Crawler vehicle and relative control method

• US 9,975,417 B2
• Filed: 12/22/2011
• Issued: 05/22/2018
• Est. Priority Date: 12/22/2010
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Prinoth, Spa (Leitner Snow BV)
• Original Assignee: Prinoth, Spa (Leitner Snow BV)
• Inventors: Kalmbach, Klaus, Lutz, Mathias, Milan, Gianluca, Giacometti, Alberto, Runggaldier, Martin
• Primary Examiner(s): Rocca, Joseph M
• Assistant Examiner(s): Duda, Conan D
• Application Number:
  US13/995,369
• Publication Number:
  US 20130333958A1
• Time in Patent Office: 2,343 Days
• Field of Search: 180 6521, 18066522, 180 6525
• CPC Class Codes: B60K 6/20 the prime-movers consisting of electric motors and internal combustion engines, e.g. HEVs
• CPC Class Codes: B60K 6/365 with the gears having orbital motion
• CPC Class Codes: B60K 6/445 Differential gearing distribution type
• CPC Class Codes: B60K 6/48 Parallel type
• CPC Class Codes: B60L 2200/40 Working vehicles
• CPC Class Codes: B60L 50/16 with provision for separate direct mechanical propulsion
• CPC Class Codes: B60Y 2200/252 Snowmobiles
• CPC Class Codes: B62D 11/16 the additional power supply being supplied mechanically
• CPC Class Codes: Y02T 10/62 Hybrid vehicles
• CPC Class Codes: Y02T 10/70 Energy storage systems for electromobility, e.g. batteries
• CPC Class Codes: Y02T 10/7072 Electromobility specific charging systems or methods for batteries, ultracapacitors, supercapacitors or double-layer capacitors
• CPC Class Codes: Y10S 903/91 Orbital, e.g. planetary gears

Abstract

A crawler vehicle having a first and second track driven by a first and second drive wheel respectively; an internal combustion engine; a mechanical power transmission assembly extending from the internal combustion engine to the first and second drive wheel; an electric power transmission assembly; a mechanical power connection configured to transfer energy between the mechanical power transmission assembly and the electric power transmission assembly; and at least one mechanical power transmission configured to transfer energy between the electric power transmission assembly and the mechanical power transmission assembly; the electric power transmission assembly extending from the mechanical power connection to the mechanical power transmission.

Claims

1. A crawler vehicle comprising:

a first track driven by a first drive wheel;

a second track driven by a second drive wheel;

an internal combustion engine;

an electric power transmission assembly;

a mechanical power transmission assembly extending from the internal combustion engine to the first drive wheel and the second drive wheel, said mechanical power transmission assembly including a mechanical power transmission which the electric power transmission assembly extends to and a mechanical power connection which the electric power transmission assembly extends from, wherein;

(A) when the crawler vehicle is travelling at a first determined traveling speed;

(i) a first amount of energy is transferred, via the mechanical power connection, from the internal combustion engine to the electric power transmission assembly, wherein the mechanical power transmission is configured to transfer at least part of the first amount of energy from the electric power transmission assembly to the mechanical power transmission assembly, and

(ii) a second amount of energy is transferred, via the mechanical power connection, from the internal combustion engine to the mechanical power transmission assembly, wherein the first amount of energy is greater than the second amount of energy; and

(B) when the crawler vehicle is travelling at a second determined traveling speed;

(i) a third amount of energy is transferred, via the mechanical power connection, from the internal combustion engine to the electric power transmission assembly, and

(ii) a fourth amount of energy is transferred, via the mechanical power connection, from the internal combustion engine to the mechanical power transmission assembly, wherein the third amount of energy is less than the fourth amount of energy.

2. The crawler vehicle of claim 1, wherein the electric power transmission assembly is parallel to a portion of the mechanical power transmission assembly.

3. The crawler vehicle of claim 1, wherein the mechanical power transmission assembly and the electric power transmission assembly are configured to transfer energy simultaneously and alternately, to the first drive wheel and the second drive wheel.

4. The crawler vehicle of claim 1, wherein the mechanical power transmission assembly and the electric power transmission assembly are configured to transfer energy simultaneously to the first drive wheel and the second drive wheel.

5. The crawler vehicle of claim 1, wherein the mechanical power transmission assembly includes:

a mechanical member configured to drive the first drive wheel and the second drive wheel;

a first gear train which defines said mechanical power connection and is configured to share energy from the internal combustion engine between the mechanical member and the electric power transmission assembly; and

a first shaft configured to connect the internal combustion engine to the first gear train.

6. The crawler vehicle of claim 5, wherein the mechanical power transmission assembly includes a second shaft configured to connect the first gear train to the mechanical member, said second shaft is interposed between one of the first drive wheel and the second drive wheel and the first gear train.

7. The crawler vehicle of claim 5, wherein the first gear train includes an epicyclic gear train.

8. The crawler vehicle of claim 7, wherein the electric power transmission assembly includes a first electric machine and the epicyclic gear train includes a sun gear coupled to the first electric machine.

