Power supply apparatus, motor drive control method using the same and motor vehicle having the same mounted thereon

• US 20060165393A1
• Filed: 12/13/2004
• Published: 07/27/2006
• Est. Priority Date: 01/20/2004
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: DENSO Corporation
• Original Assignee: Toyota Jidosha Kabushiki Kaisha (Toyota Motor Corporation)
• Inventors: Yamada, Kenji
• Granted Patent: US 7,133,602 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 388/806
• CPC Class Codes: B60L 58/12 responding to state of charge [SoC]
• CPC Class Codes: Y02T 10/64 Electric machine technologies in electromobility
• 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: Y02T 90/14 Plug-in electric vehicles

Abstract

A power supply apparatus driving and controlling motor generators (MG1, MG2) includes a battery (10) generating an input voltage (Vb), a converter (110) converting the input voltage into a motor operating voltage (Vm) according to a voltage command value (Vmr), a smoothing capacitor (120) holding the motor operating voltage, inverters (131, 132) receiving the motor operating voltage and driving and controlling the motor generators (MG1, MG2) according to a torque command value (Tref), and a control unit (15) generating the voltage command value and the torque command value. When the motor generators (MG1, MG2) operate in the power running mode, the control unit (15) operates to make the torque command value smaller than an original required torque as necessary so as to allow the sum of electric power (Pm) consumed by the motors and an amount of change (Pc) in stored electric power of the smoothing capacitor (120) caused as the motor operating voltage increases not to exceed an output electric power limiting value (Pcvlm) of the converter (110).

Claims

1. A power supply apparatus driving and controlling a motor, comprising:

a DC power supply;

a converter converting a first DC voltage from said DC power supply into a second DC voltage according to a voltage command value to output said second DC voltage between a first power supply line and a second power supply line;

a chargeable and dischargeable electric charge storage unit connected between said first power supply line and said second power supply line;

a motor drive control unit receiving said second DC voltage between said first power supply line and said second power supply line and converting, according to a driving force command value, said second DC voltage into electric power for driving and controlling said motor; and

a control unit adjusting, when said motor operates in a power running mode, said driving force command value to allow the sum of electric power consumed by said motor according to said driving force command value and an amount of change in stored electric power of said electric charge storage unit, said change being caused as said second DC voltage changes, to be smaller than a limiting value of electric power output from said converter.

2. The power supply apparatus according to claim 1, wherein

said voltage command value is determined according to the number of revolutions and a required driving force of said motor and independently of said driving force command value.

3. The power supply apparatus according to claim 1, wherein

said DC power supply is chargeable,

said motor drive control unit converts, when said motor operates in a regenerative mode, the electric power generated by said motor into said second DC voltage according to said voltage command value and outputs said second DC voltage between said first power supply line and said second power supply line,

said converter converts, when said motor operates in said regenerative mode, said second DC voltage into said first DC voltage to charge said DC power supply, and

said control unit adjusts, when said motor operates in said regenerative mode, said voltage command value as required based on a relation between a combination of the electric power generated by said motor and an amount of change in stored electric power of said electric charge storage unit that is caused by a change of said second DC voltage and a limiting value of electric power input to said converter.

4. The power supply apparatus according to claim 3, wherein

when said motor operates in said regenerative mode, said voltage command value is adjusted by said control unit as required, after temporarily determined according to the number of revolutions and a required driving force of said motor.

5. The power supply apparatus according to claim 3, wherein

said control unit inhibits, when said motor operates in said regenerative mode and the electric power generated by said motor exceeds the limiting value of electric power input to said converter, decrease of said voltage command value.

6. he power supply apparatus according to claim 3, wherein

said control unit restricts, when said motor operates in said regenerative mode and the electric power generated by said motor is smaller than the limiting value of electric power input to said converter, an amount of decrease in said voltage command value so as to balance the amount of change in stored electric power of said electric charge storage unit that is caused by the change of said second DC voltage with a combination of the limiting value of electric power input to said converter and the electric power generated by said motor.

7. The power supply apparatus according to claim 1, wherein

said control unit calculates said amount of change in stored electric power based on said voltage command value.

8. The power supply apparatus according to claim 1, wherein

said control unit calculates said amount of change in stored electric power based on a detected value of said second DC voltage.

9. A motor vehicle comprising:

a power supply apparatus as recited in claim 1;

and

an AC electric motor provided as said motor driven and controlled by said power supply apparatus and capable of driving at least one wheel,

said converter provided as a voltage step-up converter capable of making said second DC voltage higher than said first DC voltage, and

said motor drive control unit including an inverter making conversion between said second DC voltage and an AC voltage for driving and controlling said AC electric motor.

10. A motor drive and control method for driving and controlling a motor by a power supply apparatus, said power supply apparatus including:

a DC power supply;

a converter converting a first DC voltage from said DC power supply into a second DC voltage according to a voltage command value to output said second DC voltage between a first power supply line and a second power supply line;

a chargeable and dischargeable electric charge storage unit connected between said first power supply line and said second power supply line; and

a motor drive control unit converting, according to a driving force command value, said second DC voltage between said first power supply line and said second power supply line into electric power for driving and controlling said motor,

said method comprising a first step of adjusting, when said motor operates in a power running mode, said driving force command value to allow the sum of electric power consumed by said motor according to said driving force command value and an amount of change in stored electric power of said electric charge storage unit, said change being caused as said second DC voltage changes, to be smaller than a limiting value of electric power output from said converter.

11. The motor drive and control method according to claim 10, wherein

said voltage command value is determined according to the number of revolutions and a required driving force of said motor and independently of said driving force command value.

12. The motor drive and control method according to claim 10, wherein

said DC power supply is chargeable,

said motor drive control unit converts, when said motor operates in a regenerative mode, the electric power generated by said motor into said second DC voltage according to said voltage command value and outputs said second DC voltage between said first power supply line and said second power supply line,

said converter converts, when said motor operates in said regenerative mode, said second DC voltage into said first DC voltage to charge said DC power supply, and

said motor drive control method further comprises a second step of adjusting, when said motor operates in said the regenerative mode, said voltage command value as required based on a relation between a combination of the electric power generated by said motor and an amount of change in stored electric power of said electric charge storage unit that is caused by a change of said second DC voltage and a limiting value of electric power input to said converter.

13. The motor drive and control method according to claim 12, wherein

when said motor operates in said regenerative mode, said voltage command value is temporarily determined, before said second step is carried out, according to the number of revolutions and a required driving force of said motor.

14. The motor drive and control method according to claim 12, wherein

said second step includes a sub step of inhibiting, when said motor operates in said regenerative mode and the electric power generated by said motor exceeds the limiting value of electric power input to said converter, decrease of said voltage command value.

15. The motor drive and control method according to claim 12, wherein

said second step includes a sub step of restricting, when said motor operates in said regenerative mode and the electric power generated by said motor is smaller than the limiting value of electric power input to said converter, an amount of decrease in said voltage command value so as to balance the amount of change in stored electric power of said electric charge storage unit that is caused by the change of said second DC voltage with a combination of the limiting value of electric power input to said converters and the electric power generated by said motor.

16. The motor drive and control method according to claim 10, wherein

in said first or second step, said amount of change in stored electric power is calculated based on said voltage command value.

17. Te motor drive and control method according to claim 10, wherein

in said first or second step, said amount of change in stored electric power is calculated based on a detected value of said second DC voltage.