Apparatus and method for detecting power abnormality of engine-type forklift truck

• US 9,952,290 B2
• Filed: 09/30/2014
• Issued: 04/24/2018
• Est. Priority Date: 12/24/2013
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Doosan Industrial Vehicle Co., Ltd. (Doosan Corporation)
• Original Assignee: Doosan Corporation
• Inventors: Kim, Pyung Soo
• Primary Examiner(s): POPE, DARYL C
• Application Number:
  US15/101,451
• Publication Number:
  US 20160370436A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,302 Days
• Field of Search: 340455, 340 31, 340506, 3404255, 340438
• CPC Class Codes: B60L 1/00 Supplying electric power to auxiliary equipment of vehicles circuit arrangements for charging batteries H02J7/00
• CPC Class Codes: B60L 3/0046 relating to electric energy storage systems, e.g. batteries or capacitors
• CPC Class Codes: B60L 58/22 Balancing the charge of battery modules
• CPC Class Codes: B66F 9/06 movable, with their loads, on wheels or the like, e.g. fork-lift trucks vehicle aspects B60 - B62; vehicles predominantly for transporting loads and modified to facilitate loading or unloading B60P1/00; low-lift hand trucks for transporting goods B62B3/06
• CPC Class Codes: B66F 9/22 Hydraulic devices or systems
• CPC Class Codes: B66F 9/24 Electrical devices or systems
• CPC Class Codes: F02D 29/02 peculiar to engines driving vehicles; peculiar to engines driving variable pitch propellers
• CPC Class Codes: G01R 31/371 with remote indication, e.g. on external chargers
• CPC Class Codes: G08B 21/182 Level alarms, e.g. alarms responsive to variables exceeding a threshold
• CPC Class Codes: H02J 7/0014 Circuits for equalisation of charge between batteries
• CPC Class Codes: H02J 7/0029 with safety or protection devices or circuits
• CPC Class Codes: H02J 7/00306 Overdischarge protection
• CPC Class Codes: Y02T 10/70 Energy storage systems for electromobility, e.g. batteries

Abstract

The present disclosures relates to an apparatus and a method for detecting power abnormality of an engine-type forklift truck, and the apparatus for detecting power abnormality of an engine-type forklift truck includes: a power supply unit including a pair of batteries so as to supply power to an electric device included in an engine-type forklift truck; an engine control unit (ECU) which receives power from the power supply unit; an equalizer which is provided between the power supply unit and the ECU so as to maintain a voltage balance between the pair of batteries and adjust a voltage of power supplied to the ECU; and an abnormality detecting unit which compares a voltage input from the pair of batteries with a voltage input from any one of the pair of batteries, and detects abnormality in the voltage balance.

Claims

1. An apparatus for detecting power abnormality of an engine-type forklift truck, the apparatus comprising:

a power supply unit including a pair of batteries so as to supply power to an electric device included in an engine-type forklift truck;

an engine control unit (ECU) which receives power from the power supply unit;

an equalizer which is provided between the power supply unit and the ECU so as to maintain a voltage balance between the pair of batteries and adjust a voltage of power supplied to the ECU; and

an abnormality detecting unit which determines whether abnormality is generated in the equalizer by comparing voltage input from the pair of batteries with a voltage input from any one of the pair of batteries, and detecting whether the pair of batteries has the voltage balance,

wherein the abnormality detecting unit detects a voltage of each of the pair of batteries, and when a difference between the detected voltages is equal to or larger than a predetermined voltage value, the abnormality detecting unit determines that the abnormality is generated in the equalizer.

2. The apparatus of claim 1, wherein the abnormality detecting unit detects whether the pair of batteries has the voltage balance when a predetermined standby time elapses after an engine starts.

3. The apparatus of claim 1, further comprising:

a warning unit which includes a warning buzzer generating a warning sound and a warning lamp generating warning light when the abnormality detecting unit detects an abnormal voltage of the pair of batteries.

4. The apparatus of claim 3, wherein the warning unit generates the warning sound or the warning light at a predetermined warning time interval.

5. A method for detecting power abnormality of an engine-type forklift truck, the method comprising:

a starting operation of driving an engine of an engine-type forklift truck;

a voltage detecting operation of detecting a voltage of each of a pair of batteries supplying power to an electric device included in the engine-type forklift truck;

a voltage balance determining operation of comparing a difference between the detected voltages of the pair of batteries with a predetermined voltage value; and

a warning operation of generating, by a warning unit, at least one of a warning sound and warning light when the difference in the voltage between the pair of batteries is equal to or larger than the predetermined voltage value in the voltage balance determining operation.

6. The method of claim 5, wherein the voltage balance determining operation includes calculating a difference value (V1) between the voltages input from the pair of batteries and a voltage input from any one of the pair of batteries, calculating an absolute value (V2) of a difference value between the difference value (V1) and the voltage input from any one of the pair of batteries, and comparing the absolute value (V2) with the predetermined voltage value.

7. The method of claim 5, wherein the warning operation includes generating, by the warning unit, at least one of the warning sound and the warning light at a predetermined warning time interval.

8. The method of claim 5, further comprising:

a warning determining operation of determining whether the warning unit generates the warning sound or the warning light when the difference in the voltage between the pair of batteries is less than the predetermined voltage value in the voltage balance determining operation;

a voltage balance re-determining operation of comparing the difference in the voltage between the pair of batteries with the predetermined voltage value when the warning unit generates the warning sound or the warning light in the warning determining operation; and

a warning off operation of turning off, by the warning unit, the warning sound and the warning light when the difference in the voltage between the pair of batteries is less than the predetermined voltage value in the voltage balance re-determining operation.

9. The method of claim 5, further comprising:

a standby operation of standing by for a predetermined standby time after driving the engine in the starting operation.