9. The crawler vehicle of claim 7, wherein the epicyclic gear train includes:

a carrier coupled to the internal combustion engine; and

a ring gear coupled to the first drive wheel and the second drive wheel.

10. The crawler vehicle of claim 1, wherein the electric power transmission assembly includes:

a first electric machine coupled to the mechanical power connection; and

two second electric machines independently coupled to the first drive wheel and the second drive wheel respectively, and electrically connected to the first electric machine.

11. The crawler vehicle of claim 10, wherein the mechanical power transmission is configured to independently couple the first electric machine and the second electric machine to the first drive wheel and the second drive wheel, respectively.

12. The crawler vehicle of claim 1, wherein the electric power transmission assembly includes:

a first electric machine coupled to the internal combustion engine, and a first actuating device configured to operate the first electric machine; and

which includes a control device configured to control the first actuating device to share energy from the internal combustion engine between the mechanical power transmission assembly and the electric power transmission assembly based on the determined travelling speed of the crawler vehicle.

13. The crawler vehicle of claim 12, wherein the electric power transmission assembly includes:

two second electric machines coupled to the first drive wheel and the second drive wheel, respectively; and

two second actuating devices configured to operate the two second electric machines; and

wherein the control device is configured to control the two second actuating devices to share energy from the electric power transmission assembly between the two second electric machines.

14. The crawler vehicle of claim 13, wherein the control device is configured to control one of the two second actuating devices such that one of the second electric machines operates as an electric generator.

15. The crawler vehicle of claim 14, wherein the control device is configured to control one of:

the other of the two second actuating devices and the first actuating device such that one of;

the other of the second electric machines and the first electric machine operates as an electric motor and is powered by one of the second electric machines.

16. A method of controlling a crawler vehicle including a first track driven by a first drive wheel, a second track driven by a second drive wheel, an internal combustion engine, a mechanical power transmission assembly extending from the internal combustion engine to the first drive wheel and the second drive wheel and including least one mechanical power transmission, an electric power transmission assembly, and a mechanical power connection, the method comprising:

(a) when the crawler vehicle is travelling at a first determined traveling speed, transferring;

(i) a first amount of energy from the mechanical power transmission assembly to the electric power transmission assembly utilizing the mechanical power connection, and

(ii) a second, amount of energy from the electric power transmission assembly to the mechanical power transmission assembly utilizing the mechanical power connection, wherein the first amount of energy is greater than the second amount of energy; and

(b) when the crawler vehicle is travelling at a second determined traveling speed, transferring;

(i) a third amount of energy from the electric power transmission assembly to the mechanical power transmission assembly utilizing the mechanical power transmission, and

(ii) a fourth amount of energy from the mechanical power transmission assembly to the electric power transmission assembly utilizing the mechanical power transmission, wherein the fourth amount of energy is greater than the first amount of energy.

17. The method of claim 16, further comprising alternately transferring energy from the internal combustion engine to the first drive wheel and the second drive wheel utilizing the mechanical power transmission assembly and the electric power transmission assembly.

18. The method of claim 16, further comprising simultaneously transferring energy from the internal combustion engine to the first drive wheel and the second drive wheel utilizing the mechanical power transmission assembly and the electric power transmission assembly.

19. The method of claim 16, wherein the mechanical power transmission assembly includes a mechanical member configured to transfer mechanical energy from the internal combustion engine to the first track and the second track and which includes sharing energy from the internal combustion engine between the mechanical member and the electric power transmission assembly based on the determined travelling speed of the crawler vehicle.

20. The method of claim 16, wherein the electric power transmission assembly includes a first electric machine coupled to the internal combustion engine, and two second electric machines coupled to the first drive wheel and the second drive wheel and electrically connected to the first electric machine, and which includes transferring energy independently to the first drive wheel and the second drive wheel utilizing the two second electric machines, respectively.

21. The method of claim 20, further comprising transferring energy from the internal combustion engine to the first electric machine.

22. The method of claim 20, further comprising generating electric energy utilizing one of the two second electric machines.

23. The method of claim 22, further comprising powering one of:

the other of the two second electric machines and the first electric machine with the electric energy generated by said one of the two second electric machines.

24. A crawler vehicle comprising:

a first track driven by a first drive wheel,

a second track driven by a second drive wheel;

an internal combustion engine;

a mechanical power transmission assembly extending from the internal combustion engine to the first drive wheel and the second drive wheel;

an electric power transmission assembly; and

a control device configured to;

(a) when travelling at a first travelling speed;

(i) transfer a first amount of power from the internal combustion engine to the electric power transmission assembly, and

(ii) transfer a second amount of power from the internal combustion engine to the mechanical power transmission assembly, wherein the first amount of power is greater than the second amount of power, and

(b) when travelling at a second travelling speed;

(i) transfer a third amount of power from the internal combustion engine to the electric power transmission assembly, and

(ii) transfer a fourth amount of power from the internal combustion engine to the mechanical power transmission assembly, wherein the third amount of power is less than the fourth amount of power and the second travelling speed is greater than the first travelling speed.