Fuel tank pressure sensor rationality testing using V2X technology

• US 10,385,795 B2
• Filed: 03/22/2018
• Issued: 08/20/2019
• Est. Priority Date: 05/31/2016
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Ford Global Technologies, LLC (Ford Motor Company)
• Original Assignee: Ford Global Technologies, LLC (Ford Motor Company)
• Inventors: Dudar, Aed M., Tseng, Fling
• Primary Examiner(s): Antonucci, Anne M
• Application Number:
  US15/928,356
• Publication Number:
  US 20180209368A1
• Time in Patent Office: 516 Days
• CPC Class Codes: B60K 15/03 Fuel tanks chassis frame comprising fluid storage compartment B62D21/16 ; Details of the fuel feeding system related to the fuel tank F02M37/0076
• CPC Class Codes: B60K 2015/0319 with electronic systems, e.g. for controlling fuelling or venting for LPG tanks B60K2015/03013
• CPC Class Codes: B60K 2015/03197 Systems for exchanging data
• CPC Class Codes: B60K 2015/0321 characterised by special sensors, the mounting thereof
• CPC Class Codes: F02D 2041/223 Diagnosis of fuel pressure sensors
• CPC Class Codes: F02D 41/021 Introducing corrections for particular conditions exterior to the engine conjoint control of vehicle sub-units for propelling the vehicle B60W30/18
• CPC Class Codes: F02D 41/222 relating to the failure of sensors or parameter detection devices
• CPC Class Codes: G07C 5/008 communicating information to a remotely located station transmission systems for measured values G08C

Abstract

Methods and systems are provided for conducting a fuel tank pressure transducer rationality test diagnostic procedure in vehicles with sealed fuel tanks. In one example, vehicle-to-vehicle (V2V) or vehicle-to-infrastructure-to-vehicle (V2I2V) technology may be utilized to obtain fuel tank pressure transducer data from a select crowd of vehicles, where the select crowd may be based on the vehicles in the select crowd experiencing similar ambient temperature and weather as the vehicle being diagnosed. In this way, FTPT data from vehicles in the select crowd may be compared to FTPT data in the vehicle being diagnosed, in order to indicate whether the FTPT in the vehicle being diagnosed is functioning as desired, where such a diagnostic can be performed without unsealing the fuel tank on either the vehicle being diagnosed or the vehicles in the select crowd, and which may thus reduce undesired evaporative emissions.

Claims

1. A method comprising:

with a vehicle stationary and in a vehicle-off condition, sealing a fuel tank and conducting a fuel system diagnostic based on vehicle-to-vehicle communication where a controller of the vehicle wirelessly acquires a set of fuel tank pressure data from a plurality of other vehicles selected via the controller based on a distance from the vehicle and one or more conditions related to fuel tank pressure, and compares the set of fuel tank pressure data to data from a fuel tank pressure sensor of the vehicle;

maintaining the fuel tank sealed and indicating an absence of fuel system degradation

responsive to the set of fuel tank pressure data from the plurality of other vehicles correlating with the data from the fuel tank pressure sensor as determined via the controller; and

responsive to the controller determining that the set of fuel tank pressure data is not correlated with the data from the fuel tank pressure sensor, unsealing the fuel tank and indicating whether the fuel tank pressure sensor is degraded based on a pressure as monitored via the fuel tank pressure sensor.

2. The method of claim 1, wherein selecting the plurality of other vehicles based on the distance includes excluding vehicles from being selected that are outside a predetermined distance from the vehicle.

3. The method of claim 1, wherein wirelessly acquiring the set of fuel tank pressure data from the plurality of other vehicles involves direct communication between the vehicle and the plurality of other vehicles.

4. The method of claim 1, where wirelessly acquiring the set of fuel tank pressure data from the plurality of other vehicles involves multi-hop communication between the vehicle and the plurality of other vehicles.

5. The method of claim 1, wherein the vehicle-to-vehicle communication additionally or alternatively includes vehicle-to-infrastructure-to-vehicle communication.

6. The method of claim 1, where the data from the fuel tank pressure sensor correlating with the set of fuel tank pressure data from the plurality of other vehicles includes the set of fuel tank pressure data from the plurality of other vehicles having a similar direction and magnitude of change, within error margins, as the data from the fuel tank pressure sensor.

7. The method of claim 1, wherein the one or more conditions related to fuel tank pressure includes vehicle make/model.

8. The method of claim 1, wherein the one or more conditions related to fuel tank pressure includes one or more of proximity to structures which affect temperature and/or ambient conditions, presence of a sealed fuel tank, a fuel level within a threshold of another fuel level in the fuel tank of the vehicle, and/or a time since key-off greater than a threshold key-off duration.

