Hybrid type construction machine

• US 9,013,051 B2
• Filed: 12/09/2013
• Issued: 04/21/2015
• Est. Priority Date: 12/28/2012
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Kobelco Construction Machinery Company Limited (Kobe Steel Limited)
• Original Assignee: Kobelco Construction Machinery Company Limited (Kobe Steel Limited)
• Inventors: Yamashita, Koji, Hirozawa, Mitsunori
• Primary Examiner(s): Patel, Tulsidas C
• Assistant Examiner(s): NGUYEN, VIET P
• Application Number:
  US14/100,308
• Publication Number:
  US 20140183876A1
• Time in Patent Office: 498 Days
• Field of Search: 290/36.R, 290/40.R, 290/40.B, 290/40.C, 290/50, 701/50, 373/48, 374/14, 318/139
• US Class Current: 290/40.R
• CPC Class Codes: B60L 2200/40 Working vehicles
• CPC Class Codes: B60L 50/15 with additional electric power supply with capacitors charged by engine-driven generators B60L50/40; with batteries charged by engine-driven generators B60L50/61
• CPC Class Codes: E02F 9/2075 of the hybrid type for vehicles in general B60W20/00
• CPC Class Codes: F02N 11/0862 characterised by the electrical power supply means, e.g. battery
• CPC Class Codes: Y02T 10/7072 Electromobility specific charging systems or methods for batteries, ultracapacitors, supercapacitors or double-layer capacitors

Abstract

Provided is a construction machine capable of achieving an energy conservation effect while restraining overcharge of an electrical storage device, including an engine, a slewing electric motor, an electrical storage device, a generator-motor, and an assist controller which causes the generator-motor to assist the engine to consume an electric power equal to or more than an electric power equal to a difference between the regeneration power and the maximum allowable charge amount, when a regeneration power regenerated by the slewing electric motor is equal to or more than a maximum allowable charge amount which is a maximum amount of an electric power within which the electrical storage device can be charged.

Claims

1. A construction machine comprising:

a lower traveler;

an upper slewing body mounted on the lower traveler so as to be capable of being slewed;

an engine having an output shaft;

an engine assist motor connected to the output shaft of the engine to be capable of assisting the engine with a consumption of an electric power;

a slewing electric motor for slewing the upper slewing body and regenerating a regeneration power when the upper slewing body is braked;

a regeneration power detector for detecting the regeneration power;

an electrical storage device electrically connected to the engine assist motor and the slewing electric motor to be capable of being charged with the regeneration power and discharging electricity;

a charging rate detector for detecting a charging rate of the electrical storage device;

a maximum-allowable-charge-amount calculator for calculating a maximum allowable charge amount which is a maximum amount of the electric power within which the electrical storage device is allowed to be charged, on the basis of the charging rate detected by the charging rate detector; and

an assist controller which causes the engine assist motor to assist the engine to consume an electric power equal to or more than an electric power equal to a difference between the regeneration power and the maximum allowable charge amount, in a case where the regeneration power detected by the regeneration power detector is equal to or more than the maximum allowable charge amount calculated by the maximum-allowable-charge-amount calculator.

2. The construction machine according to claim 1, further comprising:

an actual-revolution-number detector for detecting an actual revolution number of the engine; and

a revolution number controller for controlling a revolution number of the engine, wherein the revolution number controller reduces the revolution number of the engine in a case where a difference between the actual revolution number detected by the actual-revolution-number detector and a target revolution number for an control by the revolution number controller is beyond a prescribed range.

3. The construction machine according to claim 1, further comprising a temperature detector for detecting a temperature of the electrical storage device, wherein the maximum-allowable-charge-amount calculator calculates the maximum allowable charge amount on the basis of the temperature of the electrical storage device measured by the temperature detector and the charging rate detected by the charging rate detector.