the predetermined value, overwriting the information that indicates the energy required for traveling the road section accumulated in the second accumulating unit with the information that indicates the energy required for traveling the road section accumulated in the first accumulating unit.

5. A non-transitory computer-readable storage medium storing a computer-executable travel energy learning program, the program comprising:

instructions for identifying a road section where a host vehicle is currently located, the host vehicle including an internal combustion engine and a motor;

instructions for deriving a work rate of a transmission shaft based on a rotational speed of the transmission shaft and a torque transmitted by the transmission shaft, the transmission shaft being configured to transmit a driving force from the internal combustion engine and the motor to a wheel of the host vehicle;

instructions for deriving information that indicates the energy required for traveling the road section based on the derived work rate during travel of the host vehicle through the road section;

instructions for linking the derived information that indicates the energy required for traveling the road section to the road section and accumulating the linked information;

instructions for accumulating plurality of information that indicates the derived energy required for traveling the specific road section, responsive to a plurality of travels by the host vehicle on the specific road section;

instructions for, with a first accumulating unit;

linking the information that indicates energy required for current travel to the road section and accumulates such information if an accumulated quantity of information that indicates energy linked to a currently traveled road section and already accumulated by the first accumulating unit is below a predetermined quantity;

linking the information that indicates energy required for current travel to the road section and accumulates such information, and also discarding the information that indicates the energy required for traveling the road section that corresponds to the oldest accumulated traveled road section if the accumulated quantity of information that indicates energy linked to the currently traveled road section has reached the predetermined quantity;

instructions for, with a second accumulating unit;

linking the information that indicates energy required for current travel to the road section and accumulates such information if an accumulated quantity of information that indicates energy linked to the currently traveled road section and already accumulated is below a predetermined quantity; and

linking the predetermined quantity of information that indicates energy to the road section and accumulates such information, and also excluding information that indicates energy that has a largest absolute value with respect to the difference of the information that indicates energy required among the predetermined quantity of information that indicates energy already accumulated and the information that indicates energy required for current travel, with a median value of the predetermined quantity of information that indicates energy already accumulated, if the accumulated quantity of information that indicates energy linked to the currently traveled road section and already accumulated has reached the predetermined quantity;

instructions for determining whether the median value of the information that indicates the energy required for traveling the road section linked to the currently traveled road section that is accumulated in the first accumulating unit deviates from the median value of the information that indicates the energy required for traveling the road section linked to the road section that is accumulated in the second accumulating unit by at least a predetermined value; and

instructions for, if there is deviation by at least the predetermined value, overwriting the information that indicates the energy required for traveling the road section accumulated in the second accumulating unit with the information that indicates the energy required for traveling the road section accumulated in the first accumulating unit.