9. The method of claim 1, further

indicating the fuel tank pressure sensor is functioning as desired and a presence of undesired evaporative emissions stemming from the fuel tank in response to the pressure in the fuel tank decaying to atmospheric pressure upon unsealing the fuel tank;

and

indicating that the fuel tank pressure sensor is not functioning as desired in response to the pressure in the fuel tank not decaying to atmospheric pressure upon unsealing the fuel tank.

10. A method comprising:

during an engine-off condition, sealing a fuel tank and monitoring a pressure in the fuel tank via a fuel tank pressure transducer, and in response to a pressure change greater than a threshold pressure change, conducting a fuel system diagnostic via vehicle-to-vehicle (V2V) or vehicle-to-infrastructure-to-vehicle (V2I2V) communications between a vehicle and a crowd of vehicles selected via a controller of the vehicle via the V2V and/or V2I2V communications, where the V2V and/or V2I2V communications further include wirelessly retrieving a set of fuel tank pressure data from the crowd over a predetermined time frame;

wherein conducting the fuel system diagnostic includes comparing, via the controller, the set of fuel tank pressure data from the crowd to fuel tank pressure data from the vehicle; and

in response to the set of fuel tank pressure data from the crowd not correlating within error margins with the fuel tank pressure data from the vehicle, unsealing the fuel tank and indicating a source of undesired evaporative emissions stemming from the fuel tank responsive to the pressure in the fuel tank decaying to atmospheric pressure as indicated via the fuel tank pressure transducer.

11. The method of claim 10, wherein the crowd is selected via the controller selecting a first subset of vehicles within a predetermined distance of the vehicle, and then selecting a second subset from the first subset based on one or more other conditions.

12. The method of claim 11, wherein the one or more other conditions include one or more of at least vehicle make/model being the same as the vehicle, a key-off condition, a time since key-off greater than a threshold key-off duration, and/or a presence of a sealed fuel system.

13. The method of claim 10, further comprising

indicating that the fuel tank pressure transducer is not functioning as desired responsive to the set of fuel tank pressure data from the crowd not correlating within the error margins with the fuel tank pressure data from the vehicle, and further in response to the pressure in the fuel tank not decaying to atmospheric pressure responsive to unsealing the fuel tank.

14. The method of claim 13, further comprising indicating that the fuel tank pressure transducer is functioning as desired and an absence of the source of undesired evaporative emissions in response to the set of data from the crowd correlating within the error margins with the fuel tank pressure data from the vehicle.

15. The method of claim 10, further comprising maintaining the fuel tank of the vehicle sealed in response to the set of fuel tank pressure data from the crowd correlating within the error margins with the fuel tank pressure data from the vehicle.

16. The method of claim 10, further comprising capturing vapors from the fuel tank of the vehicle in a fuel vapor storage canister in response to unsealing the fuel tank of the vehicle.

17. A system for a vehicle, comprising:

a fuel tank selectively fluidically coupled to a fuel vapor storage canister and to atmosphere via a fuel tank isolation valve, and a fuel tank pressure transducer for monitoring a fuel tank pressure; and

a controller, with computer readable instructions stored in non-transitory memory that, when executed, cause the controller to;

seal the fuel tank via commanding closed the fuel tank isolation valve and during a key-off condition where the fuel tank pressure changes by more than a threshold change, send a wireless request via one of vehicle-to-vehicle (V2V) or vehicle-to-infrastructure-to-vehicle (V2I2V) communications to a plurality of vehicles equipped with wireless communication capabilities within a predetermined distance of the vehicle;

generate a subset of vehicles from the plurality of vehicles based on the wireless request, the wireless request including data pertaining to fuel tank pressure;

retrieve one or more data sets pertaining to fuel tank pressure from the subset of vehicles; and

compare the one or more data sets from the subset of vehicles to a set of fuel tank pressure data from the vehicle, and in response to data from the one or more data sets not correlating with the set of fuel tank pressure data from the vehicle, command open the fuel tank isolation valve and indicate that the fuel tank pressure transducer is not functioning as desired in response to the fuel tank pressure not decaying to atmospheric pressure.

18. The system of claim 17,

wherein the controller stores further instructions to exclude vehicles from the subset of vehicles responsive to one or more of an absence of a sealed fuel tank, fuel level outside of a threshold fuel level, a key-on condition, a key-off condition for less than a predetermined threshold key-of duration, fuel tank temperature outside of a threshold fuel tank temperature, and temperature/humidity and weather conditions different than that of the vehicle.

19. The system of claim 17, wherein the controller stores further instructions to indicate a source of undesired evaporative emissions stemming from the fuel tank of the vehicle in response to the fuel tank pressure decaying to atmospheric pressure responsive to commanding open the fuel tank isolation valve;

and

wherein the controller stores further instructions to maintain the fuel tank isolation valve closed and indicate an absence of the source of undesired evaporative emissions and that the fuel tank pressure transducer is functioning as desired in response to data from the one or more data sets correlating with the set of fuel tank pressure data from the vehicle.