Vehicle and start/stop method for a vehicle

• US 9,994,222 B2
• Filed: 10/03/2016
• Issued: 06/12/2018
• Est. Priority Date: 10/03/2016
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Ford Global Technologies, LLC (Ford Motor Company)
• Original Assignee: Ford Global Technologies, LLC (Ford Motor Company)
• Inventors: Khafagy, Hafiz Shafeek, Rademacher, Eric Michael, Cai, Yunjiao, Kwong, Hank L., Makkiya, Hussam
• Primary Examiner(s): Scott, Jacob S.
• Application Number:
  US15/284,095
• Publication Number:
  US 20180093669A1
• Time in Patent Office: 617 Days
• Field of Search: None
• CPC Class Codes: B60W 10/06 including control of combustion engines
• CPC Class Codes: B60W 10/182 including control of parking brakes
• CPC Class Codes: B60W 2510/101 Transmission neutral state
• CPC Class Codes: B60W 2520/06 Direction of travel
• CPC Class Codes: B60W 2540/16 Ratio selector position
• CPC Class Codes: B60W 2552/15 Road slope, i.e. the inclination of a road segment in the longitudinal direction
• CPC Class Codes: B60W 2710/186 Status of parking brakes
• CPC Class Codes: B60W 30/18054 at stand still, e.g. engine in idling state hill holding B60W30/18118
• CPC Class Codes: F02N 11/04 the motors being associated with current generators
• CPC Class Codes: F02N 11/0822 related to action of the driver
• CPC Class Codes: F02N 11/0833 Vehicle conditions F02N11/0822, F02N11/0825 take precedence
• CPC Class Codes: F02N 11/0837 Environmental conditions thereof, e.g. traffic, weather or road conditions
• CPC Class Codes: F02N 11/084 State of vehicle accessories, e.g. air condition or power steering
• CPC Class Codes: F02N 2200/061 Battery state of charge [SOC]
• CPC Class Codes: F02N 2200/0801 Vehicle speed
• CPC Class Codes: F02N 2200/0802 Transmission state, e.g. gear ratio or neutral state
• CPC Class Codes: F02N 2200/0806 Air condition state
• CPC Class Codes: F02N 2200/124 Information about road conditions, e.g. road inclination or surface
• CPC Class Codes: F02N 2250/00 Problems related to engine starting or engine's starting apparatus
• CPC Class Codes: F16H 2059/663 Road slope
• CPC Class Codes: F16H 2312/14 : Going to, or coming from standby operation, e.g. for engine start-stop operation at traffic lights
• CPC Class Codes: F16H 61/32 : Electric motors actuators or related electrical control means therefor
• CPC Class Codes: F16H 63/483 : Circuits for controlling engagement of parking locks or brakes
• CPC Class Codes: F16H 63/50 : Signals to an engine or motor
• CPC Class Codes: Y02T 10/40 : Engine management systems

Abstract

A vehicle includes an engine, automatic transmission, and a controller. The engine is configured to auto-start and auto-stop. The automatic transmission has a shift-by-wire gear selector. The controller is programmed to, in response to shifting the gear selector to a neutral position while the engine is running, command the engine to auto-stop.

Claims

1. A vehicle comprising:

an engine configured to auto-start and auto-stop;

an automatic transmission having a shift-by-wire gear selector; and

a controller programmed to,

in response to shifting the gear selector to a neutral position while the engine is running, command the engine to auto-stop, and

in response to detecting reverse motion of the vehicle while the engine is auto-stopped and the gear selector is in the neutral position, command the engine to auto-start.

2. The vehicle of claim 1, further comprising an electronic parking brake, wherein the controller is programmed to, in response to detecting reverse motion of the vehicle while the gear selector is in the neutral position, activate the electronic parking brake.

3. The vehicle of claim 1, wherein the controller is programmed to, in response a road gradient being greater than a threshold while the engine is auto-stopped and the gear selector is in the neutral position, command the engine to auto-start.

4. The vehicle of claim 3, further comprising an electronic parking brake, wherein the controller is programmed to, in response to the road gradient being greater than a threshold while the gear selector is in the neutral position, activate the electronic parking brake.

5. The vehicle of claim 1, wherein the controller is programmed to, in response to detecting a vehicle fault while the engine is auto-stopped and the gear selector is in the neutral position, command the engine to auto-start.

6. The vehicle of claim 5, further comprising an electronic parking brake, wherein the controller is programmed to, in response to detecting the vehicle fault while the gear selector is in the neutral position, activate the electronic parking brake.

7. The vehicle of claim 1, wherein the controller is programmed to, in response to a battery charge being less than a threshold while the engine is auto-stopped and the gear selector is in the neutral position, command the engine to auto-start.

8. The vehicle of claim 1, wherein the controller is programmed to, in response to activation of an HVAC system while the engine is auto-stopped and the gear selector is in the neutral position, command the engine to auto-start.

9. The vehicle of claim 1, wherein the gear selector is shifted from a drive position to the neutral position.

10. The vehicle of claim 1, wherein the gear selector is shifted from a reverse position to the neutral position.

11. The vehicle of claim 1, wherein the gear selector is shifted from a park position to the neutral position.

12. The vehicle of claim 1, wherein the gear selector is shifted from a sport position to the neutral position.

13. A vehicle comprising:

an engine configured to auto-start and auto-stop;

an automatic transmission having a shift-by-wire gear selector; and

a controller programmed to, in response to shifting the gear selector to a neutral position while the engine is auto-stopped, inhibit the engine from being auto-started.

14. The vehicle of claim 13, further comprising an electronic parking brake, wherein the controller is programmed to, in response to detecting reverse motion of the vehicle while the engine is auto-stopped and the gear selector is in the neutral position, command the engine to auto-start and activate the electronic parking brake.

15. The vehicle of claim 13, further comprising an electronic parking brake, wherein the controller is programmed to, in response to a road gradient being greater than a threshold while the engine is auto-stopped and the gear selector is in the neutral position, command the engine to auto-start and activate the electronic parking brake.

16. The vehicle of claim 13, further comprising an electronic parking brake, wherein the controller is programmed to, in response to detecting a vehicle fault while the gear selector is in the neutral position, command the engine to auto-start and activate the electronic parking brake.

17. A vehicle engine start/stop control method comprising:

shifting an automatic transmission to a neutral position via a shift-by-wire gear selector while a vehicle engine is running;

auto-stopping the engine in response to the shifting; and

auto-starting the engine while the engine is auto-stopped and the gear selector is in the neutral position in response to a road gradient exceeding a threshold.

18. The method of claim 17, further comprising auto-starting the engine while the engine is auto-stopped and the gear selector is in the neutral position in response to detecting reverse motion of the vehicle.