Vehicle initiated remote engine start for battery charge maintenance and driver initiated remote engine start for vehicle preconditioning having battery charge maintenance priority

• US 9,784,229 B2
• Filed: 09/03/2014
• Issued: 10/10/2017
• Est. Priority Date: 03/09/2011
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Ford Global Technologies, LLC (Ford Motor Company)
• Original Assignee: Ford Global Technologies, LLC (Ford Motor Company)
• Inventors: Holub, Patrick Kevin, Van Wiemeersch, John Robert
• Primary Examiner(s): Fantu, Yalkew
• Application Number:
  US14/476,044
• Publication Number:
  US 20140379174A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,133 Days
• Field of Search: 320109, 320104, 320123, 320124
• CPC Class Codes: B60R 16/033 characterised by the use of electrical cells or batteries for propulsion puposes B60K1/04; supplying batteries to, or removing batteries from, vehicles B60S5/06; testing of charge state G01R31/36
• CPC Class Codes: B60R 25/00 Fittings or systems for preventing or indicating unauthorised use or theft of vehicles locks for vehicles E05B77/00-E05B85/00
• CPC Class Codes: F02N 11/0807 Remote means
• CPC Class Codes: F02N 11/0862 characterised by the electrical power supply means, e.g. battery
• CPC Class Codes: F02N 2200/061 Battery state of charge [SOC]
• CPC Class Codes: F02N 2300/306 with external senders or receivers, e.g. receiving signals from traffic lights, other vehicles or base stations
• CPC Class Codes: G01R 31/382 Arrangements for monitoring battery or accumulator variables, e.g. SoC
• CPC Class Codes: H02J 2310/46 for ICE-powered road vehicles
• CPC Class Codes: H02J 7/1438 in combination with power supplies for loads other than batteries
• CPC Class Codes: H02J 9/002 in which a reserve is maintained in an energy source by disconnecting non-critical loads, e.g. maintaining a reserve of charge in a vehicle battery for starting an engine

Abstract

One method for remotely starting an engine of a vehicle includes notifying, from the vehicle, a remote user of the vehicle that a battery of the vehicle has a charge level below a predetermined threshold. This method includes remotely starting the engine to charge the battery with energy from the engine upon receiving from the user a confirmation to start the engine. Another method includes remotely starting the engine in response to a command, from the user, to start the engine for preconditioning the vehicle. This method assesses charge level of the battery following engine start and adjusts engine-on time and vehicle settings to prioritize battery charge maintenance versus preconditioning based on the charge level.

Claims

1. A method comprising:

communicating, from a vehicle, to a cellular device or a keyless fob of a remote user a notification that a battery of the vehicle has a low charge level with a location of the vehicle upon the charge level falling below a threshold;

remotely starting an engine of the vehicle to charge the battery with energy upon receiving from the user a confirmation to start the engine in response to the notification.

2. The method of claim 1 wherein:

the step of communicating includes using a communications device of the vehicle and a communications device of the user.

3. The method of claim 2 wherein:

the communications device of the vehicle is at least one of a cellular transceiver, a Bluetooth transceiver, a WiFi transceiver, a WiMax transceiver, and a radio-frequency transceiver.

4. A remote engine start system for a vehicle, comprising:

a controller configured to use a communications device of the vehicle to communicate to at least one of a cellular device and a keyless fob of a remote user of the vehicle a notification that a battery of the vehicle has a charge level below a predetermined threshold with information indicative of a location of the vehicle upon the charge level falling below the predetermined threshold and to start the engine to charge the battery with energy from the engine upon remotely receiving from the user a confirmation to start the engine in response to the notification.

5. The system of claim 4 wherein:

the communications device of the vehicle is at least one of a cellular transceiver, a Bluetooth transceiver, a WiFi transceiver, a WiMax transceiver, and a radio-frequency transceiver.