Economic cruise control

• US 9,156,472 B2
• Filed: 02/17/2014
• Issued: 10/13/2015
• Est. Priority Date: 04/26/2012
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Ford Global Technologies, LLC (Ford Motor Company)
• Original Assignee: Ford Global Technologies, LLC (Ford Motor Company)
• Inventors: Ross, Gunnar Robert
• Primary Examiner(s): Cheung, Mary
• Assistant Examiner(s): Sweeney, Brian P
• Application Number:
  US14/181,771
• Publication Number:
  US 20140163798A1
• Time in Patent Office: 603 Days
• Field of Search: 701/22, 701/93, 701/51, 180/65.1, 180/65.21, 180/65.28, 180/65.285, 903/903
• US Class Current: 1/1
• CPC Class Codes: B60K 2310/30 Mode switching, e.g. changing from one cruise control mode to another
• CPC Class Codes: B60K 31/00 Vehicle fittings, acting on a single sub-unit only, for automatically controlling vehicle speed, i.e. preventing speed from exceeding an arbitrarily established velocity or maintaining speed at a particular velocity, as selected by the vehicle operator fittings acting on two or more sub-units B60W30/14; speedometers G01P; systems or devices for controlling speed in general G05D13/00 ; in traffic anti-collision system for road vehicles G08G1/16
• CPC Class Codes: B60K 6/445 Differential gearing distribution type
• 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 10/10 including control of change-speed gearings
• CPC Class Codes: B60W 10/105 of electric type
• 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 30/00 Purposes of road vehicle drive control systems not related to the control of a particular sub-unit, e.g. of systems using conjoint control of vehicle sub-units
• CPC Class Codes: B60W 30/182 Selecting between different operative modes, e.g. comfort and performance modes
• CPC Class Codes: Y02T 10/62 Hybrid vehicles
• CPC Class Codes: Y10S 903/93 Conjoint control of different elements

Abstract

Economic cruise control where a response of a cruise control system used to control a powertrain is determined based at least in part on whether a driver of a vehicle system has selected to manage cruise control according to performance or efficient cruise control strategies. The performance strategy corresponding with fulfilling a request to accelerate or otherwise increase energy demands less efficiently, and in some cases more quickly, than if the request were to be fulfilled with the efficient cruise control strategy.

Claims

1. A method of operating a vehicle having first and second cruise control modes in which requested acceleration to a target speed is greater in the first mode than in the second mode, the method comprising:

commanding, by a controller, a transition to the first cruise control mode in response to vehicle acceleration being less than a predetermined threshold for a predetermined period of time during an acceleration request while in the second cruise control mode.

2. The method of claim 1 further comprising commanding, by the controller, an engine to accelerate the vehicle in the first cruise control mode.

3. The method of claim 1 further comprising commanding, by the controller, a traction motor to accelerate the vehicle in the first cruise control mode.

4. The method of claim 1 further comprising commanding, by the controller, a transmission to downshift while accelerating the vehicle in the first cruise control mode.

5. The method of claim 1 wherein the first cruise control mode is a cruise control performance mode and the second cruise control mode is a cruise control economy mode.

6. A vehicle comprising:

a transmission; and

at least one controller programmed to inhibit transmission downshifts when operating in a first cruise control mode and allow transmission downshifts when operating in a second cruise control mode, and in response to vehicle acceleration being less than a predetermined threshold for a predetermined period of time during an acceleration request while in the first cruise control mode, transition to the second cruise control mode to allow transmission downshifts.

7. The vehicle of claim 6 wherein the transmission is downshifted in the second cruise control mode to increase vehicle acceleration.

8. The vehicle of claim 6 further comprising an engine, and wherein the at least one controller is further programmed to accelerate the vehicle using the engine before downshifting the transmission in the second cruise control mode.

9. The vehicle of claim 6 further comprising a traction motor, and wherein the at least one controller is further programmed to accelerate the vehicle using the traction motor before downshifting the transmission in the second cruise control mode.

10. A vehicle comprising:

an engine;

a traction motor; and

at least one controller programmed to accelerate the vehicle using at least one of the traction motor and the engine in a first cruise control mode at a faster rate than in a second cruise control mode, and in response to vehicle acceleration being less than a predetermined threshold for a predetermined period of time during an acceleration request while in the second cruise control mode, transition to the first cruise control mode to increase vehicle acceleration.

11. The vehicle of claim 10 wherein the first cruise control mode is a cruise control performance mode and the second cruise control mode is a cruise control economy mode.

12. The vehicle of claim 10 wherein the at least one controller is further programmed to transition from the second cruise control mode to the first cruise control mode in response to vehicle speed not increasing within a predetermined time after the acceleration request.

13. The vehicle of claim 10 further comprising a transmission, and wherein the at least one controller is further programmed to downshift the transmission in the first cruise control mode.

14. The vehicle of claim 10 further comprising a transmission, and wherein the at least one controller is further programmed to accelerate the vehicle using the traction motor before downshifting the transmission in the first cruise control mode.

15. The vehicle of claim 10 further comprising a transmission, and wherein the at least one controller is further programmed to accelerate the vehicle using the engine before downshifting the transmission in the first cruise control mode.

16. The vehicle of claim 10 further comprising a transmission, and wherein the at least one controller is further programmed to select between using the engine and downshifting the transmission to accelerate the vehicle based on vehicle speed in the first cruise control mode.

17. The vehicle of claim 10 further comprising a transmission, and wherein the at least one controller is further programmed to downshift the transmission to accelerate the vehicle in the first cruise control mode.