Electrical system and method for a hybrid-electric vehicle
First Claim
Patent Images
1. A system, comprising:
- a battery for providing electrical power to a starter mechanism and an auxiliary load;
an electric double-layer capacitor (“
EDLC”
) electrically connectable to said battery and the auxiliary load;
a separation switch electrically connected between said battery and said EDLC that electrically separates said battery from said EDLC; and
a charge regulation switch electrically connected between said separation switch and said EDLC for regulating the charge stored by said EDLC;
said charge regulation switch configured to close when (1) the voltage across the battery is less than a predetermined maximum voltage of the EDLC and (2) the absolute value of the difference between the voltage across the EDLC and the voltage across the battery is less than a first predetermined calibration value.
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Abstract
An electrical system includes a battery for providing electrical power to a starter mechanism and an auxiliary load of a hybrid-electric vehicle. An electric double-layer capacitor (“EDLC”) is electrically connectable to the battery and the auxiliary load. A separation switch is electrically connected between the battery and the EDLC for electrically separating the battery from the EDLC and the auxiliary load. The separation switch is opened in response to the voltage across the battery being less than the voltage across the EDLC.
17 Citations
15 Claims
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1. A system, comprising:
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a battery for providing electrical power to a starter mechanism and an auxiliary load; an electric double-layer capacitor (“
EDLC”
) electrically connectable to said battery and the auxiliary load;a separation switch electrically connected between said battery and said EDLC that electrically separates said battery from said EDLC; and a charge regulation switch electrically connected between said separation switch and said EDLC for regulating the charge stored by said EDLC; said charge regulation switch configured to close when (1) the voltage across the battery is less than a predetermined maximum voltage of the EDLC and (2) the absolute value of the difference between the voltage across the EDLC and the voltage across the battery is less than a first predetermined calibration value. - View Dependent Claims (2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11)
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12. A method of controlling an electrical system, the system including a battery for providing electrical power to a starter mechanism and an auxiliary load, an EDLC electrically connectable to the battery and the auxiliary load, a separation switch electrically connected between the battery and the EDLC for electrically separating the battery from the EDLC, and a charge regulation switch electrically connected between the separation switch and the EDLC, said method comprising:
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sensing the voltage across the battery; sensing the voltage across the EDLC; opening the separation switch to electrically separate the battery from the EDLC in response to the voltage across the battery being less than the voltage across the EDLC; and closing the charge regulation switch when (1) the voltage across the battery is less than a predetermined maximum voltage of the EDLC and (2) the absolute value of the difference between the voltage across the EDLC and the voltage across the battery is less than a first predetermined calibration value. - View Dependent Claims (13, 14)
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15. A vehicle, comprising:
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at least one electrical load; a battery electrically connectable to said at least one electrical load for providing electrical power to said at least one electrical load; a generator electrically connected to said battery for supplying electrical power to said battery and/or said at least one electrical load; a starter mechanism electrically connectable to said battery for starting a motor; a starter motor switch electrically connected between said battery and said starter mechanism for controlling operation of said starter mechanism; an electric double-layer capacitor (“
EDLC”
) electrically connectable to said battery;a separation switch electrically connected between said battery and said EDLC that electrically separates said battery from said EDLC; and a charge regulation switch electrically connected between said separation switch and said EDLC for regulating the charge stored by said EDLC; said charge regulation switch configured to close when (1) the voltage across the battery is less than a predetermined maximum voltage of the EDLC and (2) the absolute value of the difference between the voltage across the EDLC and the voltage across the battery is less than a first predetermined calibration value.
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Specification